Conference misery::feline

    I never clip my cats' claws.  (They use their scratching posts a lot.)
    

    And we clip our gang every other week.  They're indoor-only, and 
    they also use their tree for scratching.                         

    Ours is indoor/outdoor (2 hour weekday -6 weekends) and upon my
    husband's insistance I clip every week.  he is getting used to it
    and gets a snack when done.  He does have a post as well as a favorite
    throw rug.  When of the reasons we need him to be clipped often is that
    my husband likes to roughhouse with Chief and Chief starts fighting
    back by kicking with his paws. This could turn real bloody.  Also we
    want to prevent as much stratches as possible on the furniture.  With
    sharper claws it is easier to accidently stratch something (i.e.
    jumping off of it we he knows he better jump NOW).
    
    					Sandy

    I think it depends on the cat and claws. Mine is indoor only, and her
    claws grow quite fast, so she is clipped fortnightly 1 mm, and she knows it
    is good for her. She purrs when doing it! She uses her cat tree, too.
    (And me, and it's really a bloody thing, but she needs fighting and I
    can endure that).
    
    	Nat

         I clip two of my cats every week, and the other every other week
    (he's a real terror to do anything to - and he's double-pawed).  They
    are indoor only and have their scratching rug, but they still don't
    wear them down enough.  I only clip the front claws.  The two I clip
    every week take care of their back claws, but the one I have trouble
    with doesn't do anything with his back claws, so it's once every 6
    weeks to the vet to have them clipped.
    
    			       		- Andrea

    
    
      I have two cats, one I need to clip often (every other week to every
    three weeks) the other one constantly uses his kitty climb to claw on,
    so he rarely needs it, she doesn't use the kitty climb.  They are both
    indoor cats.
    
    
    Diana, Tykey & Domino

    I don't think cats like to be rough-housed with.  If your cat is resorting to
    using claws, s/he is probably unhappy with what's going on.
    

    I would like to start clipping Eddie Haskell's claws - he likes to
    roughhouse, and although he tries to keep claws in, what wouldn't
    bother another kitten leaves me with scratches. 
    
    What sort of clippers should I use? Do you blunt clip, or shape them
    like they are now (French fingernails, or the rounded shaped
    fingernails)?
    
    ng

       We clip ours regularly...with a plain old drug store fingernail
    clippers.. I just take the tip off unless they've grown
    scimitars...then I take the curve off...being very careful not to go to
    the quick.. 
    
      Claws are just cat's fingernails...so it's totally painless...except
    to their dignity...
    
       I agree on the fact that it totally depends on the cat though.. This
    holds true for dogs as well. We never have to clip the claws on two of
    our Beagles, but the third Beagle is a "couch potatoe", so he doesn't
    keep his worn down like the two bonkers-bees do.. 
    
      John McD

    IS it OK to use garden-variety fingernail clippers to clip a cats'
    claws?
    
    Rico is active, but for some reason his claws still manage to catch on
    everything...material, rugs, skin...  ;^)
    
    K.C.

    
    	If you use people clipper, hold them sideways, otherwise you
    	can split the claw. The small scissor shaped cat clippers with
    	the little notch are excellent, if you hunt around you can find 
    	them for about $5. I think they are easier to use than people
    	clippers. 
    
    	Remember that even though your cat uses his scratching post, 
    	he is doing more sharpening than shortening! Clipping can be 
    	an easy task if you let your cat get used to it and Don't Let
    	Him Talk You Out Of It!! Many cats do a great imitation of `I'm
    	going to rip you to shreds if you don't let me go'. Learn to
    	recognize when your cat means it and when he's bluffing. I turn
    	all of my cats onto their backs when I clip, so I can really see
    	what I'm doing. Your cat may not appreciate this, but since I often
    	hold them like a baby, they're used to it. Try restraining/holding
    	them a few times first without clipping until they relax. Between my 
    	four, my mother's two, and my grandparents' one, I am constantly 
    	clipping somebody's cat!!
    
    	Sherry
     

        Mine are'nt opposed to clipping...in fact, they more often than not
    are extremely interested in what's going on...to the point where I have
    to sometimes push their nosey little head aside so I can see what I'm
    doing... The worst they ever do is get into a playful mood and begin
    the "bat-bat" with the other paw at the clippers...and sometimes
    they'll trie to chew on the clippers...or my hand, but in a playful
    rather than a frantic or scared manner. They seem to actually feel
    better afterwards, so they may be associating the clipping with a good
    feeling...
    
      J

    I've got one who needs to have them clipped once a week, back and
    front.  The other two can go about two weeks.  I use a pair of clippers
    that I got years ago at the pet store, they have a little hole in which
    you put the nail  tip.  I've gotten so used to using these over the
    years that I would be a bit apprehensive about using anything else.
    I've gotten the whole process down so that I can get through it quickly
    (I've got one who's feet break out in a sweat while he cries to high
    heaven.)  Even though they use the post and condo to scratch on I
    notice that they still get hung up on certain surfaces so I make it a
    point to keep the nails trimmed.
    
    Giudi

      I would like to start clipping Abigail's claws, as she tries to
    scratch some things she shouldn't. She does try to behave, though.
    I'm just afraid I'll hurt her. The first time we took her to the vet
    mine and Bob's hands and wrists were nothing but scabbed over
    appendages! The vet started to clip her nails and I never heard such
    caterwauling (no pun intended) in my life! When we left, everyone in
    the waiting room turned their eyes to the large carrier containing
    Hamilton. I told everyone " that wasn't him, it was HER"! pointing to
    Abby's carrier. No one could believe it. She even managed to give the
    vet a pretty good scratch on his finger. I have never had Hamilton's
    clipped. He's never used his claws for anything he shouldn't. He's
    a very reserved kind of guy and EXTREMELY well behaved. But I'd
    appreciate any tips I can get on claw clipping so I can (maybe) do
    Abby's myself. I'll try to find those special clippers that were men-
    tioned and please, all you experts out there, I need instructions!
    
    Thanx
    b.r., Hamilton & Abigail 
                            

Having had 5 stitches in my upper lip from an incident which occurred while
giving a bath to a very docile cat I am now a firm believer in clipping all cats'
claws.  I clip ours every week or so, and those of any other cat I'll be doing
anything with, such as combing.  Watch out for their teeth, too.  I was recently 
put into the hospital from a small bite on my hand.  Got a really severe case of
blood poisoning.  Even the really small, easygoing ones can get upset once in a
while and cause a lot of damage.

					Larry
					  ~

    
    I would be reluctant to clip the claws of any cat that goes outside. 
    Those claws are one of a cat's major weapons (with the teeth).  If your
    cat gets into a fight with another cat, or is attacked by another
    animal, or needs to run away and climb a tree -- he is at a
    disadvantage with blunted claws and could get seriously hurt.
    
    I personnally would only clip the claws of an indoor-only cat (as I did
    when my Rascal was a kitten and hadn't started going out yet).
    
    Food for thought --
    
    Valerie

    You can take the points off an outdoor cat's claws without disarming
    him completely.  The points are not the part that allows a cat to
    defend himself or to climb a tree.  
    
    Jo

>    You can take the points off an outdoor cat's claws without disarming
>    him completely.  The points are not the part that allows a cat to
>    defend himself or to climb a tree.  
    
in fact, if the cats' claws tend to hook badly, the tips can slow down the
cat and make if difficult for him/her to climb - the only way to escape large
predators roaming around out there. 

    I clip all my cats nails.  Indoor and outdoor cats.  Just the points
    so they don't tear each other and me up when they play.  Seems unfair
    to clip the indoor cat's and not the indoor/outdoor two cuz when
    they rassle I want them to be evenly matched.
    
    It doesn't prevent them from climbing to the top of our 6 foot cat
    climbing tree house!  They are still fast as lightning as they race
    through the house and up the sisal and carpet to the house at the
    top.  How my babies LOVE to play!
    
    Robin /Bosco, Money (Funny Money) and Smudge
    

    
    I'm the guy that initially put this note in, and finally got up
    the never last night to clip my Tabs nails:  Held him craddled
    in my arms like a baby, and he (shall I say) put up with it.
    Although he did look a little bewildered, as if to say "what in 
    the heck are you doing to me".  I just clipped off the points
    as a few of you had suggested.  Since he is an indoor/outdoor cat
    he needs to have some defensive/offensive claws.
    
    I used a pair of people clippers, but am gonna search for a
    cat clipper at Big Steve's in Marlboro.

    
    re: .17
    
>   You can take the points off an outdoor cat's claws without disarming
>   him completely.  The points are not the part that allows a cat to
>   defend himself or to climb a tree.  
    
    Hmmm.... that's interesting.  In .16, I guess I was assuming that the
    claws evolved as they were with a reason -- i.e. the sharp tips are for
    doing damage (as we all know they do on our skin :^).  If the points
    aren't used to fight or climb, what are they for?  And what part of the
    claw is used for fighting and climbing?
    
    Valerie

    Well, I will keep you all posted, but two days back I brought my
    Cyrano to the vet and had those newfangled "Soft Paws" applied to
    his front feet.  They look like clear little rubber tips, shaped
    like claws only with dull rounded edge, and they are simply glued
    over his clipped claws.  They should last approximately 4 to 6
    weeks, and if he does happen to chew them off and swallow them, well,
    not to fear!  They are non-toxic.  If he chews it off and doesn't
    eat it, you can simply glue it back on with the special Soft Paws
    glue.  However, this first sample went to my vet and so I had her
    apply them for me.  She was in stitches through the whole procedure,
    she said, and is dying to hear how I make out with them.  Anyway, it
    sure does beat having to declaw my cats, something I could never
    bring myself to do.  
    
    Two days into it, they are still in place and Cyrano has had no problem
    climbing his cat trees, jumping on and off counters, or terrorizing my
    other cats.  He doesn't even seem to notice they are there, in fact.
    
    Oh, and the Soft Paws do not interfere with thye normal retraction of
    the claws.
    
    Nancy

Valerie, I can show you scars on my right hand from where Honey did some
substantial damage with his clipped claws.  He was getting ready to pounce
on a skunk on my deck (next to the open slider) when I sneaked up behind him
and grabbed him.  It took 4 stitches to close the wounds on my hand.  When
prompted, his feline nature worked in spite of the tips of his claws being
shortened.  Gee, it hurts just to think about it.....

Nancy, can you keep us posted on the Soft Claws??  I've been thinking about 
that option for Mikey...

Mary

re: what the tips are for

nothing really.  The fact is that a cat in the wild would have enough wear and
tear on his paws to keep his claws worn down.  Even an indoor-only pet doesn't
get that much wear on the claws -- and the claws can, and often do, grow to the
point that they are a handicap - they curl under at the tips and catch on 
surfaces, slowing the cat down.  Remember, your cat is not indigenous to the
area in which it is living - this is a given for virtually every pet cat in
the world with the exception of those who live IN the old-growth forests that
remain in Germany and SCotland....I'm sure there aren't that many of you out
there as both are animal preserves.  The surfaces your cat walks/climbs on
are not the surfaces for which the cat was "ideally designed" by nature...
and few domestic cats climb consistently enough, or run over rough, rocky
terrain consistently enough, to keep things in good shape.  A manacured lawn
just doesn't take care of it.  

If you have an indoor/outdoor cat, examine his claws.  If he has a definite
curve under to them, then they should be tipped - to preserve the cat's speed
while eluding predators, AND to preserve life/limb/furnishings in your home.

    A skunk!  :-)
    

    re: .21
    
    Cats use the ligaments in their toes, and the muscles of the legs and 
    shoulders to climb trees and ward off predators.  A clipped claw can do 
    a lot of damage if the cat intends to do damage.  Many declawed cats 
    can still climb trees.  The reason is that in climbing up a tree, the
    cat is using it's powerful back legs to propel it upward.  The front
    toes are spread during climbing upwards, and they act as grappling
    hooks.  If the claws were too long and curved the cat would have
    trouble climbing since the front claws would "catch" in the tree trunk.
    
    It is also because of this that cats have so much trouble getting down
    out of trees.  Going up, the hind legs do all the work.  Coming down,
    the front legs are't powerful enough to steady the cat.
    
    Jo

    Ditto to what Jo says about declawed cats climbing trees. Our
    Mocha can climb a tree just like he had nails. (He is declawed 
    on the front,) and like cats with claws can't get down for beans.
    "Love those pine trees..!!"
    
    One thing we found after Mocha got declawed, watch his mouth if
    if gets angry. He can move with lightening fast speed and you
    end up with punctures or rips as deep as his fangs.
    
    Barbara

    re .22 Soft Paws I am skeptic. Those human inventions...
    I agree totally with .24. That's the way.
    Declawing? Huh. Hate. Typical human...
    
    Smokey (living in Nat's house)

    
    Hi again,
    
    Well, the Soft Paws are still holding strong.....none have been eaten
    off yet.  I chose to put them on because I have four cats.  Not one.
    Four.  Not that that is many considering all of my fellow feliners who
    have 7, 14, and 20 cats!  Still, as a "new" furniture owner, I wanted
    to try to keep the damage down to a dull roar.  After only two months,
    the sides of my new couch were beginning to show the wear from my cats
    using the arms as scratching posts (mind you, they do have a cat tree,
    a scratching post, a scratching box, AND the carpet).  But they own
    the house, and I've given up on the water bottle attempts and smells
    that cats are supposed to hate.  Nothing worked.
    
    Anyway, I would never declaw, but that is just my choice.  Still, if
    these Soft Paws work, I may invest in them on a regular basis.  As
    the nail grows out, they will eventually be clipped off and a new set
    applied.  It's a bit costly, but then, so is damage to furniture. 
    
    Nancy

	I have 2 indoor/outdoor cats, and the only time I need to get one
	of their claws trimmed is after a 2-week stint in the cattery when I"m 
	off on hols.
	Ones claws are longer, but go back to normal after a run-around for a 
	few days, the other seems to grow long and start to curl, and doesn't 
	wear the tips back down.
	They both have scratching posts in the cattery - one must just be 
	lazier than the other!!!

	Heather

    re .29
    
    Nancy,
    
    I really appreciate the information you've been putting in about Soft
    Paws.  My cats have shredded my furniture.  When my condo sells and I
    can afford to buy new furniture I to want to protect my furniture from
    the lil darlings.  I'm looking forward to finding out how well these
    really work.
    
    Karen

    Karen....
    
    RE:  Softpaws
    
    They're still working..............  :-)
    
    Nan

    The way I know when it's time to clip nails is when I can see Zenos
    nails when they're not extended(he has black feet so they're easy to
    see).  It's alot easier with two people.  Dave will usually hold one
    down, once he captures them-they always seem to know! If you hold their
    bottom feet with one hand, and then hold the arm that you're going to
    clip at the elbow, they can't pull their paw away.  So Dave holds and I
    clip.
    Pearl has a habit of chewing on her nails when they get too long,
    that's another way I know when it's time.
    
    shannon

    >> "...bottom feet with one hand, and then hold the arm that you're 
    >>  going to clip at the elbow..."
    
    Who was it that was finding funny things like this in the file? :') 
    The first time I read this I thought "gee, I always kid my cats that if
    they don't hold still I might just take off their whole paws, but here
    is someone that is clipping all the way up to the elbow!!" :') :')
    
    Jo

    No no no no -I said that wrong!
    
    If you hold their arm by the elbow, they can't pull back when you're
    clipping.
    
    Sorry if any of you tried this over the weekend and now have a 3 pawed
    kitty!
    
    shannon
    

    
    Here's my method for clipping claws (a one-person method):
    
    	Pick up one cat (after chasing if necessary)
    	Place cat on kitchen table
    	Get cat to sit down then lower the front end so the cat is laying
    	    down on his/her stomach
    	Lean over the cat, putting some of your upper body weight on the
    	    cat to hold him/her down
    	Take one paw and clip the claws (it is right in front of your face
    	    now, since you are leaning over)
    	Take the other paw and clip the claws
    	Reward the cat for his/her cooperation!
    
    Valerie

re .34 (Jo)

It was me who started the note about finding "funny things" in the file.  (I
write so rarely that I have to take credit when I do write something :-))

Re trimming claws at the elbow:  (:-))

A while ago I knew someone who had just gotten a kitten.  She was lamenting how
the kitten had ruined her leather jacket, and said (kidding of course) she
was going to have the kitten de-pawed.  We (the others in the conversation)
asked how the kitty would walk around without paws, and she said she'd get
some wheels and attach them, so she'd be a roller-kitty!

My husband Bill decided this weekend to trim the claws on our little kitties.
Amazingly enough, he did it all without my help, and was even up to the second
"victim" before I even knew what he was doing!!  Talk about having a way
with animals!!  He'd only done it once before, right after I bought the
clippers back in November.

Jill

My method for claw trimming ...

Catch Cat (takes a while usually! (-:)
Sit in chair.
Put cat on your lap so that back is agsinst your stomach.
Put cat's bottom two feet between your legs.
Put one arm around the front of the cat and hold the right paw.  
Clip Claws.
When doing the left paw, put the right paw under your right hand.  When
doing back paws,  hold cat FIRMLY under one arm. (-:

the only one that this doesn't work with is Kyra.  I've got to 
completely wrap her in a towel, and then I have a lot of difficulty.

Honey and Marni actually spread their toes for me to clip their claws! (-:

Holly

    re .37
    I really do not wanna be cheeky, but I think this method works only for
    girlies, not for us...
    
    Nat (grinning ashamed)

    As a reminder to those with cats that wear collars - it's important to
    trim the cat's nails often.  Boo, my mother's cat, tried to scratch an
    itch and ended up getting one of his toes from his back leg stuck on
    the clip of his flea collar.  He was frantically running around the
    house knocking things over and screaming his head off while my parents
    tried to catch up to him.  Ma said she has never seen him freak out
    like that before.  (Boo's real name is Peaches but you just don't call
    a 21 pound tomcat by that name :^)