Claw stuck in paw pad

jendoeluvncats

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
May 12, 2006
Messages
8
Purraise
0
Location
Montgomery
I noticed my female cat Ivory started limping a little bit and when she is sitting she doesnt put any pressure on her one paw. So my mom and I checked it out. Well it seems like her claw has either grown into her paw pad or it broke off part way and got stuck in the pad. I've made an appt. to go to vet doc today. I heard it was a pretty common thing in cats that have not been declawed. Ever experienced it? or taken your cat to the vet for it? Any ideas of cost? Will she have to be sedated? Any input anyone could give me will be great.
 

solaritybengals

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Oct 31, 2005
Messages
2,359
Purraise
5
Location
Raleigh, NC
Depending on if it will require surgery to remove the claw will determine if they will have to put her to sleep for the procedure. I've never heard of this happening. Its always a good practice to routinely keep the nails clipped. I usually clip my cats claws every other week. One of my girls has claws that grow fast and sharp so I have to keep up with her.
 

AbbysMom

At Abby's beck and call
Staff Member
Moderator
Joined
May 18, 2005
Messages
78,298
Purraise
19,403
Location
Massachusetts
My Molly came to us as a stray and one of her claws had grown so long it was into a pad and she was also limping. The vet just clipped it and had us keep an eye on it.
 

goldenkitty45

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Aug 29, 2005
Messages
19,900
Purraise
44
Location
SW Minnesota
Yours is a very good example of why its important to trim nails! Sometimes the nails grow so long, that they do grow into the pad.

Hope your baby is ok...never happened to me as I trim nails on a regular basis and check them.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #5

jendoeluvncats

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
May 12, 2006
Messages
8
Purraise
0
Location
Montgomery
Originally Posted by GoldenKitty45

Yours is a very good example of why its important to trim nails! Sometimes the nails grow so long, that they do grow into the pad.

Hope your baby is ok...never happened to me as I trim nails on a regular basis and check them.
She is an outside kitty, so i didnt think it was necessary to trim nails. She always scratches her claws outside and inside on her scratching post.
 

AbbysMom

At Abby's beck and call
Staff Member
Moderator
Joined
May 18, 2005
Messages
78,298
Purraise
19,403
Location
Massachusetts
It is always a good idea to check their claws.
Molly was a polydactyl, so her extra claw always needed special attention.
 

jen

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Dec 27, 2001
Messages
8,501
Purraise
3,009
Location
Hudson, OH
I have a cat where half her paws have nail type things growing out of them in the opposite direction. Like they are coming out of the pad curving up to the direction of where the real nail is. If that makes sense, it doesn't seem to ever hurt her at all.
 

beckiboo

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Apr 7, 2005
Messages
7,382
Purraise
4
Location
Illinois, USA
When I got my outside cat Josie she had her "thumb" nail grown so long that it had stuck into her paw pad. I just snipped it off halfway to the pad, and pulled the end out. It bled one little drop and healed up just fine.

Be sure to clip those thumb nails, too!
 

buzbyjlc10

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Jul 14, 2005
Messages
1,981
Purraise
5
Location
State College, PA and Haddon Township, NJ
Originally Posted by jendoeluvncats

She is an outside kitty, so i didnt think it was necessary to trim nails. She always scratches her claws outside and inside on her scratching post.
You should always keep an eye out anyway... scratching on indoor posts only sharpens those claws really, haha... I'd personally never have an outdoor or indoor/outdoor kitty, but if I were you, I'd be doing a quick once-over of your kitty probably daily to look for anything out of the ordinary.... you NEVER know what they could get themselves into outside and a little look could save you from bigger problems later
 

semiferal

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Jul 15, 2005
Messages
1,890
Purraise
9
Location
in my apartment
It's not actually a common thing at all, except in old/sick cats who don't keep their claws groomed the way they should. Either way, it's easily prevented by routinely checking the claws and trimming them as needed. Certainly, this is far more humane than declawing!

As for the procedure, it's probably going to be very straightforward. She may or may not need to be lightly sedated for the procedure. They'll probably send her home in a few hours at most, with a prescription for antibiotics. It should be pretty simple overall.
 
Top