want to cut cat's toenails

[buffy2011]

I have a cat which is still a little feral. I can pet her and that is it. She definitely needs her nails clipped, they are sticking in my carpet and I don't want any snags. So is there anything I can give her to mellow her out a little before I try to wrap her in a towel and do the nails. Or does anyone have a better idea for me. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

 

[red top rescue]

If she is still a little feral, I would advise you getting a friend to help.  I have done this with the tough ones myself.  After you swaddle her in a towel with only one leg out, your friend can hold her with one arm while holding her scruff with the other hand.  There is something about scruffing (how mamas hold kittens and how the males hold females for mating) that tends to immobilize them, and it will also prevent her biting you while you clip the claws.  If she is the kind who totally freaks out with strangers, you should get her used to your friend being around before attempting this.  When one foot is done, let her out of the towel and praise her, love her, give her some treats.  And then after a little break, rewrap her and do the next foot.  The really hysterical ones require clipping only one foot a day because after that, they wont calm down for awhile, but it sounds like yours has a good chance of doing well.  It's definitely better to have two people, though, so it goes smoothly, with no shedding of feline or human blood.

 

[buffy2011]

Hello Red Top Rescue,

                                        When you refer to the scruff do you mean the back of the neck?  Also I was thinking of covering her head, is that a better way or a worse way to do this? I was trying to save some money in doing this myself instead of taking her to the vets. But not sure what to do at this point. Thanks for getting back to me so soon.

 

[GoldyCat]

Scruffing means grabbing the loose skin at the back of the neck just above the shoulder blades. Try to get hold of as much as you can, not just a little pinch. I have heard of people using the spring-loaded clothes pins if they don't have a second person to help. I've never done that myself, but I'd think you'd need two or three clothespins close together. I'd also use the wooden ones rather than plastic.

 

[buffy2011]

I think using clothes pins would hurt. Sounds painful. I have a visual picture in mind and I am chuckling to my self. Grabbing her by the neck and all four paws are sticking straight out ready to tear you up. Lets hope not.  Anyhow I had asked about covering her head up also. Is there any reason I shouldn't do that along with the body wrap? I don't know if that would make her panic more or not. Need some thoughts. Thanks

 

[red top rescue]

I have used the clothespins on occasion, especially with kittens, and they don't appear to hurt at all.  The scruff isn't sensitive in that way and in fact seems to have some calming nerves in there.  With an adult cat, unless she is used to it, I'm not sure a clothespin would be adequate.  The only reason to cover her head would be if she is afraid of the clipper and thus jerks her fooot if she sees it coming.  In that case, draping something over her head so she couldn't see the clipper might be effective.

This is a VERY good video from YouTube showing how to trim a slightly difficult cat's claws, much as I just described, including the wrap.  He's doing it singlehandedly but of course someone else is there filming it.  He DOES cover her head because she has in the past bitten him. 

 

[Draco]

that video makes it seem so easy! My cat is not feral, but he will fight me tooth and nail to not have his claws trimmed. You do NOT want to know what I have to do to trim his claws 

but the video, try that and have a second pair of hands!

 

[buffy2011]

Video looks easy, but there is no way this cat is going to let me roll her up like that. She doesn't sit still that long. The only way I can probably catch her is to throw a blanket over her and grab her right away.  Then I would have to fight to get a paw out. I haven't attempted it yet, but it needs to be done soon. I think its going to be just as much trouble getting her into a cat carrier to go to the vets. Is there something safe I could  give a cat to calm them down a little before you do this? Thanks for the info and the video that was sent.

 

[dandila]

I have a cat that is not feral but she doesn't do anything she doesn't want to do.  She can be very vicious. I wait until she is sleeping and then creep up on her to scruff her.  It is amazing how little they fight when scruffed.  They are, essentially, immobilized when done properly and it doesn't hurt them.  Well...their egos get bruised up a bit.