de clawing

Question
I have been researching about de clawing my cat. He is going to be neutered in about 2 months and the vet would do it at the same time.

The thing is, we love him but he is scratches us alot when playing.
I don't care about the furniture but we are all scars.
Isn't de clawing reccomended in cases like this?

Answer
Please, please, put the declawing idea on hold until you have explored some of these other options. It should be considered only a last resort as it is very painful and traumatic for the cat and can produce a personality change that you may not like -- I know of a couple of cats who turned into biters after their claws were taken away. They actually became more aggressive because they had lost part of their natural defences.

Are you trimming your cat's claws regularly? This should be done every 7 to 10 days. A groomer at a local Petsmart can help you with tthis if you are having trouble.

Does he have an appropriate scratching post, one with sisal rope (generally irresistible to cats) rather than cardboard or fabric? If not, please get one for him. If you are located anywhere in New England write back and I'll refer you to someone who makes wonderful and not too expensive posts with sisal. You also want to keep rubbing catnip on the post to make it attractive to him.

Research "SoftPaws" on the net. They are plastic nail caps that glue on over the claws and make it impossible for the cat to scratch. They only last about a month and need to be replaced, but if you can commit to using them for a few months, you should see a major reduction in scratching after you stop because they just plain get out of the habit. The caps make them unable to get a purchase on scratching material so eventually they just stop doing it. I have reformed some really bad scratching habits with the aid of SoftPaws.

Consider also that some of what you are seeing is probably youthful exuberance -- you don't say how old he is but I presume he's a kitten. You can do some training here as well. When he scratches you, grab him by the scruff of the neck, say "no" firmly, and blow a puff of air in his face (they hate thhis). Then let him go quickly and try to return to your play. If you do this over time it should have an effect as well.

I hope this helps

iris