Tips on Cat Claws

Cats have retractable claws that they use to mark territory by scratching or to defend themselves against predators. For indoor cats, you need to help keep these nails groomed to prevent damage to furniture and to prevent potential health problems like torn or overgrown nails. Avoid painful declawing procedures by taking measure to take care of your cat's nails and providing it with outlets to scratch.

  1. Trimming Nails

    • Sharp cat nails can inflict damage on both household items and humans. To prevent these problems, trim your cat's nails every two to three weeks to keep their nails blunt, according to the Humane Society of the United States. Wait until your cat becomes sleepy, then slowly take the cat's front paw in your hand and press on the toe to extend the nail. Use a specialized pet clipper or human nail clipper to clip off just the sharp tip of the nail, above the pink "quick" that contains blood vessels. If you accidentally cut too low and the nail bleeds, rub styptic powder or cornstarch over the area to stop the bleeding. Treat your cat with a food reward for calm behavior during this procedure.

    Scratching Posts

    • In addition to grooming your cat's nails on a regular basis, provide your cat with appropriate outlets for its natural, instinctive behavior to scratch. Scratching posts help your cat to remove the worn outer nail sheath to reveal the new nail underneath. Provide your cat with scratching posts high enough for the cat to completely stretch itself upward and scratch down on with its claws. Give your cat different surfaces to scratch, depending on the cat's preference. Cardboard, carpet or wood all provide surfaces appropriate for your cat to scratch on a vertical or horizontal post. Place the posts in areas your cat scratches or spends time in and allow your cat to explore the post by itself.

    Nail Caps

    • For cats that continue to destroy furniture, carpeting or other items even with trimmed nails and scratching posts available, try rubber nail caps. Soft Paws nail caps apply over your cat's nails with a special glue included with the caps to keep them in place. The nail caps last about four to six weeks, according to the Soft Paws website, and you can place them on both the front and back paw nails. These caps cause no pain to the cat and fall off naturally when your cat sheds its old nail sheaths. Apply nail caps yourself on your cat when it is tired after trimming its nails. The glue dries within minutes to keep the caps in place. For hard-to-handle cats, have your veterinarian apply the caps for you. Each kit comes with 40 nail caps in different colors and sizes, and it costs about $18.95 as of April 2011.

    Considerations

    • Check your cat's claws regularly to prevent any medical issues such as torn claws, infections or overgrown nails in the bed of the cat's foot. By trimming your cat's nails regularly, you reduce the chances of these health issues and prevent your cat from scratching up your home. Start trimming your cat's nails when it is young, to acclimate it to this process. Place scratching posts in problem areas your cat regularly likes to stretch and scratch. Spray the posts with catnip to attract your cat to use them. Apply rubber nail caps to your cat's nails to prevent it from damaging furniture or scratching young children instead of declawing the cat. The ASPCA recommends against declawing surgery due to the pain involved in the procedure, unless euthanasia is the only other option.