Mom wanted me to tell you guys more about Soft Claws. It is this really cool thing someone invinted as an alternative to declawing. Mom does not think declawing should be allowed because of the pain and discomfort it causes us kitties. Andrea, the kitty before me, was declawed as a kitten. Bt the time mom got her a few years later she was already having pain in her paw bones. She would cry when mom touched her paws. Later near the end of her life she did not like to walk around or play much. Mom thinks her paw bones might have had some arthritis but it never seemed to really hurt her so mom didn't worry too much.
Soft Paws are a soft plastic cover that go over cat's claws. First you trim the claw, only the clear part not the part with the blood. That would hurt if you trimmed that. (If you are not sure about trimming cat's claws then get some advice from someone who knows what they are doing, like your vet.) Then you put a small amount of cat safe glue in the plastic cover and slip it onto the claw. This glue comes with the Soft Paw Package. We can still retract our claws with the Soft Claws on our claws. When the claw grows out then it sheds it's outer layer and the Soft Claw cover comes off with it. The whole thing starts over then.
This is what the Soft Claws look like and some of the colors they come in. They come in colors so that it is easier to see when they have come off. They make these for doggies too but mom has never heard of anyone using them on doggies so she does not know how well they work. They work great on us kitties though. I love to scratch the carpet and with these I can still make the scratching motion but it does not hurt the carpet. Isn't that great!
Here is what the green Soft Claws look like on me.
I was really good about letting mom put these on me but some kitties are not. If you need to then wait until your kitty is really sleepy and put them on a few at a time. Give him a yummy treat between so that he will associate yummy treats to having his Soft Paws put on and he will eventually love it! I still get a yummy treat even though I don't mind much.
I hope that this post will help someday to have a kitty not declawed. If we help prevent this in one kitty mom will be happy but she is hoping for more kitties to not have this happen. Please spread the word of Soft Paws as an alternative to declawing. Mom and I would really love it and I know Andrea would have too.
Kitty kisses
Beau
