Nail Clipping Advice

[sarah430]

I've never had to clip a cats nails before. Prior kitties were indoor/outdoor and the outside time kept their nails in line. But my current kitties are strictly indoor and their nails are getting out of control. They were rescue and I didn't get them until they were 6 months old (approx. ~ 1 year now) and they are still skittish and won't let me hold them. Navi is mellow enough that I think I can do her nails when she's sleepy/calm. However, I'm pretty sure Link won't let me touch his paws. I'll probably need to take him to a pro for the time being.

What kind of cat nail clippers do you use? And any other advice for nail clipping a kitty that's skittish/nervous and/or general nail clipping advice? Also is there a particular type of scratching post material that helps with keeping the claws short? Thanks!

 

[Margret]

1. Scratching posts sharpen your cat's claws. Sorry, but the way it works is that, as a claw grows, the outer portion of it detaches and is discarded, leaving sharp claw underneath. This needs to happen! Those un-shed claw remnants are very uncomfortable for a cat so the cat claws the scratching post, which helps to pull them off.
2. I prefer human nail clippers. Hold them sideways to the claw, so that you're clipping through the thinner dimension; that way you won't tend to split the claw. Make sure you have a good view of the claw so that you can see where the quick begins and avoid cutting into it. Assuming white claws, the quick is the spot where the claw becomes less translucent, whiter. If you can't tell where the quick is, get a professional to do it.
3. Have a styptic pencil or styptic powder handy any time you're clipping your cat's claws. If you do accidentally cut into the quick your cat could bleed to death, but a styptic pencil can stop the bleeding immediately. However, make sure you never have to actually use the styptic pencil. If you ever do cut into the quick it will destroy any chance you ever have of getting your cat to trust you handling his or her paws.
4. In a pinch, you can always do a burrito wrap (wrapping the cat fairly tightly in a towel, to protect yourself) and free one paw at a time for clipping, but I don't recommend it. If your cat still has trust issues this is likely to increase them, which is a bad idea. Better to let a pro do it for a while, so you don't get blamed too badly.
5. Your cat may be seriously stressed by the trip to a groomer; you may want to ask your vet about a sedative. My vet suggested that before we go to a prescription sedative we try a half a Benadryl tablet. This is effective on some cats. Not my Jasmine, unfortunately.
6. Make sure you have the certificate your vet gave you when your cats got their rabies shots and take it along to the groomer. A collar tag is not enough. The groomer will refuse to work on your cat without proof of a rabies vaccination.

Good luck, and congratulations on your new kitties. Pictures!

Margret

 

[red top rescue]

Great instructions already given. I would add you can pactice on the thorns of roses until you get comfortable with only cutting the very sharp TIP of the claw. I actually like the bird nail clippers you can find in the bird section of Petco. They are like mini scissors with blunt ends and it would be harder to accidentally cut into the thicker part of the claw with them.

There are quite a few good videos on YouTube if you search "trimming a cat's claws."

 

[MissMolly08]

I like the scissor type clippers sold in the cat grooming section... like these... FURminator® Cat Nail Clipper | cat Nail Clippers & Caps | PetSmart

I have had my cat since she was a kitten and used to just hold her in my lap and do all 4 paws at once! Then at some point life got hectic, I got behind on her usual clipping schedule and she started getting skittish about it. Now I have to do the kitty burrito and 1 paw at a time. I bought some calming spray from Petsmart and I spray a towel with it, then use the towel to wrap her up and pull out 1 paw at a time.
She is actually very calm in the burrito and it hasn't affected her trust in me as far as I can tell but I'm sure that is different for every kitty.

 

[sarah430]

Thanks all for the great tips! I'll let you know how it goes.

 

[ileen]

My vet suggested that before we go to a prescription sedative we try a half a Benadryl tablet.

Half a human Benadryl tablet? Children's or adult's?
Instead of spending the $40 for sedation at the vet, I'd like to try home sedative the next time Luciano needs his claws trimmed.

 

[Margret]

Adult, but ask your vet first. They were little caplets, shocking pink. Sometimes children's or baby's versions of OTC drugs actually have more of the drug; I'd check them all out and use the one with the lowest dosage. But ask your vet first.

Feliway may also help.

Margret

 

[basscat]

I just let mine file his own nails off on my arms and legs.