Claw Or Declaw
Claw Or Declaw
If you've noticed, your cat's claw is a specialized toenail which can perform a variety of functions such as grooming, feeding and territorial marking. It may grow in length but it also grows in layers, and as the older layers are shed, newer and sharper ones replace them.
The cat's claw is a movable digit that is attached to muscle, tendons and ligaments which give it the power to pull back its claws, grasp, hold or establish proper footing while walking, running, climbing or stretching. Declawing your cat means cutting off its sensory and motor nerves in that area areas that do not grow back for months making your cat numb in the paw and listless. He will also be in great pain and need pain killers to ease the pain.
Emotionally, too declawing may scar your cat as he will undergo personality changes, as a result. Declawing means that he has no way of defending himself and will do anything to defend himself even biting at the least provocation, or become depressed and mope all day.
When you find your cat scratching its paws against a surface, it is not sharpening its nails, but removing the outer worn out layers. You can trim his nails periodically so that he doesn't hurt himself. Or give him a scratch post or several scratch posts of different surfaces, just for variety. If you place the board at a slant or horizontally on the floor, it might help.
To encourage him to use it, hang a small toy from the top of the scratch post so that he can reach out to it. As a cat owner, you should not consider declawing as an answer to a behavioral problem in your pet since scratching is a manifestation of an underlying emotional problem.
Removing claws surgically:
Surgery is done by removing the last joint of each toe along the claw. Either it can be done on the front paws alone or on all four feet, but under anesthesia. Each cut heals naturally while the paws are kept bandaged until a day after surgery when most cats are discharged. They will experience a lot of pain soon after surgery. In the next seven days, cats usually walk very gingerly and recover quickly, feeling little or no pain.
Some facts about declawing:
- Declawing is the most important surgical procedure that bonds a cat and his owner.
- It is meant for indoor cats.
- Your cat will still be able to climb trees as before.
- For best results, declaw your kitten when he is three to five months old.
- This surgical procedure does not come with sutures.
Let your doctor know if your cat displays these symptoms:
- Swollen or bleeding feet
- He walks reluctantly
- His general health does not improve
Finally, declaw your cat only if he is destructive or harms your family with his scratching. But if you really love him and want him to lead a happy and normal life with you, don't declaw him.