Soft claws product

Azureus

Hi
Im getting a new cat/kitten shortly, and I want to be prepared for my new family members arrival My only concern is that I have leather couches and I dont want them scratched to bits. From having kittens before I know all the tricks like citrus sprays as deterrents and training with spray bottles/noises etc and Im going to have a scratch post in each room before his arrival.

Luckily this has worked well for most of my previous kitties (althiugh its been awhile) but I was wondering if anybody had tried SoftClaws ( http://www.softclaws.com/index.php?pet=cat ) on their pets and if so, how they found it? I would NEVER declaw my cat, even though he is indoor only, because no furniture is more important to me than the wellbeing of a pet, but from looking at reviews of SoftClaws online it doesnt seem to do any harm? Has anybody more info them, or where you can purchase them in Ireland (preferable Dublin?).
Thanks!

MaryK666

I've never used them but apparantly, those Americans who adopt a humane attitude towards their cats (as opposed to the horriffic de-clawing process) use them a lot. It's said that when Clinton was in office and they brought their cat to the White House, Hillary used to get these for their cat to save the flooring and furniture from potential damage. I wouldn't like to be the one putting them on though as only one of our cats is comfortable with his paws being manipulated and his claws checked. The others would eat me alive if I tried.
Personally, I've found that if kittens have enough to distract them and enough places they can safely scratch, they tend to ignore furniture and sofas. That said, when we were getting our sofas and knowing we would be getting cats, we opted for fabric sofas instead of leather as we were afraid of getting clawmarks on the leather. It would have been inevitable that we'd get some accidental pinhole marks from claws so we decided against the leather - just in case.

I look forward to hearing how your new kitten gets on and hopefully, you'll figure something out and have a lot of happy years together.

Zapperzy

I considered them for a while as my cat was scratching the leather couch but never went ahead and got them, no reason really just never got around to ordering them. I agree declawing is horrific but thankfully it is illegal here so I guess in America it is much more humane to declawing but I can't see them being very comfortable for the cat to wear, but I suppose like a collar they would get used to it. I would stick with the scratching posts in every room (both vertical and horizontal and getting bigger as kitten grows so he has maximum stretch) for the time being and hope he doesn't get attracted to the leather. No harm getting him used of having his paws held and claws examined from an early age just in case you have to get them later on it will make it much easier putting them on.

I'm pretty much still on the fence about them so would be interested to hear from people who have actually used them. Iv never seen them for sale in Ireland but when I looked into ordering them from the website it was straightforward enough and not wildly expensive but I think the shipping time was long enough.

If you do decide to get them let us know how you get on with them.

Kali_Kalika

I used them for a long time - was living in a rented house and the furball was young and had a penchant for deep intense couch scratching! Not a good thing! I know all about the horrors of declawing (its horrible for their health, it changes their posture resulting in extreme back pain - similar to the type of back issues a woman with large breasts would have) - so in no way would I have considered that as an option. So after doing my online research I came across soft paws - the nail caps you are describing - they seemed cheap enough and figured the only way to know was to actually order them and give them a try. For me personally - they were brilliant. The furball doesn't usually like his feet being played around with - so I'd wait until he was asleep on the sofa next to me and I'd get one or two on before he'd wake up fully and flip flop around so his feet were away from me and go back to sleep - I'd get another few on then once he was asleep again - it took me about 2 days (off and on - not constantly!) to get all the front paws covered - the backs were never an issue so never covered those) - They stayed on for quite a reasonable amount of time and from what I could see he only chewed one off - that one I'd made an ooops of and I knew it wasn't fitting right - so I found that one shredded the next morning - so just popped another one on. So I'd recommend them overall.

Azureus

Thanks guys-by the sounds of that review and others online I think I will defo give them a try. I'll just see how destructive he is first
My lil guy came home with me yesterday-he was abandoned in a ditch with his two sisters at two weeks old with flu, fleas, sore eyes, the lot, but luckily now hes fighting fit at 8/9 weeks and home safe with me. Hes such a clingy lil dude and follows me everywhere-Id say hes gonna have some serious seperation anxiety issues but hopefully he'll learn to trust us fairly quickly and know we are always close by!
I've started playing with his paws already when hes cuddling up to me and he doesnt seem to mind too much, so if I keep it up getting soft paws on probably wont be too much hassle. I might just trim the nails first and see how we get on/cover the couches when Im not there or leave him to the spare bedroom/large hall where he has all his toys/bed/litterbox and everything anyway.
Now all I have to do is think of a name

MaryK666

Azureus wrote: »

I might just trim the nails first and see how we get on/cover the couches when Im not there or leave him to the spare bedroom/large hall where he has all his toys/bed/litterbox and everything anyway.

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Delighted you hear that your kitten has arrived and I hope you have many, many happy years together. He sounds like a lucky little man after such a bad start in life and he'll soon get used to the fact that you come and go without stressing too much. Just make sure he has plenty of toys and scratching posts to amuse him when you're not there. He'll probably snooze for most of the time anyway so make sure he has a warm comfy bed. Another trick that works is to wrap a ticking clock in a blanket or towel and put it in his bed as it mimics the mothers heartbeat and helps them to settle. I know it's been a while since he's been with his mother but it's a comfort thing and might help with any separation enxiety when he has to be left on his own.
And if you're going to confine him to one room when you're out, make sure he has lots of places to hide away in case he feels scared. We use old cardboard boxes turned upside down, with holes cut in the side as doorways, for ours and they go in to have a bit of space and chill out or as a place to wait in ambush for the others. In fact, they play more with the boxes than they do with the more expensive cat toys - ungrateful little monsters. :rolleyes:
Delighted to hear he's happy with you touching his paws and the earlier you start this, the easier it'll be to get the soft claw things on if they're needed. Just be careful clipping the nails that you don't clip too high up as you can do some serious damage if you hit nerves or blood vessels.

And when he get's settled, we'd all be delighted to see a picture and to know what you've decided to call him.