Does Your Cat Need to Be Cracked Up?

In this article we will discuss whether or not your cat should be declawed. Declawing cats is illegal in many places and despite the fact that it can be quite a painful experience for your cat it is not necessary. The main reason most owners consider having their cat declawed is because they are unable to reach the nail to cut it off. Cats are smart animals, they have minds of their own, they can recognize when someone is trying to harm them, and they will instinctively try to fight it. When there is excessive bleeding and swelling of the area where the nail was removed, it can cause extreme pain for the cat and therefore it makes sense to have it removed. However, just because your cat might look like it needs a declaw does not mean it is in need of one.

Declawing cats is really not necessary as there are other less painful ways to cure your cat of its scratching problem. The scratching habit is normally encouraged by stress and you should try to reduce this stress in order to stop your cat from clawing things. Try to teach your cat the scratch command instead of cutting it. There are lots of scratching toys on the market, including catnip toys which would make your cat happy.

You can buy your cat an scratching post, but you can also train your cat to scratch objects of its own. Scratching posts are very cheap and very easy to use. All you need to do is buy a post, give your cat one of its favorite toys to scratch on it, then leave it alone for a few minutes so that the cat gets used to scratching the post. You can also try rubbing the post down with catnip instead of using it as a scratching tool. Cats naturally enjoy rubbing themselves down with catnip and it is a lot nicer than having to use those sharp scratch posts.

There are also several products on the market that are designed to stop your cat from scratching in the first place. These include sprays and creams. You should also try to spend more time playing with your cat rather than punishing it when it scratches itself. Your cat might be scratching because it is bored or because it wants to stretch its claws.

If all else fails, there are several medical procedures you can take if you feel you have to. You can give your cat anesthetic and then clip its nails so it won’t want to scratch. In extreme cases, you might need to have surgery if the damage isn’t that severe. But you don’t have to worry about these sorts of problems if you own a cat as they are very rare.

Just remember that cats are naturally very playful and they like to scratch. They do this to keep their claws nice and sharp. It is a good exercise for them, too. Plus, they look very adorable doing it. You can always reward your cat for being gentle with it by giving it a treat.