does cat nail clipping HURT??

**dionne** · 08-12-2006, 02:53 AM

ok. today was the day i had to clip my babies claws. i had been putting it off as long as possible....i HATE doing it, but if not, they will stick to the carpet.
so. i clipped all three's claws, and it seems like it hurts them. all three of them. they were yowling at me, but not in protest, but pain. i know the differences in cat voices, and it seemed like it hurts them, every time i do it. now, there should be no reason, i didnt clip their -what do you call them? sheaves? you know what i mean. i didnt get the pads of their toes, or anything. i even have a special cat nail clipper....and i cut just the sharp tips off, not the whole claw....so i guess my question is....does it hurt them? do they have feeling in their claws?
i hate doing it anyways, since its a pain to get them to sit still...but if i'm inflicting pain without knowing..... when they meow at me, it's like i'm REALLY inflicting pain on them!

**Crazy-Cat-Lover** · 08-12-2006, 03:07 AM

Originally Posted by dionne

Does it hurt them? do they have feeling in their claws?

I can hurt if you cut past the "quick". Avoid the quick when you trim the claw, as cutting into it will cause pain and bleeding

Make sure your clippers are sharp and that your cats are relaxed before you start trimming their nails. Other than the quick, cats don't have any feeling in their nails, they're just like ours.

**dionne** · 08-12-2006, 03:41 AM

yeah, i don't cut into the quick -sorry couldn't think of the name...i just cut the tip, where the curve starts. i know the clippers are sharp, i've used them 3 times since ive got them-like 9 months ago. but how do you sharpen them anyways

**Miss Z** · 08-12-2006, 05:32 AM

Crazy-Cat-Lover is right, as long as you aren't cutting the quick then it doesn't hurt them one bit. When the cat is relaxed it is much easier to cut the claws rather than them squirming around, perhaps get someone to stroke the cats head and talk to the cat whilst you do it.

In case the quick is ever cut, you will know about it, because it bleeds like a broken dam. I used to have a rabbit called Cookie, and we took him to the vets to have his claws cut for the first time. The vet was a man we hadn't seen before, a big, gruff man and we didn't like the look of him at all. He got hold of Cookie, got his clippers on the first claw, and CRACK, right in the quick. Poor Cookie squealed so loudly and blood was getting everywhere. The vet then put a red hot rod onto the quick to stop it bleeding, and there was a horrible smell of burnt flesh, and it turns out he burnt the skin around his nail too. We marched out of the surgery, lodged a huge complaint, and took to cutting his claws at home.

A few weeks later, we got a letter from the vets telling us that vet had been sacked. Still, we've never taken any animal to have their claws cut at the vets again!!! Much safer to do it yourself

**catfamily** · 08-12-2006, 05:39 AM

I always dread nail clipping day with all my cats.But my husband helps so much just by getting them one at a time and holding them so I can really Look where I am cutting so not to hurt them by going IN too far.We've been doing it every month for years and it's been good SO FAR.LOL

**catfamily** · 08-12-2006, 05:41 AM

Originally Posted by Miss Z

Crazy-Cat-Lover is right, as long as you aren't cutting the quick then it doesn't hurt them one bit. When the cat is relaxed it is much easier to cut the claws rather than them squirming around, perhaps get someone to stroke the cats head and talk to the cat whilst you do it.

In case the quick is ever cut, you will know about it, because it bleeds like a broken dam. I used to have a rabbit called Cookie, and we took him to the vets to have his claws cut for the first time. The vet was a man we hadn't seen before, a big, gruff man and we didn't like the look of him at all. He got hold of Cookie, got his clippers on the first claw, and CRACK, right in the quick. Poor Cookie squealed so loudly and blood was getting everywhere. The vet then put a red hot rod onto the quick to stop it bleeding, and there was a horrible smell of burnt flesh, and it turns out he burnt the skin around his nail too. We marched out of the surgery, lodged a huge complaint, and took to cutting his claws at home.

A few weeks later, we got a letter from the vets telling us that vet had been sacked. Still, we've never taken any animal to have their claws cut at the vets again!!! Much safer to do it yourself

OMG!!I am TOTALLY Freaking out at this.Your POOR cat.That vet should of had the same thing done to him.

**zoey** · 08-12-2006, 05:55 AM

Miss Z, OMG! What you went through at that vet was horrible!!!

That vet should have kept Styptic Powder on hand just in case. It's a clotting agent that would have stopped the bleeding. It's unconscionable that they would have burned poor Cookie bunny with a rod, causing even more pain on top of the pain and stress you guys had already experienced!! ..::HUGS::..

**catnapper** · 08-12-2006, 08:42 AM

Both Abby and Flutter scream as if being murdered but I know its because they don't like the position I put them in to do the trimming - not the trimming itself. The others figured out long ago that being still and quiet gets the job done much faster.

The more you clip their nails the faster they realize its not death on earth. I trim my guys at least once a month. Many times I do it twice a month, like in the summer when nails grow faster. The more you trim their nails the smaller and smaller the quick grows.