Don't Declaw, Soft Paw!
Maggie was a 6-year-old female Bengal, tearing up the carpets, curtains, and an antique upholstered chair.
Athletic, intelligent, and curious, Bengals may not respect property. But that is no reason to remove their claws!
Maggie’s mom asked me for an alternative to declawing. I suggested Soft Paws.
“We’ll trim her nails, fit the latex tips to the sizes of her claws, use the special glue to apply the tips carefully. You have to make certain no skin or fur gets caught in the glue, or she’ll hate it!”
Maggie loved her new nails. We picked hot pink. When a soft paw tip fell off, the pink was easy to see, Maggie’s mom could replace the nail right away.
Quinn, Malfoy, Ginger, and Toby were tearing up their house, too. They each got Soft Claws in different colors. That way, when a nail cover fell off naturally, after about 4-6 weeks, only the cat who needed a new claw cover would be examined!
Soft Paws (the veterinary brand) and Soft Claws (repackaged for pet stores) stay on most cats. But not all…
Fred was a 6-month-old long-hair red tabby cat. His soft paws stayed on about, oh, 47 1/2 minutes! I applied the nail covers, his mom drove Fred home. She opened his carrier door. Fred walked out, sat down next to a wicker porch chair, and proceeded to shove each toenail into the lattice, give a quick twist of his little cat wrist, and presto! Fred removed the soft paws quickly and efficiently in 5 minutes flat! Luckily most cats accept soft paws with nonchalence.
