Cat declawing downside or?

Question

Is it wise to declaw a 3 year old housecat. If so, what id the typical cost and recuperation time?

Answer 1

Buy a big cat tree made out of natural wood. I declawed my first two before we had the tree because they were destroying my furniture. I bought another kitten after we had the tree and he always sharpens his claws there and no where else. It's great! And I feel better knowing I don't have to do that to him. He's a happier cat that doesn't bite because of it.  

Answer 2

Downsides include permanent disability and pain from the operation (not always, and very possible).  Declawed cats are frequently surrendered to shelters because they don't use litterboxes and have become biters.

There is no earthly reason to have this done to your cat.

And you may cause more serious problems in your household than whatever you might be dealing with right now.

Answer 3

declawing a cat is cruel and disgusting

Answer 4

if your cat is not destroying furniture with his claws then DO NOT declaw him... there is no reason to, its a painful procedure, and if you cat ever slips outside he cannot defend himself any longer

we have two cats... one is declawed and the other is not... the cat who is likes to slip outside and was once brutally attacked by a raccoon. his stomach was ripped open and it was the most awful sight in the world!!

Answer 5

first of all... i dont believe in de-clawing a cat... alot of people do when they are kittens. but claws are taking the only defense they have. why rob them of that?

please do not declaw a 3 year old cat.... its traumatic for them..  

its like.... oh .... i dont know......... someone removing your hands because they felt it would benefit them in some unselfish way or another....

Answer 6

Hold up your hand, and spread your fingers. Locate your first knuckle ( just below your fingernail)

Cut through it and eliminate your entire finger tip.

Cost would be anywhere from $200+ and recuperation would last several weeks, if not months as nerve endings are difficult to repair in an adult animal.

Consider "SoftClaws" or weekly trims instead.

Answer 7

I have never had a cat declawed. Never could find a reason to justify it. We always give our cat an alternate place to scratch and stop it immediately when she deviates from the 'program'.

I use a piece of cedar post in the basement for her to use but every once in a while she takes a preference to our couch. If we make a loud noise she stops and goes to the basement.

On top of everything else we live in the country and she spends the better part of the day outdoors. She would make a pretty poor mouser without all of her equipment and she would be defenceless from predators.

Answer 8

Definitely not wise.  Not only terribly painful to the cat and a mutilation, sometimes the cats will stop using the litter box in later years.

Find a treat that your cat loves and use the treats to train the cat to use scratching posts.  Put the posts near the cat's favorite napping places.  Always reward the cat with praise when s/he scratches the scratching post.  Always give a firm, "No" when s/he scratches anywhere else.  And keep his/her claws trimmed.

Thanks for taking the time to do the research!

Answer 9

DON'T DO IT!!!!!!

cat's tend to start biting because they don't have their claws, and nobody wants a cat that bites you all the time for no reason. a good alternative is to have someone hold the cat in place and just cut the little sharp points off with some fingernail clippers you can get the little clippers for babies. they work great.  they will also stop using the litter box and they hurt for a long time after it gets done. you wouldn't want someone taking off a part of your finger would you??? it's painful and degrading for a cat just like i'm sure it would be for you.  when i clip their fingernails i feed them a big meal and they get sleepy. then i get either my mom or my boyfriend to hold them and push out their claws so i don't accidentally clip the little pad on the bottom of their foot. i do this about once a month or every two months depending on how long it takes them to sharpen back up. but i only do the front claws so that way they have protection if they accidentally get outside.

Answer 10

It is better to declaw a cat when they are kittens. Older cats tend to have more complications with the surgery and it is very painful. The recovery time is longer also. If he/she is scratching your furniture try using something like double sided tape or spray her with water. Declawing is cruel.

Answer 11

It depends on why you plan to declaw. If it is tearing up the house or the people in it, and it would make you closer to him instead of afraid of him, then front declaw only. However, any cat over two years old is much more likely to suffer harmful effects during and after the surgery, such as lessened ability to overcome anesthesia, not being able to deal with the loss of something he's lived with for three years, biting, misbehaving, modifying his litter box behavior, and several other things. The bad stories you hear of cats whose personalities change drastically after declawing are almost always because the cats were older. Now, three is not ancient for a cat by any means, but really the ideal time to declaw, if you feel the need, is as young as possible (under a year). I would suggest trying a scratching post and clipping the nails. It is harder to teach an old cat new tricks like using a scratching post, but older cats do respond very well to lots of catnip. Also, if you handle the cat's front paws a LOT without clipping the nails, then it won't be as upset when you have cat nail clippers (not regular fingernail clippers - they pinch) in your other hand. You can also let the cat chew on or sniff the clippers. That helps my cat not be as scared. Overall, it is your decision, and don't let my opinion or anyone else's affect what you decide to do... it is between you and your vet.

Answer 12

Downside: Everything

No, it is not wise, it is cruel.

Do you realize what goes into declawing? It's not a simple removal of the claws but a full blown amputation of healthy toes. Declawing a cat means removing the entire first joint/bone of each toe. It'd be like cutting our fingers off at the first knuckle. Declawing causes extreme pain to the cat and often problems down the line (litter box issues from associating the litter box with pain after surgery, personality changes/biting/and skittishness from having their first line of defense removed, arthritis from having to learn a new way of carrying their weight etc.). I hear people say all the time "better declawed than in a shelter", but in actuality many declawed cats end up in shelters anyway because of the behavioral problems many experience after being declawed.

Did you know it's illegal and considered inhumane mutilation in most countries outside the U.S.? I've personally observed a declaw surgery at a vet and it's not a pretty sight to watch a vet take guillotine nail clippers and lop off parts of toes... very barbaric looking (laser removal has less healing time and pain, but really isn't that much better in the long run). Please don't put your furniture over your cat's wellbeing, it's just selfish. Declawing has no benefits to the cat, only the owner. There are numerous alternatives including scratching posts and surfaces, sticky tape, deterrent sprays, Soft Paws nail caps, and nail trimming. Please read more on this awful procedure before you consider it:

http://www.declawing.com/

http://www.littlebigcat.com/index.php?ac...

http://www.softpaws.com/

Answer 13

PLEASE DON'T DO THAT TO YOUR CAT!!!

that is the most terrible thing to do to an animal.

When a cat is declawed it isn't just the claw they remove.

they take the entire first part of the toe too.  You can look

this up if you don't believe it.  They literally cut off the first

part of the toe.

They do this so that the toenail won't be there at all to grow back.

Can you imagine the Pain that poor cat will endure???

Consider having your vet show you how to properly cut your cats nails, and you can also have nail guards put on him so that his nails have a rounded soft edge and won't harm furniture etc.

I hope you will change your mind.  Please .....

Answer 14

Declawing carries any of the normal risks associated surgery including the risk if dying under anesthesia.  It also posses the risk of permanent nerve damage, chronic pain, the cat developing litter box avoidance issue and the cat becoming a biter.  There are other safer alternatives including the use of softpaws nail caps and training to use the scratching post  

Answer 15

I work at a vet hospital and we do a lot of Declawing.  We use laser which doesn't seem to be as painful as the oldschool way of declawing.  Older cats do have a longer healing time because they have been used to the claws for so long.  They can can get infected if not done correctly.  At my work we keep them overnight so we can watch them carefully.  I don't know what others do.  Its definately more traumatic for older cats.  I don't have any bad feelings about it.  My indoor/outdoor cat lived for 19 years declawed and did fine.  It is true that they loose one defense but its a surgery that is completly up to you.  In CT they usually cost about 200 dollars.  The skin usually heal in 10-12 days.  Keeping them confined for that time is best but sometimes not ideal for the cat.  

Answer 16

you should not get a 3 year old declawed.. whatever they have been scratching, theyve been doing it for a long time so it must not be that bad. i saw a commercial for a product called peticure.. it is like a nail file for pets that does not hurt them, but rounds their nails so it doesnt cause damage when they scratch things. looked pretty promising

Answer 17

I worked as a CVT for 13 years. I was one of the most vocal anti declaw people in the hospital. Then I got my cat. She was a stray that came into the hospital. She had an illness that had to be cured before she could be spayed. I went through months of yowling and calling. I did finally get her spayed.

I trimmed my cat's nails every other week. I did that for over 2 years. Then we bought a new bed. It was the first expensive thing we were able to buy. The cat would lay on her back and 'walk' with her claws on the underside of the bed. At that point my morals went out the window. I got her all 4 declawed. Most people only do the front 2, which is fine. I chose to have all 4 done. When I brought her home, she went under our bed and stayed there for 5 days. I knew she was in pain, so I brought her food and fed her under the bed. I also put a bowl of water under there too. I took her out 3 times a day and put her in her litter box. She would go, then I would make her walk back to the bedroom where she went under the bed again. By making her use her feet to get back where she wanted to be, it helped her get used to the pain. She came out from under the bed on her own after 5 days. It took her some time to learn that she didn't have the claws to latch onto things when she jumped, but she made the adjustment. I have NEVER had litter box problems with her, she never bites, and she doesn't miss the claws. She's 11 now and has chronic illnesses, not from the declaw.

If you can find a hospital that does laser declaws, that would probably be a little less traumatic. It will be more expensive but worth it.

Oh yeah, I also give my cat baths.  

Answer 18

It's probably around $100 to declaw a cat, and about a week  recovery time. If your vet says he is healthy, your cat should be alright.