Cat biting our carpet

[chrisie]

Hi!

We have an adorable cat that's a little over a year old.  

She's been declawed on all for paws (never goes out and we have coyotes everywhere) but she's pulling up our carpet with her teeth.  It's ruining the carpet, but thank goodness not furniture.  

Any suggestions?

And, she's using the potty in our house plants, but I read on another page to get large river rocks and put them on top of the soil.  I like that idea VERY much.

Thanks for reading!

 

[shaheena]

 The reason why she prefers the potting soil as bathroom over the litter is that the litter probably hurts her paws. She is simply trying to avoid pain.

Declawing means cutting off her toes, it's an amputation. The nerves at the end of her paws have become very sensitive now. She may get other related health issues when she becomes older, like arthritis and such, because she cannot walk properly anymore and is stressing the leg bones and joints. 

Instead of putting some more rocks in her way, I would recommend to think about how you could make her life easier and more comfortable. Like searching a soft, sand-like litter that won't hurt her. 

Cats that are declawed often use their teeth in place of their missing claws. That's probably why she bites your carpet.  If you are lucky she won't become a biter.  

The problems that you describe are home-made. It's not her behaving mean. It's a straight consequence of being declawed. She is surely not responsible for that.  

Maybe other users can provide more information on how to care properly for declawed cats as they need special care. 

Sorry that I have to say this, but I am disgusted that the United States still haven't banned declawing as animal cruelty. 

 

[fhicat]

She's been declawed on all for paws (never goes out and we have coyotes everywhere) but she's pulling up our carpet with her teeth.  It's ruining the carpet, but thank goodness not furniture.  

And, she's using the potty in our house plants, but I read on another page to get large river rocks and put them on top of the soil.  I like that idea VERY much.

That's really just a band-aid solution; it doesn't address the problem. How recent is this behavior? Has she ever used the box? How is her box condition? How many boxes? Any other cats? 

 

[ayeshajae]

Maybe you can try switching your litter to something softer if she is freshly declawed maybe some tenderness going on

 

[blueyedgirl5946]

There is a litter made of newspaper, called Yesterday's News. It might work. I think I would try confining her to a certain area with a litter box and some softer litter to see if you can get her using that.

 

[chrisie]

Thank you everyone for your suggestions.  I'll work on all of them!

 

[chrisie]

Oh, she's been declawed for over a year and this just started.  She's very loving, loves our little rescue dog and does boom arranges all over the house!  We LOVE it!!!!!!  

I just put fresh soil in the pots about a month ago.  She's not using the soil as her potty, she's just playing in it.....thank goodness!

Again, thank you!!

 

[Anne]

Welcome to TCS!

In addition to all the great advice given here, you could also take a look at this article -

Declawing - Post-Surgery Care and Complications

It addresses the litterbox issues and some other issues which could potentially come up down the road. 

 

[betsygee]

That's really just a band-aid solution; it doesn't address the problem. How recent is this behavior? Has she ever used the box? How is her box condition? How many boxes? Any other cats? 

This kitty may well have other issues going on and it seems like a good idea to read up on caring for declawed kitties; however, I have to say that river rocks in pots can work. A couple of our kitties got interested in a big new pot we got, and the soil looked awfully inviting to them! River rocks discouraged them from digging around in it.