Soft Claws - Cruelty against cats?

OP

NSiky

It seems like yet another way for cat "lovers" to afflict more suffering on their pets in the interest of making them "cute."

I don't think they look cute.

Just bloody hillarious

Poor bastard.

Reply 23

Zoecb

11

It's criminal. Cats NEED their claws in order to defend themselves and more importantly, to get around! They can't grip surfaces without their claws.

Reply 24

OP

Zoecb

It's criminal. Cats NEED their claws in order to defend themselves and more importantly, to get around! They can't grip surfaces without their claws.

They are intended for house cats only.

Reply 25

quadruple_twist

2

Well, personally I think never allowing your cat out the house is cruel too. The way I see it: if you don't live in a suitable home/area (e.g. you live in a block of flats in the middle of a busy city/you live right on the edge of a busy main road) and/or you aren't willing to put up with scratched furniture, dead birds or half eaten mice on the doormat, then you shouldn't get a cat.

Declawing/soft claws take away a cat's ability to defend, climb and explore and I don't see why we should restrict a cat's life to suit our needs. Having said that I DO agree with neutering - the cat will forget about it soon enough and since hormone production is reduced they won't instinctively feel the need to screw each other. A cat will always instinctively want to use its claws though.

Reply 26

jaroxski

Cats climb? I thought they just jump to wherever they want. Scratching can be solved with a cat bath twice a day.

But cats still won't like plastics glued to them.

Reply 27

quadruple_twist

2

Well I can't speak for every cat in the world but all 3 cats I've ever had have climbed.

Reply 28

OP

quadruple_twist

Well I can't speak for every cat in the world but all 3 cats I've ever had have climbed.

My cat loves to climb the curtains then look down on us mere mortals with a look that says "You fail!" :biggrin:

Reply 29

quadruple_twist

2

lol one of my cats definitely has a "king of the castle" complex - she HAS to be up high no matter what room she's in. She sleeps on top of the kitchen units (which are basically impossible to reach), on top of sideboards, in the highest part of wardrobes, in the loft if you're not careful. Even in the living room she has to sit on top of the sofa to be above everyone, so she can survey her kingdom...

She owns us :frown:

Reply 30

Ink

12

Cruel is a pretty strong word.
I don't see why soft claws would be considered cruel.
I cut my cat's nails. Is that cruel too?

You see, my cat is an indoor cat. The only other animal she will have contact with is my older, declawed cat (she was declawed when we got her). To me, leaving my younger cat's nails intact and uncut would be cruel to my older cat, who is old, smaller, and has no way to defend herself from my younger cat's claws.

To those who say 'you shouldn't get a cat if it's going to be indoor' or 'you shouldn't get a cat if you don't want it to scratch things'....I disagree.

There are sooo many cats out there that need homes. There are millions of cats put to sleep every year because there is no room in the shelters, and millions more who roam the streets of the suburbs and cities with no home to return to - so many in New York, in fact, that The City collects them, spays and neuters them, and releases them back onto the streets in packs, so they can fight the vermin!

On top of that, there are millions more cats that end up in homes with cruel or neglectful owners. A lot of people don't have time to give their cats the attention and love they deserve. Other people don't see the cats as worthwhile creatures and find it funny to abuse and mutilate them.

So, amongst all these circumstances, I would have to say I am strongly for anyone who wants a cat getting a cat - whether it will be indoor, outdoor, have vinyl coverings on it's nails, or not....if you like cats and can provide a nice, safe home for them, that's really all it needs.

My cats seem pretty happy, at least :smile:

Reply 31

FyreFight

14

Ink

Cruel is a pretty strong word.
I don't see why soft claws would be considered cruel.
I cut my cat's nails. Is that cruel too?

You see, my cat is an indoor cat. The only other animal she will have contact with is my older, declawed cat (she was declawed when we got her). To me, leaving my younger cat's nails intact and uncut would be cruel to my older cat, who is old, smaller, and has no way to defend herself from my younger cat's claws.

To those who say 'you shouldn't get a cat if it's going to be indoor' or 'you shouldn't get a cat if you don't want it to scratch things'....I disagree.

There are sooo many cats out there that need homes. There are millions of cats put to sleep every year because there is no room in the shelters, and millions more who roam the streets of the suburbs and cities with no home to return to - so many in New York, in fact, that The City collects them, spays and neuters them, and releases them back onto the streets in packs, so they can fight the vermin!

On top of that, there are millions more cats that end up in homes with cruel or neglectful owners. A lot of people don't have time to give their cats the attention and love they deserve. Other people don't see the cats as worthwhile creatures and find it funny to abuse and mutilate them.

So, amongst all these circumstances, I would have to say I am strongly for anyone who wants a cat getting a cat - whether it will be indoor, outdoor, have vinyl coverings on it's nails, or not....if you like cats and can provide a nice, safe home for them, that's really all it needs.

My cats seem pretty happy, at least :smile:

It's not like that cat would've been kicked out into some back alley somewhere if you hadn't bought it, that rarely happens in the UK. It would most likely have just ended up living a far more content life with the ability to go indoors and outdoors instead.

And I'm not saying you're mistreating it or anything, I'm just saying that if it were allowed outside, it would be a happier cat.

Reply 32

OP

NSiky

It's not like that cat would've been kicked out into some back alley somewhere if you hadn't bought it, that rarely happens in the UK. It would most likely have just ended up living a far more content life with the ability to go indoors and outdoors instead.

Were do you get your inaccurate facts from? If no home was found for it, the animal would be put down. Yes, in the UK.

Reply 33

*Ridwan*

Cats need to scratch to probably get rid of stress

Those soft claws will stress them out more - how will they relax???

Imagine if humans had "soft mouths" where we cannot talk anymore - how would we feel?

Reply 34

Ink

12

NSiky

It's not like that cat would've been kicked out into some back alley somewhere if you hadn't bought it, that rarely happens in the UK. It would most likely have just ended up living a far more content life with the ability to go indoors and outdoors instead.

And I'm not saying you're mistreating it or anything, I'm just saying that if it were allowed outside, it would be a happier cat.

I don't know if you saw my location, but I live in New York City. Anyone else who would have adopted my cats would have kept them indoors or been a very irresponsible owner.

If you really need further illustration of what might have happened to my cats if I hadn't adopted them, here is the backstory:

I got my younger cat from an animal rescue. It was only 8 weeks old at the time, and the rescue saved it from a 'shelter' that was going to put it down because it was too young to be there.

My other cat, the older one...I got it outside an animal shelter. I had just put down two cats from there that had come to my house with a fatal and contagious illness that had apparently spread to all the cats there. A woman outside the shelter was in her car with a cat freaking out, because her landlady was threatening to evict her if she didn't get rid of it within the next few days. Cats can get put down in 3 days at the shelter, and an older cat has almost no chance of being adopted. I took it off her hands.

In New York City, you have 2 options: let your cat go outdoors, risk it getting hit by a car, stolen, or catch any number of diseases OR keep it indoors. (Or, yes, you could just not adopt any and leave them to die in a shelter.)

As for the happiness of my cats? I don't think you are in any place to judge that. But they are very happy, and I honestly don't think they could get happier even if they were allowed outside.

Reply 35

Ink

12

*Ridwan*

Cats need to scratch to probably get rid of stress

Those soft claws will stress them out more - how will they relax???

Imagine if humans had "soft mouths" where we cannot talk anymore - how would we feel?

The cats can still scratch with soft claws though. They just don't shred things to bits when they scratch them.

I guess stress is relieved when cats scratch things, but the main reason cats scratch things is to mark their territory. There are scent glands in their paws, and when they scratch things, they leave their scent all over it, along with a visual marker. It also helps them stretch.

My declawed cat still scratches things regularly, even though she has no claws, and it seems to satisfy her. She's certainly not stressed out.

Reply 36

OP

Ink

The cats can still scratch with soft claws though. They just don't shred things to bits when they scratch them.

I guess stress is relieved when cats scratch things, but the main reason cats scratch things is to mark their territory. There are scent glands in their paws, and when they scratch things, they leave their scent all over it, along with a visual marker. It also helps them stretch.

My declawed cat still scratches things regularly, even though she has no claws, and it seems to satisfy her. She's certainly not stressed out.

You seem to know a lot about cats ;yes;

Can you tell me why, after he stops eating, my cat covers up his food with socks, papers, and anything else he can find lying around. Even though he is the only cat in the entire house.

Reply 37

mr_person

I don't like my dog barking. Maybe I should his voicebox altered so he is a mute? I'll do it under general anaestethic etc so it isn't cruel, and anyway, he's a house dog. He doesn't need to bark :smile:

Reply 38

jaroxski