Saving Claws or Saving Skin

January 9, 2008

What is it about kittens that make us want one? Is it the fur that is still so fluffy and soft feeling? Or is it that they are just small and cuddly?

My boyfriend and I just got a new kitten four days ago. We already have a 10-year-old cat, but when some close friends got a kitten, something inside me longed for one too. We didn’t even talk it through too long, we just looked at each other and I began calling around to find a litter. That night, we were getting to know our new frisky friend we named Boston Cinder.

After the first night we knew we were in for some problem solving. Just on the ride home alone, my boyfriend and I had ended up with countless scratches. We recently bought a new home with new furniture, and of course we had our 15-month-old daughter who could not keep her little hands of the furry little guy. This worried me after I found a scratch on my daughter’s thigh and a tiny rip in the throw pillow on the sofa.

However, Boston Cinder was only two months old and therefore could not be declawed for another two months. I did some searching on Google and found Soft Claws. About.com featured an article by Franny Syufy, in which she stated, “Soft Claws, developed by a veterinarian, ranks high on the list of humane alternatives. Soft Claws comes in a reclosable plastic container, which includes 40 nail caps (enough for several applications), two tubes of adhesive, and instructions for application. If your cat is used to having his nails trimmed, applying Soft Claws is a breeze.” That sold me!

I went down the following night to my local pet store and asked for the caps. That was a sure $20.00 that I thought was a great investment, especially if it saved him from being declawed and saved our skin from scratches. Applying them was a synch and after they were on, I had no worries when my daughter picked him up. She was scratch free and I was in Soft Claws heaven.

Then the next day, one came off. I got the caps back out, applied glue and stuck his nail in. Badda bing badda boom, easy peasy. The next morning I found two plastic caps on the floor, checked his nails and sure enough, two more were off. Was I doing something wrong? No, it was right. The instructions said though that the cats might try to take them off or they may fall off when the nail shed. Well, Boston wasn’t chewing enough from it to come off that way and he hadn’t shed yet. I was now getting annoyed with the daily applications. I was worried my daughter would find the caps on the floor and eat one.

Was this really worth the $20.00? Maybe it was the right decision for a temporary fix before the declawing could take place. In my opinion though, I would not keep buying them in the future. I’d rather sell the kitten and save my 20’s.

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