I'm thinking of putting Soft Paws claw caps on my cat. Does anyone here use that product? What is your opinion of them?

I’ve never used them, but the vet I had when I had a cat highly recommended them, and my new vet’s office kitty wears them (in pink) and the cat doesn’t seem to notice one bit.

Good for you for finding a humane solution to claw problems! :)

It’s a far better solution than declawing. I salute you for considering it.

The first thing that comes to my mind is what happens when they scratch around in the litter box, doesn’t it get under the caps? I have heard of women having problems with glue on finger nails, some sort of fungus starts growing under the plastic? And usually humans don’t scratch around in fecal matter.

Haven’t bought them yet, but I’m buying them today because our one cat with claws is destroying furniture and screens all over the place :( And it’s not our furniture or screens, so we’ve either got to pray these things work, or get the cat declawed which we don’t want to do.

@rooeytoo I worry about the kitty litter as well. They can still paw at it properly, I would think..or the product wouldn’t be so successful. That’s just my thought on it.

I have only heard good reports about them. However since you are obvioiusly a thoughtful owner who won’t consider declawing, if you learned how to properly clip the cats nails, that may be enough. If you check out this website, scroll down and you will see a title something like “Clipping a Cats Nails” which has pictures and information that may help ;
http://www.tributememorial.net/CONTENTS.html

Thankyou for thinking of something other than declawing. I have never used softpaws so cannot answer your question from personal experience. Instead I am going to show you what I use:

I keep his claws clipped and always have one of these for him to scratch.

Since I got the above item, he has not scratched the furniture once. They are available at any department store.

You have to be vigilant in making sure they keep glued on. I have second-hand experience with them.

I keep Basil’s claws clipped and give him scratching things. I don’t have a problem. I also don’t have leather furniture.

@Arisztid Not to argue since it’s awesome that it works for your cat, but my cat had the exact same thing and still liked to scratch my couch. He did also love that thing though. :)

I’ve heard good things, but if you EVER let your cats outside, I would not use them. Soft Paws are meant to stay on for long periods of time, and if they were ever caught in a dangerous situation outside and needed to defend themselves, you want them to have their claws.

I have mainly indoor cats who go outside occasionally, so I just clip their claws regularly and keep scratching posts and such for them to use instead of destroying our furniture. If you’re concerned about them ruining furniture, you can also look into sprays and other products to keep them from scratching.

@Likeradar I guess that I am lucky that this solved the problem with Rags. I give @missyb huge kudos for asking this question.

What solved your problem with clawing?

If you type “soft paws” into the search bar on the upper right hand side of the the home age, you’ll get links to many, many postings about soft paws (and declawing).

I use them on 2 of my 3 cats and they tend to stay on for 6–12 weeks before having to be replaced.

@Arisztid My cat ran away… that was the end of my clawing problems.

@rooeytoo Ew, I didn’t think of that! I’ll ask the vet I guess.
@Arisztid ooh, that looks neat, I bet he’d love it with the catnip smell!

Thanks to all for your answers, my problem isn’t furniture though. It’s baby skin! We’re still in the process of teaching our daughter to be gentle, and my youngest cat, Jack, doesn’t know to just walk away, he’ll use his claws. If it were just my furniture I’d care a lot less, but this is pretty important!

My cat has them and they are great.

Just let me add this, if it comes down to the point where you think you are going to have to get rid of your cat because it is harming your baby. Get it declawed. Sure you can see horrible pics on the internet of the surgery gone wrong, but I have boarded hundreds of cats who were declawed and suffered no debilitating physical or mental after effects.

It may not be the best choice but it beats the alternatives.

Just don’t do it yourself, let the vet do it in a sterile field and while the cat is anesthetized.

I was scratched by cats from the time I could remember. That’s how I learned to treat animals.

@tinyfaery yeah, that’s kind of why I let it go on as long as I did, I thought maybe a few little scratches would teach her to be at least wary, if not more gentle, but that hasn’t happened. If anything they are MORE rough with each other.

I have used them previously on two of my cats. Depending upon the cats temperament, they will last a longer or shorter amount of time.

My older cat barely noticed them. The other one would chew a few of them off so had to be replaced more frequently.

This product has been out for quite some time, so if there were problems with infections or such I’m quite sure word would have gotten around about it.

How old is your daughter?

@missyb I’m wondering how old your child is as well.
I have scars from cats, from when I was a child (the back legs can still get you, especially if something startles a cat and their reaction is to push off of you).
My son was only scratched once by one of our cats, and it was an accident. He just got bit by the dog the other day when he refused to leave him alone. I think you seeing if it would go away is a good approach, but the Soft Paws will definitely help until your child realizes that they can get hurt.

I am with @pdworkin and @Likeradar on this. Declawing is inhumane as it removes not only the claw but also one joint of their toe. Imagine if all of your fingers and toes were amputated at the second knuckle!

However, my wife and I just take a little extra time to clip our cats’ claws manually so we have no need for caps. It saves our furniture without the cats feeling something funny on their toes, and I am not 100% sure how those caps interact with the fact that cats claws are retractable.I would imagine it’s kind of like wearing thimbles all the time.

Of course, you have to be careful clipping them yourself since if you go too far you can cause all sorts of problems; keep a styptic pencil handy until you get the hang of it! (My wife used to be a veterinary aide so she knows how to do it; I usually just holld the fuzzy little blighters)

@jerv That’s funny, I’ve never come close to the quick on a cat’s claws. Have I just had docile cats?

@andrew If the cat didn’t try to remove various bodily organs… Yes.

@delirium You just have to assert your dominate position in the household. Using a towel if need be. Or ambush them in nap time.

@andrew Most of our cats we haven’t had a problem with either. A couple of them were docile enough that we had to occasionally check for a pulse. However, our current cat is pretty high-strung and doesn’t like to be held much, and really hates having her paws touched. She is also new enough to our house that she hasn’t figured out the pecking order quite yet.
Also, I am slightly ham-handed, so it only makes to let my more dextrous wife do it.

It’s also important to start training your cats from a young age to tolerate claw-clipping. Most people don’t do that, and it comes back to bite them later (or scratch, rather). If you’re afraid of your cat attacking you when you try to clip its claws, start by getting it used to you playing with its toes. Eventually you will be able to progress to the point where you can clip its claws without turning it into a wrestling match.

@ParaParaYukiko Exactly what I did with Basil. Worked out fairly well.

@andrew Good! Some seem to believe you can’t train a cat to do anything, but it just takes a bit more patience. :P I’ve been handling Vasco and Nacho’s toes since they were 4 weeks old, and now they’re pretty good about getting their claws clipped. It’s just a matter of remembering to do it…

If anyone has a problem restraining their cats in order to clip their nails please check out instructions on this website. It shows you how to easily restrain them so they will allow you to do pretty much anything you want believe it or not. I have used this method for years and it works for the most hyper cat. It shows pictures and instructions. Scroll down to Clipping Cat Nails and you will see the information:

http://www.tributememorial.net/CONTENTS.html

I just have two things to add.

There are two basic types of trimmers. One type looks like small scissors except with a small curved notch in the
blades.

The other is a guillotine type similar to the ones used on larger dogs.

Using the scissor type gives you much more control and exerts less pressure than the other type. I originally had the other type and when I switched to the small scissor type it was so amazingly easier.

To avoid cutting into the quick, never cut further than the apex of the curve. If you run the scissor blade along the nail, you can feel it even if you can’t see it. This is especially important for cats with dark feet and nails.

Since I switched nail clipper types, I have never once needed a styptic pencil.

I just do my cats nails with me in cross-legged sitting position and kitty on it’s back. I cover up the back feet with a towel to counteract any kicking but my current cat is fine without it.

I, sadly, have never had a young cat. Ever.
Each of my cats are rescues. They all have been.