We might be getting a kitten! How hard is it to trim its nails?

[hopemax]

We tag team to do both our cats, front paws. DH holds, I trim. They get treats when they are done, so the older cat is totally cool about it. I could probably do his myself, but I can see the nail better when DH is holding him. The younger one (he's 2.5) is squirmy by nature, so we usually have to do one paw, then let him go for a few seconds and then do the second paw. The first time he was a terror, but learned quickly the older cat hadn't been murdered, so he probably wouldn't be either. And there were treats.

 

[TipsyTraveler]

OP, another tip: Sometimes it's the position freaking the cat out as much as the actual nail clipping. If your cat is struggling being held in a cradled baby position, try sitting him upright in a normal four-paws-to-the-ground cat position.

 

[LilyWDW]

I think if you start early enough, it isn't a problem. You can start by getting the kitten used to you touching/holding it's paws. My cats were never a problem, and I can trim their nails without incident.

Sometimes.

Both my cats I started at a young age. Both I was always calm with them and did it the exact same way. One cat just lays there and sometimes even purrs while I do it. The other one acts like I am going to murder him.

Some cats just won't go along with it no matter what you do.

 

[sonnyjane]

Just echoing what so many others have said - DO NOT CUT TOO CLOSE TO THE QUICK! I do literally just enough to keep the nails blunt as opposed to sharp. My cat has brown nails instead of just clear, so it's not as easy to see the quick. I just err on the side of caution. I also agree that you don't need special clippers, I just use regular ones. I keep plenty of scratching posts around too. This helps to shed the sheaths as the nails grow.

 

[Kathryn Merteuil]

It is truly a case of "this is going to hurt me more than it is going to hurt you". I think it really depends on the cat, and the cat's mood. My cat will grudgingly let me, sometimes she really is uncooperative, other times she doesn't seem to get too worked up about it and not that bad.

 

[emmybee]

My husband is in charge of clipping his Buster's nails. He uses the usual cat clippers someone posted earlier. I have never had an issue clipping any of my other cats' nails. I am in charge of my current cat Butters. I tried the "cat clippers" once, but found them too awkward for me. I have always used a regular nail clipper, but I turn it so it is parallel to the nail. I also never clip close to the quick. I sit her on my lap, and I just clip, clip, clip matter-of-factly both front & back paws. I guess I have just been lucky to not have cats freak out on me about this. Butters isn't super pleased w/ me when I clip her nails, but tough cookies, cat!

 

[LSUmiss]

Just echoing what so many others have said - DO NOT CUT TOO CLOSE TO THE QUICK! I do literally just enough to keep the nails blunt as opposed to sharp. My cat has brown nails instead of just clear, so it's not as easy to see the quick. I just err on the side of caution. I also agree that you don't need special clippers, I just use regular ones. I keep plenty of scratching posts around too. This helps to shed the sheaths as the nails grow.

What kind of cat do you have? I previously worked in veterinary medicine for years & have had several cats over the years & have never seen a cat that didn’t have clear nails. I always thought cat nails were easier than dog nails b/c of this. I’m just curious b/c I had assumed they were all clear.

 

[sonnyjane]

What kind of cat do you have? I previously worked in veterinary medicine for years & have had several cats over the years & have never seen a cat that didn’t have clear nails. I always thought cat nails were easier than dog nails b/c of this. I’m just curious b/c I had assumed they were all clear.

He’s a large male tabby (but he has unusual agouti coloring). They are still translucent, they are just a bit brown as opposed to white/clear. I’m in bed and he’s on top of the fridge, so I found a couple of pics online that kind of show what I mean.

 

[sonnyjane]

Oh, here’s a photo of him with his claw “gently” imbedded in my foot while napping lol. You can see the dark color.

 

[ozliz]

I started playing with their paws when they were really young so they were used to being handled. I also open their mouths occasionally so that when I need to shove the worming tablet in they don’t freak out. A lot of cats don’t like all this but the younger you start the more tolerant I find they are as they get older. If you have trouble then just do them while they’re sleepy rather than playful and accept you may only get one paw trimmed at a time.

 

[PollyannaMom]

I hold while DH trims. I try to cuddle them upright and kind of hold out one paw at a time.

Oddly, the cat who is freaked out by the flea "spot" stuff doesn't mind the nails, and the cat who drapes like a rag doll for the flea spot requires heavy bribing for nails. Cats are weird.

My other best tip is to do it in really good light.

 

[aprilgail]

I would not trim my cats nails.
I take her to the vet for check ups.
They trim them as part of the visit.
If she were to need it between check ups I'd make a special appointment for that and it costs $15.
After they are trimmed the are more blunt so for a small period of time you'll find that scatches don't really scratch.
Trimming is mainly just so they don't get too long and get caught in things.
Its not a solution for not getting scratched.
Also you have to be sure you have several scratching posts because they will dig on anything to get them nice and sharp again. You don't want them getting sharp on your couch lol.

Sometimes.


Same!


Both my cats I started at a young age. Both I was always calm with them and did it the exact same way. One cat just lays there and sometimes even purrs while I do it. The other one acts like I am going to murder him.

Some cats just won't go along with it no matter what you do.

Exactly! I have one that will lay in your lap to get her nails cut- the other one actually has to be sedated at the vet to get hers cuts- that is such a pain in the butt but she would rip your eyes out if you tried to do it any other way. Funny thing is she is the cat that is the most loveable normally, just don't try to cut her nails, even as a kitten if you touched her feet she was not happy.

 

[adelaster]

 

[LSUmiss]

View attachment 284596 View attachment 284597

He’s a large male tabby (but he has unusual agouti coloring). They are still translucent, they are just a bit brown as opposed to white/clear. I’m in bed and he’s on top of the fridge, so I found a couple of pics online that kind of show what I mean.

Oh ok. I have seen that. I was thinking solid brown like a dog. I was thinking maybe it was some exotic breed.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Try and do it when the cat is either tired out from playing or sleeping/having just woken up...in other words calmer. If the cat starts to get agitated then hold off and try again later. We do use a cat nail trimmer.

We give our cat treats afterwards. He's not the happiest when we do it though and sometimes we just stop after one paw then wait if he gets too agitated. He just doesn't like to be restrained period even if you're just holding his paw to cut his nails.

He also hates hates hates being on his back (like many cats don't like) so we let him sit naturally to do it. Our cat likes sisal rope (which is on his cat tree) and that will help the nails too. We don't cut his back nails as often as his front ones as they get duller faster by him using them.

When we adopted him the lady did say one thing that can help is if you rub their pads of their feet to get them used to be touched and touched in a good way. Our cat is fine being touched on his paws (though one of his back paws is ticklish lol) it's the restraining part he doesn't like. He's like that with doors--he doesn't like to be confined to a space or have a space not available to him.

But do know all cats are different.

For example: Our cat loves his belly to be rubbed and touched (by only us though) but hates his back by his tail to be scratched.