Conference misery::feline_v1

    Carlajeanne,
    
    I am sorry that the kids aren't feeling better.  It is very important
    that Verne and Shirl get their medications, since those medications
    will prevent further complications.  When they declaw, they often
    have to cut through bone, and it is very easy for infection to set
    in.  Be very careful to get that medicine into them, if you need
    help, maybe a friend or neighbor can help you.  If you put it in
    their food, and they don't eat, then they are not getting it.
    
    Are they using their litter boxes on their own or do you have to
    put them in it?  How are their litter habits doing since the operation?
    
    They are only 4 days out of surgery so they are probably still feeling
    truly rotten.  Hopefully, as time goes by, and they start feeling
    better, they will become more mobile.
    
    Jo

    I got Coelura declawed three months ago.  You'd never notice the
    difference, except there are no gouges left in your skin when she 
    swats you with her front paws.  :-)
    
    I must have an exceptional vet.  Others have told me all kinds of
    horror stories about bandages and kitty casts and infections and such,
    but when I picked Coelura up the next day, there were no bandages and
    barely any indication that anything was done.  Just some yellow
    antibiotics stain on her white paws and a bit of redness (sores) where 
    the claws once were.
    
    When I got her home, she was still a little groggy from the vet
    treatment, but started running around a playing like nothing had ever
    happened.  Once in a while she would jump down from a favorite perch
    and stop for a second, laying her ears back as if wincing in pain, but
    then she'd continue on, obviously okay.  She's *never* limped from the
    declaw.  By day three you'd never know she'd been declawed (except that 
    she kept falling off of things that she used to be able to stick to!).
    
    And I wasn't given any medication to give her.  The only special 
    instruction I was given was to put shredded newspaper in her box for 
    the next 3 to 5 days instead of kitty litter.  She hated the newspaper 
    and was back in kitty litter in three days.  I examined her carefully 
    and didn't notice any irritation to her paws.
    
    She has adjusted to the change very well, IMHO.  She uses her front
    paws like hands to grasp things and protects herself with her back
    claws and her teeth when she feels threatened.  And she's mostly an
    indoor kitty.
    
    How old are your kitties?  If they are older (non-kittens) that may 
    have a lot to do with the types of complications they're having.
    
    In deciding to get Coelura declawed, I did a lot of research on the 
    procedure and found that different vets make as much difference as the
    feline's age and circumstances.
    
    I don't regret doing it, but I'm biased by a happy ending.  Please
    keep us posted on your kids' progress.
    
    Carol

    I wonder if you should take them to a different vet?  Do you
    have confidence that this one didn't mess up the operation?
    Please let us know how things are going.
    

I had the same experience as in .2.
Tsunami was being her normal terrorizing self by the third day.
I would also consider talking to another vet.
Becky

I've had the same experience at .2 and .4.  I didn't give them any
    medication at all.  The only difference was the shredded newspaper
    in the litterbox. 
    
    They were back to their old selves in about 4-5 days.  Please
    talk to another vet.
    
    
    Shelly, Selina, & Mijo

    I HAVE HAD BOTH OF MY CATS DONE. FRONTS ONLY. THEY HAD NO PROBLEMS
    AND WERE JUMPING AROUND AS NORMAL IN A FEW DAYS. WE ALSO HAVE A
    FRIEND WITH TWO FOUR YEAR OLD CATS, SHE JUST HAD THEM DONE ON ALL
    FOURS, BOTH CATS ARE FINE, THEY PLAY JUST THE SAME.

    i couldn't get into this file at all yesterday; what a drag!  
    
    day five of rest; still no progress with shirl.  verne seemes to be
    fine, but of course he is eating very very well.  (in fact, i bet he
    puts on a pound or two from eating and not exercising.) but anyways..
    
    my parents have taken their dogs to this vet for about 10 years or so. 
    i know the family (dr. fitzgerald of fitchburg/lunenburg) well and
    don't think that they messed up the operation.  i am beginning to think
    however that the bandage on shirl's left paw could be why she won't put
    it down.  yesterday when i came home i put her on my chest (one of her
    favorite spots) and she put both feet down and i could tell that she
    had pressure on them.  the bandage looks like it is making her paw stay
    completely straight; thus making it hard for her to bend it the
    opposite way.  they really seem to be alert but yes, i did have to put
    her in the litterbox.  verne? well he was up on the window when i came
    home so i assume if he could get up there that he is doing fine. 
    
    i will be calling the vet today and i'm sure that he will tell me to
    bring them down and i'm hoping to get the bandages taken off and their
    little paws examined.  if i do not feel satisfied by what he says i
    will take them down the road to the fallon clinic.
    
    the kitties were 2 years old in april.  april 24th is my calculation..
    we had such a nice birthday party for them last year on that date
    (  :) at the thought of it) and they were spayed and neutered when they
    were 8 months old.  everything went fine with that operation.  i picked
    them up from the same vet the same day; they were groggy when they got
    home but in 48 hours they were fine.
    
    can't wait to call the doctor.  thanks for all your support.  i will
    keep you posted.
    
    
    carlajeanne, verne and shirl 
    
    

    We had our new kitten, Cassandra, declawed about 6 weeks ago and like
    .2, she was up and about the next afternoon. How can such a small cat
    make so much noise when thundering thru the house?  One small note;
    our vet uses a cyano-acrylate glue (sorta like Crazy Glue) to cover
    the wounds.  It wears off in about 3-5 days and doesn't require any
    bandages.  We used newspaper in the litter box for one day, but
    Peaches and Doobie objected, so back to regular litter. Checked
    Cassandra's (The Flea) paws a couple of times a day to make sure the
    litter wasn't causing a problem, but the CA glue does a good sealing
    job.
    
    Chuck
    

    Randy had Becky and Velcro done when they were broke.  The vet used
    the glue .8 talked about and kept them for about 3 or 4 days.  When
    Becky came home (she was first), everything was fine.  We had to
    have two litter boxes one with litter and one with paper and kept
    Becky locked in a bedroom with the paper one.  Trouble and Velcro 
    let us know in no uncertain terms that paper was not bathroom material.
    When Velcro came home we put him in the downstairs bathroom with
    the paper and he tried to dig his way out which started some bleading.
    I called the vet and they said as long as it had stopped not to
    worry about it.  I moved Trouble to the room with the litter but
    two days later she had figured out how to open the door, so I gave
    up.  I still have a box of litter and a box of paper for a few more
    days, in case he really is using the paper at least to urinate.
    The biggest problem I had was nobody would do solids in the paper.  They
    used the bathtub (at least it is easy to clean).  I've already told
    Randy NEVER AGAIN.  I think it was more trumatic for me than for
    the kids.  
    
    Bernice
    Mother_of_Trouble_Becky_&_Velcro

	My two cats were declawed 1-1/2 years ago.  I left each cat
	at the vet from Wednesday morning till Thursday night.  I don't
	recall any medication for the cats but do remember the paper
	in the litter box.  Both came home without bandages - it was
	2 days later.  T.K. was fine immediately.  Only problem he had
	was when he jumped on top of the refrigerator then decided he
	didn't want to jump back down. 

	Bandit was a wimp.  He refused to walk unless absolutely 
	necessary so I carried him everywhere for the weekend.  Then,
	for about 6 months after that he walked as if his feet hurt
	him.  The limp gradually ceased though and it was explained
	to me that his feet didn't really hurt.. they were just ultra
	sensitive.  I forgot to mention - Bandit had to go in twice
	for declawing since they missed a claw BETWEEN his toes the
	first time.  That is common with double pawed cats.

	I would give them till the end of the week to see how their
	feet feel but DO bring them in earlier if there is a sign of
	an infection.

	KAren

    o.k. this is the scoop.....
    
    called norman the vet (does anyone else know of the fitzgerald clinic
    on the lunenburg/fitchburg line in mass?) 
    
    he didn't seem really concerned and i figured that it probably was
    because he didn't want to give me any conclusions as to what could be
    wrong until he actually saw the paw.  BUT, to make a long story short..
    i'm bringing them both in today after work.  i figure verne will get
    the bandages taken off completely and shirl will have to get the sore
    paw rebandaged.  i hope i have alot of newspaper in the house! :)
    
    thanks again guys ... i'll keep you posted.
    
    
    carlajeanne
               

    Sounds like things will work out okay, Carlajean!
    
    Karen Luby just reminded me a an anecdote about a friend of mine whose
    cat had to be put in a kitty cast because of an impacted claw in the 
    declaw procedure.  Boots would limp around in the cast and get *lots*
    of sympathy.  He was still limping a bit when the cast was removed and
    I guess he got used to all the attention because one day he was running
    around the apartment just as fine as could be until he noticed "Mama"
    standing by the doorway, watching.  He stopped for a second, then
    *limped* over to her, mewing for attention!
    
    :-)
    
    Keep us posted!
    
    Carol
    

    Re: .12  This reply reminded me of a recent incident with Cassandra
    (The Flea).  Having not had kittens for many years, I had sorta
    forgotten the "kitty shuffle" and stepped back from the kitchen sink
    and stepped on The Flea's right paw (not very hard). She raised her
    paw to show me it hurt and naturally I picked her up and made a big
    fuss with apologies etc. In a few minutes it was all over with and she
    was racing around the house, but now if we catch her doing something
    she shouldn't be doing and yell(speak firmly) she stops and holds up
    her right paw to show that it got "stepped on".  Quite a little
    actress!
    
    Chuck
    

    
    I had both my babies declawed when they were about six months old.  
    My vet kept them for about 3 days (boy, did I miss them) and when
    I brought them home, much to my surprise, they ran around and beat
    each other up as if nothing happened.  :-)
    
    Joanne
    Puffin & Buttons
    

This sounds really wierd....Hannah was kept over for 1 day after de-clawing
and came home sprightly and totally unaware (as far as the humans in her
life could see) that she had been declawed.  She walked, ran, jumped, etc.
at will.  I used shredded paper for 1 week as prescribed, but no drugs
were required...I've had not ill effects since..

If your cats don't improve pronto, I'd see another vet.  This sounds
much worse than my experience indicates it should.

		Good Luck!

    yippee!  it was the bandages!  stupid me, they are fine and i'm happy
    as a cow.  i took them over and wow, did they have a line at 4:30....
    kinda made me wonder why all these people would be there if he wasnt' a
    good doctor.  but he is, and when he took the bandages off and i saw
    the red bandages i almost lost my lunch right there in the office but
    he told me that that was the color of the bandages ... red.  i told him
    he was full of (*&^ and he just smiled and said everyone says that and
    then showed me the rolls.  he was right.  but anyways... shirl was fine
    when he cut them off and i couldn't believe my eyes when she took two
    full steps on both feet and calmly walked into the cage.  verne on the
    other hand was alittle less than happy when we tried to cut the
    bandages off.  he moaned that deep moan that all kitties do when they
    are 'really' mad and his eyes were back as far as they could go.  and
    when he got his off he yowled and just layed there; too afraid i belive
    to move.  i had to put him back in the cage myself.  
    
    no charge again.. that was another nice thing and no medication was
    given.  i was told though to do the paper in the box (which i have and
    so far verne has been looking at the tub but nothing so far) and
    continue with the antibiotics for another couple of days.
    
    when we got home they licked their paws constantly but walked on them
    fine and by seven their feet looked pretty good.  no blood or anything. 
    shirl slept under my chin and purred contently the whole night.  i was
    upset that verne took to the fireplace corner (and i was cold from the
    brick too) but when i took him upstairs all he did was purr and try and
    grab my bathrobe tie again.  this morning shirly was jumping from table
    to table too and walking on the edges of my draws debating about
    whether or not to climb into my socks and go to asleep.
    
    so the story ended happily.  i know that i'm not completely out of the
    water because they could get infected but i don't think they will with
    the medicine and the shredded litter stuff.
    
    thanks again for all your support. you got me through the days when i
    was so mad that i wasn't with them and wanted to quit my job and go
    home to comfort them.  
    
    also, i'm happy that this note was started.  all replies seem to be
    positive which is something considering all the negative responses one
    gets about declawing.  seems like most of us have had no problem and
    hopefully the next person who gets their kittie(s) declawed will read
    this and feel better bout it.
    
    take care,
    
    carlajeanne and a happy vern and shirl
    
    :)
    

    CarlaJeanne -  Once you've made the decision and had the operation
    done we all just want to support you, no matter our personal feelings
    about declawing.  I'm so glad to hear that Verne & Shirly are better.
      Nancy DC
    

    Glad to hear that the kids are alright!
    
    :-)
    
    Carol
    

    Has anyone had an experience letting a declawed (fronts only) cat
    outside?  When we got Erm she was going to be an indoor cat since
    we lived in the city.  We have recently moved to a nice calm, rural
    area north of Atlanta and feel it would be nice to let the cats out. 
    Our other cat, Misty, used to be let out back when I was living at my
    parents, but has been inside for 3 years now.
    
    Are we asking for trouble by letting Erm roam around outdoors?
    
    Dave

    Here we go down the rat hole again.
    
    You will probably get hundreds of differing opinions on this but
    here goes....
    
    Mocha was a stray, we wanted to make him an indoor cat, had him
    declawed and he gets so nasty if he is kept in all the time he is
    unbearable. We let him out. I am very familiar with our surroundings
    and figured if something unexpected came up he would just have to
    do the best he can. That's 2 years now.
    
    He is a big cat (17 1/2 pound) so weight does help when someone
    else thinks they are going to be king of the hill, and he climbs
    trees, catches birds, chipmunks and all those things I don't want
    him to do.
    
    I suggest before you let your kitty out keep and eye on things in
    your neighborhood and see what's what. The when you are out in the
    yard let him out with you and see what happens.
    
    I do worry when I can't see Mocha, and am always glad to see him
    come running.
    
    Barbara

    Someone dumped a cat at my barn almost three years ago. It was 6 months
    before she let us touch her. It turned out she is declawed on the
    front, is a fine hunter and hates to be inside. If she feels treatened
    she bites instead of clawing. I am sure that it depends on the cat
    whether you could let yours out or not. We sit back 800 feet from a
    road with a 25 MPH speed limit, and none of the cats go near the road.
    If we were any closer to the street I wouldn't let them out at all.
    Sandy
    

If you are near a rural area, the disadvantage to letting a declawed cat out
is the fact that the cat cannot protect him/herself against a predator...
and they are out there.  The quieter an area you live in, the more likely
you are to have maurading skunks, coyotes, dog packs, etc. around your area.
A cat with all hardware intact is at a disadvantage with these....a cat
with no front claws is guarenteed to be dinner.  Although they can climb,
they cannot climb fast enough to save themselves and by the time they get
close enough to a hungry predator to bite it, they are caught.  

As your cat is already declawed, I would strongly suggest you don't let
him/her outside at all.  any trips outdoors will only encourage the desire
and it isn't safe.  If you really want them to get outside,
then invest in a giant breeders cage in which you can set up sitting
platforms at different levels and put the cats outside in the cage when
you are home to watch over them.  It's a nice way to spend some relaxing
time....sitting and reading a book beside the cage while your cats romp
in their cage.  There are models of cages that connect to one another
through "tunnels" and you can set up a "gradually increasing in size" play
area for the cats as you invest in more pieces.  One thing to remember,
any time your cat is restrained outside you must be careful not to leave
it in the hot sun too long - they can get overwarm.

    My daughter's boss let his declawed cat out and it was killed by
    a dog, her boss is a vet (should have known better.

    We've been thinking about this for a while and it looks like we'll keep
    both cats inside after all.  First, Misty, the old one, is pretty deaf
    and Erm is declawed.  But we've also had zero flea problems with them
    kept inside all the time.  Letting them in and out will most likely
    bring fleas and other pests into the house.
    
    Thanks for the information,
    Dave

    Having had to cope with 10 cats and fleas this year - a battle that
    I'm not sure we've won permanently yet - I can only reinforce your
    decision to keep the cats inside.
    
    You could consider leash training Erm.  We've had success with several
    of our cats, but like the cage idea, NEVER NEVER leave a leashed cat
    unattended.  Aside from attacks from dogs etc, they can climb trees
    and hang themselves.
      Nancy DC

    er...okay, this may sound like a silly question to all of you who
    have so much cat *expertise*, but the last note here prompts me
    to ask...declawed cats can climb trees?!?! How??! I have two cats
    at home, but I grew up on a cow/pig/chicken/horses farm that was
    loaded with cats, but declawing them/keeping them indoors all the
    time was just not done so I'm not familiar with cats kept like that.
    The two I have now are do-whatever-the-heck-they-feel-like-doing
    cats, and I'm not considering declawing or *indoorizing* them, but
    I AM curious how a cat with no front claws could climb a tree??!!
    Forgive me if I sound ignorant here...:-)...
    

    My guess would be that they probably push off with the rear claws more
    than pulling with the fronts.  Doesn't really matter around our new
    house, all the big trees have no branches until you get up around 20
    feet off the ground.
    
    Personally I've never seen a declawed cat try to climb a tree so I
    can't say for sure.
    
    Dave

    Oliver is not declawed (it's illegal here), but I have noticed that
    whenever he climbs up or down a tree, he 'cuddles' the trunk with
    his front legs. Perhaps that's how a declawed cat manages.
    They're cats, after all, and cats will find a way round ANYTHING!!!

    Cats mostly use their hind legs for climbing (tho I won't deny the
    front claws must come in handy).  Since my declawed female could
    scoot up and down a tree just as fast, if not faster, than the other
    cats, and in the same style, I imagine the climbing process is often
    akin to say, a logger going up a pole with those spiked boots. 
    
    
    In going down, the cat either backs down, turns around and jumps
    or just shoots straight down and hops off (no mid-trunk squirrel
    stops).  
    
    ---kim

Years ago, I declawed Midnight - front paws only -- the vet left "thumb nails"
and that was what I've seen him use when he's climbed a tree.  If I knew then
what I know now, I would never declawed him.  And yes, he uses his teeth
to his advantageous, when necessary.

/Marian - mother of 5 (and still looking for a blue-eyed, all white cat!)