views on declawing

[4Khan]

Im kinda stuck between a rock and a hard spot.
Mikey goes in this weekend to get neuterd (hes two years old).
He really needs it done since he has been very terratorial with my boyfriend dan (ie peeing on his stuff) and also with with spraying in my room where my mom's old cat used to spend a lot of time (we moved in once she bought a new house).

I used to have two cats that he grew up with since he was a kitten but now its just him. While he is being de-man-a-tized I was considering getting him 2paw declawed.

Im not sure i wanna do it. I mean this cat is my world...the most important thing in my life next to family ( and dan...kinda lol). Do you think its an evil thing to do to him. it would be a good idea for us since he has clawed up a chair....a door way and every now and then i gotta yell for him doing on the recliner. The biggest thing to urge me is we are getting a new thousand dollar leather sofa and I dont want little holes in it form him.(when he relaxes he retracts and releases his claws). Dan suggested we never let him on the new couch...yeah right...we have nap time,cuddle time, icecream time,pizza time,spongebob time, americas funniest home video time all on the couch! hes my lap dog! lol..

what are your views?
anyone ever have behavior problems with there cats afterward?
I just dont want my Mikey to change on me.

[tigerlily]

How old is this cat? You may have issues even if you neuter him. Depending on the age, it may no longer be a hormonal issue but a learned behavior. As for the declawing, I'm torn. I do not like to declaw adult cats, because the weight/pressure put on their paws. It's just a very painful process, and they often pop stitches or become unglued. I have two cats, one that had it's front claws removed as a kitten (and let me tell you this cat is NOT defenseless) and one that drives me nuts and still has it's claws intact. He was an adult when he came to us (stray) and I just couldnt' bring myself to do it. He does claw up and ruin somethings, but I try and take precautions to minimize the damge he does. I just chalk it up to pet ownership and do the best I can. Having said that, I don't have a brand new couch to consider. Anyway, there's my thoughts on it.

[Wild Bill]

I am not a cat person so you probably wouldn't like my answer!!!

[4Khan]

How old is this cat? You may have issues even if you neuter him. Depending on the age, it may no longer be a hormonal issue but a learned behavior. As for the declawing, I'm torn. I do not like to declaw adult cats, because the weight/pressure put on their paws. It's just a very painful process, and they often pop stitches or become unglued. I have two cats, one that had it's front claws removed as a kitten (and let me tell you this cat is NOT defenseless) and one that drives me nuts and still has it's claws intact. He was an adult when he came to us (stray) and I just couldnt' bring myself to do it. He does claw up and ruin somethings, but I try and take precautions to minimize the damge he does. I just chalk it up to pet ownership and do the best I can. Having said that, I don't have a brand new couch to consider. Anyway, there's my thoughts on it.

thanks!
Hes two years old. I too am torn!! i dont wann hurt my baby!!!

[tigerlily]

You may have trouble with him even after the neutering, but hopefully it will lessen the occurences and possibly eliminate them. I think neutering is a definitely good decision.

The poor little guy isn't gonna be too happy after the first surgery, but I figure it's all better for him in the end. At least with regards to that. My thought with having my first cat declawed, was that she'd live a better life with me even if she went through some temporary pain. Declawing is pretty painful. He'll have his paws bandaged and depending on the vet he may or may not have stitches that will also have to be removed. Are you prepared to keep him immobile as much as possible. Maybe a small crate? You don't want him to have the run of the house, because he can hurt himself if he's jumping off furniture. Again the decision is going to have to be yours. I'm sorry I can't be of more help.

[SatanicIntention]

I would NOT get him declawed. It would have been much better if he was neutered at 4 months old and declawed at the same time. Unneutered male cats/dogs are ANNOYING to say the least. He may get slightly better as the hormone levels drop, but he probably won't ever be the kind of cat he would have been if he had gotten neutered when he was supposed to.

Also, declawed cats know that they don't have claws and will instead start using their teeth. Not a good idea if you like your fingers.

[SnakeySnakeSnake]

We decided to not declaw our cats. We gave them scratching posts and trim their nails, but I guess it depends on the cat. I grew up with all declawed cats, but they bit more

[ivylea77]

Gee...our family encountered a similiar situation. We rescued our cat Yahya from the local humane society. He's getting nuetered next week. My husband wanted him declawed but I heard its such a terrible thing to do. Anyway after much research I found these from Petco

http://www.petco.com/Shop/Product.as...&familyID=9556&

They have them at petsmart too. I have not tried them since Yahya uses the scratching post and scrathing pad (love this thing) but I heard they're great.

http://www.petco.com/Shop/Product.as...&familyID=5858&

They sell them at walmart too.

Good luck and if you want some more to read this is a site I was looking at

http://www.declawing.com/htmls/declawing.htm

[Jeanne]

I have had both declawed cats and cats that are not declawed.

Looking at it from my point of view, I do think cats need to be kept control of when it means the health of your furniture or other things the cat may decide to destroy. However, declawing also meant the cats did bite more, they were not defenseless at all, but thier biting became a bit more problematic. I have tried the caps that was suggested by Ivy, they are great, as long as you remember to check them often to catch them when they do come off. As long as you catch them and replace the caps, you wont have torn up furniture or anything.

And as others have already said, the marking your cat is doing may or may not stop at his age after being nuetered. Really, it is best to spay or nueter an animal as young as possible to avoid this type of situation and many others that can arise from your pet not being fixed.

[wolfy-hound]

declawing is a major surgery involving the amputation of bone. It is not a minor thing, and is painful especially during recovery time which can be weeks. He also will not be able to use normal litter, and will have to use shredded newspaper. Me personally I think it is too painful for me to inflict on my cats. Trimming the nails, the nail caps, and other things to claw on are a better bet.
The paws can become infected afterwards too despite all precautions.
JMO
Wolfy