My little Cosmo is going in Tue to get at least one of his thumbs declawed as well as his nubbin toe removed. His right thumb (bonus toe) has two nails growing out of the same nail bed and they are not doing well. Both of those nails will be getting removed as one is unhealthy and he cannot retract either one. The vet will also be removing the small sorta toe/nail growing out of the side of his left thumb. If after the removal of that his left thumb nail is working correctly he will keep it, if not the vet will remove it as well. He will be keeping both thumbs. I was wondering what all I need to prepare for as he heals. Thank you! I'm pretty in my head about this as I've always been anti-declawing. I know that this is for his own good. But, still. Thank you for any help and guidance!
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Healing from medically necessary declawing
- Thread starter Kokomo
- Start Date
Oh dear. I'm so sorry you and Cosmo will be going through this. Declawing is very painful. Make sure the vet gives you adequate pain medicine and instructions for caring for him, and check back in with us to let us know how it's going. The biggest problem will be preventing him from shaking the bandages off. Lily tore one of her claws off accidentally, and she had that bandage off in less than an hour. You always worry about infection when that happens.
I have no experience with declawing but I understand this is a medically necessary procedure for your cat. The main thing that I have heard is using a special litter that is easy on their feet while they are healing. I have even heard of people using shredded newspaper, doesn't do much good as a litter but it would be easy on their paws to keep them using the litter box. I would think you will be given pain meds to use after.
Would Yesterday's News fill that bill?
Purina discontinued Yesterday's News. There is another one called Fresh News. I haven't noticed it in stores but I wasn't looking for it so it may be there. It is available on Chewy.
https://www.chewy.com/fresh-news-un...0&clickref=1100lwtpiEKz&utm_term=1100lwtpiEKz
https://www.chewy.com/fresh-news-un...0&clickref=1100lwtpiEKz&utm_term=1100lwtpiEKz
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #6
Thank you all! I will get him some different litter for recovery time. He has made it very clear that it is currently causing him pain so I know he needs it done. But oh I just hate doing it! I will post updates on how he is doing. They will be keeping him there all day to make sure he doesn't have any immediate issues but I get to bring him home Tue after work.
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Our eldest kitty, age 16, had a badly infected toenail removed this past week. The vet gave her a shot of an antibiotic and a shot of a long-lasting anti-inflammatory. I asked the vet about changing litter whilst kitty heals. The vet told me to continue using our regular litter (Tidy Cat unscented) but to gently wash her paw with a soft wet washcloth every time she uses the box or at least three times a day. Also, after waiting 24 hours for the wound to drain any remaining pus, we are using Vetericyn Plus Feline Antimicrobial Hydrogel to help heal the wound and seal dirt out. We started using original Vetericyn gel nearly 20 years ago, first on my chickens. It worked so well to speed healing we now use it on all our pets but got the feline version specifically for this application.
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #8
Thank you
M
MeezeIfYouPlz
I will pick some of that up! I hope your girl heals well!
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The company also sells a liquid formula but the liquid doesn't dry to form a dirt barrier, i.e, a bandaid, the way the gel does. Hope your little man is as right as rain in no time!
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- #10
Thank you so much!
ExquisiCat, which I think is PetSmart's private label, makes pellet-style litter that we switched our litter box to after Yesterday's News was discontinued, and our cat seemed to adjust to it just fine. It's actually a bit cheaper than Yesterday's News, too.
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- #12
Cosmo's surgery went very well! He will be in his cone and on limited mobility for 10 to 14 days, and then back to normal. His surgery was done with a laser so he had no bleeding and has minimal swelling. After removing the little nubbin toe on his left the vet determined the thumb's nail worked so he got to keep that one. His right thumb was fully declawed and when she worked on that one she discovered that along with two nails he also had double bones so she removed those as well. She thinks that his quality of life will be much better now and that he will be way more comfortable. He is hating his cone but eating and drinking well and using his litter box. And getting all the love and cuddles. Thank you all for you help and support!
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- #13
Just wanted to update everyone who was kind enough to respond. Cosmo is healing wonderfully and is very comfortable. I can mess with all of his toes now, including his thumbs, with no signs of discomfort from him. He is tearing it up running up and down the stairs and around the house and is showing no signs of discomfort with his scratching post or cat tree. I am so thankful he has come out of this so well!! And just for cuteness; the little man himself.
That's wonderful news! I am very glad he is doing so well. The laser surgery is first I've heard of. It must have added the healing.
