Adopting Declawed Ragdoll

[Jupalmer]

Hi, all
I want to adopt a rescue cat and I saw ragdoll but for some reason it says she was declawed. Poor kitty is 5 years old now... I wonder what impact did it have on her and if she will have strange behavior issues.
Thanks for your advice

 

[Columbine]

Declawed cats often have behavioural issues as a result of this barbaric procedure - in fact, it's often the reason they end up in shelters in the first place

Far and away the most common problem is iitterbox avoidance. Quite simply, stepping on most litters hurts, and so it's vital to use the softest litter possible to make things easier on their paws. Yesterday's News and sWheat Scoop are two of the most commonly recommended litters for declared cats. Avoid clay type or gritty litters at all costs - these will be the most painful for her. For some kitties, even soft litters are too painful, and puppy pee pads can be a good option for them (though they do require very frequent changing - really, after every use).

Declawed cats are often in lifelong pain, and are more prone to developing arthritis, especially in their toes and paws. They are also likely to have back pain, caused by a lifetime of walking in an unnatural way. Cats naturally walk on their toes, but this is often way too painful after declawing surgery, so they shift their weight further back. Over time, this can set up all kinds of problems.

Lastly, declawed cats are more likely to be biters, as they have lost their primary means of defence. This loss can make them more anxious too.

I'm not saying for a second that you shouldn't adopt this sweet girl - just that she'll have special needs as a result of her surgery. Many members here have adopted declawed cats, and they work around these issues to give the cats a happy life despite the surgery. I know Winchester and @red top rescue have a lot of experience with declawed cats (as do other members, but those are the two names that spring to mind )
Declawing - Post-Surgery Care and Complications

 

[Winchester]

Well, here goes. This will probably go against everything everybody else says, but here's my two cents.

We have three declawed cats. Ms. Pepe (21 years old) and Amber Louise (soon-to-be 16 years old) were declawed by our vet. Back then, at least around here, it's what people did. It is what it is and we can't change it. I will say that both cats are fine. They never bit us. Ever. They always used their litter boxes. We use Tidy Cats clumping litter. Muffin was my mother's cat and it was the rule of her apartment complex that all cats had to be declawed. I went to the management there and asked that they re-consider the declawing rule and also offered to pay an extra security deposit for Mom's cat. To no avail...rules are rules and they didn't even want to discuss it. So Mom had Muffin declawed. When my mother went into a nursing home, Muffin moved in with us. She's fine. She uses the litter boxes, she never bites. None of our cats ever bite. They just don't.

We've had a lot of cats throughout the years and many of them lived to be 20 years old; they were all declawed. There were no issues, except for BooBoo, who developed arthritis in his back legs.....it could have been from declawing the front claws and that's how he compensated. I don't know, the vet didn't know. But he did develop arthritis. Like I said, Pepe is 21 years old and she jumps from chair to floor, from the cat tree to the window, from lap to lap, from the floor to the table. The vet says she's in great shape and, while she probably has a bit of arthritis, she's 21 years old! That's like being 100 in human years....show me a 100-year old person who doesn't have a bit of arthritis!

One of my co-workers adopted two male cats from a shelter. They are declawed; they were declawed before he ever took them and they came to the shelter that way. They use their litterboxes, they do not bite, they play well together. They're probably around 7 years old....one of them, Hemi, was actually found outside and he had been declawed; evidently his owner kicked him out. My co-worker says he never thought twice about taking them and those boys are the loves of his life.

Do you have other cats? And if so, are your other cats declawed? The reason I'm asking this is because our Muffin (Mom's cat) is declawed. Our Mollipop is not declawed. They fight, they fight horribly. And Molli uses her claws on Muffin, to the point where she has actually drawn blood. And poor Muffin has no defense; she can't defend herself against Molli's claws. We must put Muffin in the computer room whenever we leave the house and, frankly, it's for Muffin's own protection. It's sad to say that, I know, but she has no defense. And Molli's claws are like razors. So if you have other cats and they have their claws, that's something for you to think about.

My two cents is that I would never not adopt a cat simply because it was declawed. Quite honestly, if you can give that little girl a good home, well, you're doing a good thing for her. A really good thing. You take a chance with any cat from a shelter, whether it's declawed or not. I wouldn't let it stop me.

My intent is not to start a war on whether or not to declaw. We know it's not a good thing and we will never declaw another cat....we won't. But in this case, this is a kitty who is already declawed and needs a good home. I'd do it in a heartbeat.

 

[Freedom]

I've adopted 2 cats who were already declawed. Not had issues with either one, they were / are both sweeties and cuddlers. Go for it!

 

[orange&white]

We have three declawed cats. Ms. Pepe (21 years old) and Amber Louise (soon-to-be 16 years old) were declawed by our vet. Back then, at least around here, it's what people did. It is what it is and we can't change it. I will say that both cats are fine. They never bit us. Ever. They always used their litter boxes. We use Tidy Cats clumping litter. Muffin was my mother's cat and it was the rule of her apartment complex that all cats had to be declawed. I went to the management there and asked that they re-consider the declawing rule and also offered to pay an extra security deposit for Mom's cat. To no avail...rules are rules and they didn't even want to discuss it. So Mom had Muffin declawed. When my mother went into a nursing home, Muffin moved in with us. She's fine. She uses the litter boxes, she never bites. None of our cats ever bite. They just don't.

We've had a lot of cats throughout the years and many of them lived to be 20 years old; they were all declawed. There were no issues, except for BooBoo, who developed arthritis in his back legs.....it could have been from declawing the front claws and that's how he compensated. I don't know, the vet didn't know. But he did develop arthritis. Like I said, Pepe is 21 years old and she jumps from chair to floor, from the cat tree to the window, from lap to lap, from the floor to the table. The vet says she's in great shape and, while she probably has a bit of arthritis, she's 21 years old! That's like being 100 in human years....show me a 100-year old person who doesn't have a bit of arthritis!

That's my experience, too. I'm over a half-century old, and "back then" many people had cats declawed. I've owned several declawed cats and they never exhibited any behavior or health issues and didn't need special cat litter. Like Winchester, I did have one cat who developed arthritis in his later years, but I let that cat get quite overweight during his life, and obesity + old age can definitely lead to arthritis.

 

[Columbine]

I wasn't for a second saying that ALL declawed cats will have issues, just flagging up potential problems as I understand them . Many cats DO struggle to cope after declawing, and imo it's far better to get a pleasant surprise that the cat is coping well, than a nasty shock if related behavioural problems DO surface later on . Absolutely adopt this declawed baby if you feel she's the right cat for you

 

[krazykatjenn]

My observations are based solely on my former roommate's declawed cat. My roommate adopted him as a senior, already declawed cat.

1. It may seem counterintuitive, but even declawed cats seem to like scratchers to rub their paws against. Maybe it just feels nice? I don't know.

2. If the cat is only front paw declawed, get toys big enough that he can hold them with his front paws and claw them with his back paws. Cats really like getting their claws into toys, and if the only claws are on the back paws then the cat will flail around trying to get his back claws into the toy.

3. Get cat perches that have raised edges that keep the cat from falling off. My cat catches herself with her claws when she starts to slip, but I noticed the declawed cat had a serious problem with falling off perches because he couldn't catch himself and he vastly preferred the ones that prevented him from falling off. So, more box shape instead of flat.

4. Behavior issues are due to individual cat personality and experiences. Ask the people at the shelter what they know about the cat's behavior.

And that's all I've got! Enjoy your new best kitty friend!

 

[abyeb]

I don't really have much to add, as everything has pretty much been said by Columbine's excellent post. Declawed cats are likely to develop early onset arthritis, begin urinating inappropriately, and bite. The most common reason that people surrender cats to shelters is inappropriate urination. Some US cities to have made declawing illegal are San Francisco and Beverly Hills (where people undoubtedly have some very expensive furniture, proving that there is no reason to declaw a cat because of your couch, they can be trained to use scratching posts!), the rate of cats surrendered to shelters has gone down.

I think it's wonderful if you open your home to this sweet kitty, I just want to make sure that you are aware that most likely this kitty was surrendered to the shelter because of inappropriate urination. You'll have to use paper litter, as well as place more litter boxes (about two per floor), because it will hurt her to walk, so it's important to have these easily accessible.

I have a friend (who is very anti-declawing, like me) who adopted a Norwegian Forest Cat from a shelter who was surrendered there after declawing-related issues arised. With love and care, this kitty has settled in nicely, even making friends with their new Maine Coon (adopted as a kitten, so she still has claws). My heart breaks when I see the NFC meowing at the base of a cat tree that the MC has just scaled, and attempting to scratch on the MC's scratching posts while meowing loudly. Obviously, he realizes that humans did something to him and can't do things that he used to be able to do. But he has adjusted nicely, they have litterboxes in pretty much every room with paper litter. My point is, that this cat was likely surrendered because of declawing-related issues, but with love, care, and some patience, she should be able to adjust, and should even be able to live with a kitty with claws. Best of luck!

 

[daisyd]

Oh bless her - give her. Good home ! Glad declawing is illegal here !

 

[Jupalmer]

Thank you so much, everyone for great info.That helps me a lot. She will be the only cat ( and now I understand why rescue people insist on that) and she still has her back claws. She was found by someone on the street wondering and they say she can jump on levers and open doors like this, so maybe she ran away. I really appreciate your advice!
I am going to fill up the application today and hope to see her soon
Here is link to her ad if you want to see her and have more suggestions.
Mimi | AJs Best Friends Rescue

 

[orange&white]

What an adorable sweetie. Grab her while you can! As advertised: Sweet, affectionate, litterbox perfect, loves wet food. Sounds like a winner.

 

[abyeb]

What an adorable sweetie. Grab her while you can! As advertised: Sweet, affectionate, litterbox perfect, loves wet food. Sounds like a winner.

Agreed! Run, don't walk, to adopt her!

 

[daisyd]

OMG ! If I was over there I'd be completing that application ! Please let us know what happens!

 

[Columbine]

What a gorgeous little girl I'm sure she'll love living with you

 

[lalagimp]

My three declawed cats all have different experiences. And I have never had any of them their entire lives so it could be coincidental.
Angel had all 4 done. It was terrible. You couldn't touch her beans because of the discomfort and she bit a lot while she was playing.
Rex ended up having a very bad back. I don't know if it was because of the declawing or just him.
Amalie is my sweetie. She is only front declawed and I play with her beans all the time. She's not upset about her feet. We even had to change from clumping litter to paper pellets because Tommy had surgery and she's not upset about the new coarse litter. She had some back pain a few years ago but we did some buprenex for a week and she's never told me twice about it. Whenever she does bite she usually gives you a full warning just like a regular cat should.
I'm not against adopting declawed because of the problems they could have. Keep being attentive to their needs and if they complain too much about their feet then take them in for an xray and make sure it was even done well in the first place with no bone regrowth.

 

[Gizmobius]

My previous cat Willow had been declawed on her front two paws before I adopted her and I honestly didn't see any issues that arose with her. I am firmly against declawing (and my kitten now has a full set of beautiful kitty claws) but with Willow she went through life with none of the behavioral issues or litterbox issues that people say all declawed cats go through. I suppose it just depends on the cat or the quality of the "job" that was done.

Mimi looks gorgeous though and I am sure she will be a wonderful addition for you!

 

[Jupalmer]

UPDATE: My application was approved and we ran to see her tonight. Spent an hour getting to know her at her foster home..we loved her, such a good ragdoll. but it will take time for her to open up to us. She had a rough life. We will bring her home next weekend!! What should I do to get ready for her???
Thanks!!

 

[moorspede]

Congratulations Jupalmer, Raggies are beautiful cats. We'd love to see some photos when after she's settled in her new home.

Bringing Home a New Cat - The Complete Guide
New Cat Checklist: What You Need to Get Before Bringing Kitty Home
How To Help A New Cat Adjust To Your Home

 

[orange&white]

UPDATE: My application was approved and we ran to see her tonight. Spent an hour getting to know her at her foster home..we loved her, such a good ragdoll. but it will take time for her to open up to us. She had a rough life. We will bring her home next weekend!! What should I do to get ready for her???
Thanks!!

That's great news! Congratulations!!!

It takes most cats a little time to warm up to a new place and new owners, but from the foster mom's description of her, it sounds like she will come around quickly.

Basics: Flavors of food recommended by the foster mom (if you want her eating something different, buy some of what she's used to plus some of what you want to transition), water bowl, food saucer, cat box/litter (also ask foster mom what type of litter to start), toys, and plenty of love, love, love! I expect lots of "extras" that you can pick up over a few weeks are posted in the links provided by moorspede.

Most of all.....yay! I'm so happy for you!

 

[Jupalmer]

View media item 418892I talked to the people who found her. Poor girl went through a lot. After her owners died, she ended up in humane society, then adopted and then .... noone knows how she ended up outside. I do not know how she survived being declawed ragdoll in the desert for a while under someone's vacant house surrounded by bobcats, coyotes, hawks and etc.
Rescuer suggested to get started with keeping her locked in one room for a week (she can open doors) and only then open the door and let her explore the rest of the house, any advice there?
My daughter is excited and we are getting ready to bring her new home and start our journey on Sunday. We want to call her Mocha!