Total defiance to nail trim

[cubscatlover]

Could someone help me out here? My wife and I took in a stray Siamese who is approximately 3 years old, and she stubbornly refuses to allow anyone to trim her nails. She howls, she hisses, she actually tries to hurt anyone who tries. The last several trims she had to be knocked out by injection, and another vet wants to put her into some kind of gas chamber to induce unconsciousness. She is young and healthy now but my concern is that there are always risks involved with anesthetics, especially 3-4 times a year, plus the costs involved. Otherwise she is a sweet cat, however, very smart and attentive, kind of a tomboy. Follows me around like a puppy dog.
She's a bit skittish, so she may have been abused before we got her. What's a catlover to do?

 

[Alldara]

Work up to nail trimming.

How long have you had her?

1. Touch her feet without any ulterior motive as frequently as possible without getting her to the point of hissing. You're working up to flexing the claw out without trimming it. Provide treats at first if that helps.

2. Let her sniff the trimmers. Leave them down on the floor to explore under supervision. Move on to being able to set them near her without her freaking out. Then to let her watch you open and close them (not by her toes, then by her toes but not clipping).

3. Finally, you'll move on to doing one or two toes at a time. She will probably dart off or something. That's okay. Give a treat anyway.

Cal and Nobel I can pull into my lap and just do then all quickly now. Magnus doesn't like to be on his back so I set him standing on the couch and just do his front feet. For his back, we hold him outside so he can sniff and then he just lets us do them. We are working up to cutting his back ones inside.

With ferals or former ferals it is VERY scary to be pinned. That would have meant big pain or death to them. I don't recommend pinning them for this reason. If you can cut a single toe nail whole she sleeps (it'll wake her), then give her a treat that is an EXCELLENT start.

(I'll post a video below for you of a YouTuber I recommend for this)

 

[Annieca2016]

Scratching posts! That will help her with shedding the outer layer of her claws to keep them healthy. It might keep them sharp (we affectionately refer to them as "murder mittens"), though. In the meantime, work on getting her used to having her paws touched. When she's relaxed, gently touch a paw, give a treat. You might try chicken baby food or push-up tubes as that is high-value treats for most cats. Basically, you want to teach her that letting you touch her paws is a good thing and it means treats!

I will also say that you might give up now on trimming the back paws' nails. I've worked on this exact issue with my youngest and while she will now allow me to trim both front paws at once, the back paws are off limits.

And lastly, I'd not be too concerned about trimming her nails if she needs to get knocked out. Unless they're starting to get dangerously long and grow in on themselves, you're probably fine letting them grow as you work on the trust needed to trim.

 

[di and bob]

Don't trim her nails, give her plenty to scratch on. I even brought in a tiny section of a tree trunk for my cats and they absolutely love those corrugated cardboard scratchers. I have had MANY cats over the last 60 years and have NEVER trimmed their nails. I have one now that I have to watch, his do grow and start curling under somehow. i can only cut one a day while he sits on my lap, he hates it too. just check your cat's nails once in a while while she is on your lap, maybe only one a day. The only time she would need them trimmed is if one si actually curving close into her pad, and they naturally curve down a bit. Cats are not like dogs, they shouldn't need their nails trimmed unless medically necessary.

 

[Alldara]

I skip the drinking part. Part 3 is for a more struggle cat...but basically her method is how I get my cats (and my friends cats who's nails I trim), to become comfortable nail trimmers.

If you have a helper, a Churu can also be an excellent bribe.

 

[Juniper_Junebug]

I keep trimmers near all of my kitty's favorite nap spots, so I'm ready when the opportunity presents itself. I wait until she's asleep, or nearly so, and usually go for only one or two nails at a time. It works best when she's sleeping on my lap. I end up trimming her nails multiple times a week since I never get a full paw done at once.

 

[njtom]

Honestly, it's not necessary. We let our cat go two years without a trim. She used scratching posts. And, every so often, the outer shell of a claw falls off, with a new nail underneath. The vet can always do it when you visit. As the previous poster said, a nail can start curving back into the paw, so you don't want to go forever without a trim.

 

[danteshuman]

I wouldn’t call it defiance as much as fear or something that they are not used to yet. Do one nail a day if need be. Get your cat used to getting their paws touched (without the nail trimmers.) If need be do one nail a day or every few days as they sleep. Always trim less than you think you should. Avoid the quicks. Use a bright light of need be when trimming your cat’s claws. My mom’s black cat has smokey colored claws and some you can not see his quick, so I just trim the tiniest amount.

I can not stress this enough: bribe your cats and give them an all clear phrase every time you brush, bathe, clip their claws, give them a pill or apply flea medicine! Use a treat they love and give them lots every time (at least the first few months as your cat adjust to nail clippers; then reduce the amount.) I use the phrase “all done” & I used to see Dante visibly relax when I said it after giving him a pill. I do this when I groom my mom’s 4 cats. All 4 cats (plus my 1 cat) come to me and wait for their turn when I pull out the treats and the brushes! Yes they dislike getting their claws done but there is no bloodshed. Except my mom’s reformed feral indoor/outdoor cat.... we leave his claws alone. His claws are fine but do have a Freddy Kruger vibe going..... we figure he might need them for protection.

 

[Robyn5678]

One of my Siamese won’t let me do his claws either and he’s a polydactyl so I worry. I was able to bring him to a local dog groomer and they did it for me.

Maybe she would associate that different than the vet?

 

[arr]

I’ve never felt it to be necessary to trim a cat’s claws, we provide a lot of things they can scratch so they can maintain their claws themselves. However, if that’s what you want to do, I’m positive you can be successful following everyone’s suggestions. I know it’s not the same topic, but I brush my cats teeth, and I thought it would never be possible. It took about 9 months of working on it daily, but slowly with desensitization, positive reinforcement, and consistency, I’m able to do it.

 

[Babypaws]

I have issues trying to trim a few of my indoor cats nails if I don’t trim them their nails get caught on rugs, furniture. I have plenty of scratching posts around the house and I also have a couple of pieces of wood they like to use but they still need the nails trimmed. Sometimes I can actually hear their nails when they walk on the bare floor.