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For Cat Owners: Sedation

MultiM

MultiM

macrumors 6502
Original poster
May 9, 2006
452
6
TO. I've moved!
Do you sedate your cat for any reason, and what do you use? I need to relax my cat so I can cut her nails (otherwise she shreds my arms fighting) because they are curling under and hurting her. I do not believe in de-clawing and the vet charges 30 bucks to trim nails.

I know this may seem lame but any suggestions would be helpful.
 
Anything strong enough to sedate her that well (she'd need to be pretty groggy) is likely dangerous to use. The best thing would have been to have tried to get her used to it at a very young age, but now... it might be worth the $30 to save the two of you a fair amount of pain. I suppose you could try filling her up with treats first... but I'd go to the vet.
 
I'd ask your vet, frankly. They will be the most qualified to answer your question and if they hem and haw becuase they want your $30, then you need another vet. They should be more than happy that you're interested in the well-being of your animal.

We have one cat who is seriously trim-phobic (the vet used welding gloves to the shoulder last time!), but he needs a trim and I'm curious what you get told as well.
 
The vet says he doesn't have anything that would be effective. I have an appointment tomorrow to have both cats' nails trimmed, but at $60 every month that can get ridiculous. As kittens it was difficult to cut their nails. The one I'm really concerned about can be especially vicious when crossed.

As to getting another vet, we really like this guy. We've gone to him for many years and are very happy with him.
 
hmm most vets that I know are more than happy to trim claws for free during the visit , so the pet has the least stressful experience possible

My 25lb gentle giant helps me out to clip his claws by holding still and extending his toes.

my mothers hell cat will not let anyone trim hers unless you flip her over on her back and get a second person to hold her hind legs, she then does not struggle and just swears at you

you might want to try and desentitize the cat to having her paws handled, just touch them and extend the claws but dont clip, eventually she will get used to it.
 
Leareth said:
hmm most vets that I know are more than happy to trim claws for free during the visit , so the pet has the least stressful experience possible

My 25lb gentle giant helps me out to clip his claws by holding still and extending his toes.

my mothers hell cat will not let anyone trim hers unless you flip her over on her back and get a second person to hold her hind legs, she then does not struggle and just swears at you

you might want to try and desentitize the cat to having her paws handled, just touch them and extend the claws but dont clip, eventually she will get used to it.
Click to expand...

25Lbs! Wow! I thought ares were bad we have 4 that range from 18-20Lbs, got any pictures of big kitty? :)
 
There's a product called "Calm Down! for cats" that works pretty well.
Google it, and you'll find a number of online stores that sell it.
 
i dont think its that cheap per pill but you can certainly ask for the type of drugs they sell for driving trips and the like.

dont recall the name, but its for dogs n cats of all sizes and ages, you just say how old and how big and they give you the correct dosage. cut the pill in half, cat is relaxed.
 
todd2000 said:
25Lbs! Wow! I thought ares were bad we have 4 that range from 18-20Lbs, got any pictures of big kitty? :)
Click to expand...

Not the best picture but shows his size compared to a 12" ibook:D
check out the pet picture sections I have a few more posted there.
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My wife is a vet so I know a few things about this subject. Using drugs isnt the best way to solve your problem. You should try clicker training. It works very well for dogs and my guess is that it would work for cat too.

Basicaly, you need to get a "clicker" and a lot of cat treats. Start by clicking and then immediatly give the food to the cat. Once the cat has associated the concept of food to the noise, you can move forward. The next step is to touch the paw of the cat while clicking then giving the treat. keep doign this for a while until you can touch the paw without problem. Next step is to show the nail cutter to the cat while trying to touch the paw. Click each time you manage to touch it and give it a treat. Then you try to touch the paw with the cutter then click... etc...

Each training session shouldnt last more than 5-10mins and be done everyday. My wife did this for a dog owner who was in the same situation as you and in less than a month the owner was able to cut the nails.

The goal of all of this is to have the cat associate the cutting with something fun (the clicking).

I suggest that you read about clicker training. Interesting stuff.
 
MultiM said:
Do you sedate your cat for any reason, and what do you use? I need to relax my cat so I can cut her nails (otherwise she shreds my arms fighting) because they are curling under and hurting her. I do not believe in de-clawing and the vet charges 30 bucks to trim nails.

I know this may seem lame but any suggestions would be helpful.
Click to expand...




glad to hear you won't get her de-clawed :)

may i ask why your cats claws are growing too long? does she not use any scratching posts or anything? if not, well, there's your answer, find something (other than yourself!) that she can scratch.
 
Thanks for the suggestions. Her nails aren't especially long, they are curling too much. She very happily scratches her posts and her condo. She also likes the carpeting on the stairs. The problem is that they are curling ino her pads and she limps because of it. Both cats are off to the vet in the morning for clipping. Wish me luck!
 
Cat Things....

At one point, we had to give our cat 'water injections' under the skin (5 minutes process that is really uncomfortable for the cat) for kidney problems and it was difficult... until we starting using specific room and that was the only reason we let the cat in there (ever). And, it became 'routine' for the cat that when she was in that room, she needed to just sit there... conditioned her over 2 months.

We noticed that when 'we' gave her the injections ourselves at the vet she was very manageable, but at home, she was just a bit too comfortable on her own turf and ready to fight it. We selected a bathroom, changed the smell with certain cleaning solution we only used there and unique air fresheners. .. worked for us when we thought nothing would ever work... on the other hand, you could buy some welder's gloves.
 
Leareth said:
Not the best picture but shows his size compared to a 12" ibook:D
check out the pet picture sections I have a few more posted there.
attachment.php
Click to expand...


just seen your cat picture - mine looks very similar and is as big!! i am in England so can't be related.
 
I thought my cats were a pain during nail clippings, but now I know how good I have it. They'll struggle a little, but it's a relatively easy procedure compared to what some of you have to do.
 
I'm in the same boat as you, except I'm a dog owner.

My little Chihuahua gives me a hard time to clip his nails.

I usually take him to Petsmart or to a local groomer to clip his toenails. The job usually costs $8. At my vet's office, it's $15.

$30 does sound a bit much, but it is worth it to save yourself from frustration and your cat from a little stress.

But, if you want to continue to cut your cat's claws yourself, you can try a natural remedy called Bach's Rescue Remedy for pets. Although I haven't tried it on my dog, I've heard a ton of good reviews about it for people's pets. It should reduce the stress of your cat if that is what is causing your cat to panic while attempting the cut nails.

Here is the website if you want to read more about it:
http://www.rescueremedy.com/pets/

Good luck! :)
 
I have a rescued kitty named Nemesis. She really doesn't like having her nails trimmed. I ended up buying a kitty restraint bag. It's a bag with a long zipper down the back, a velcro strap around the neck, and some small zippers on the front.

You lay the bag down on a flat surface (I use my bed), and then get kitty into it. For me, it's easiest to do it by getting the velcro strap around the neck first, and then getting her into position so that I can zip up the back. The little zippers on the front are placed such that you can unzip the little zipper, get one paw out, and trim it.

I didn't think that it would work when my boyfriend bought it, but it's turned out to be hugely helpful. I think that part of the reason that it works so well is that she can't fight it. She's so much calmer now when we trim her nails. I thought that it was crazy when my boyfriend brought it home, but it works.
 
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I'm taking the dogs and one of the catsd in this weekend to have nails cut. $110.00 down the drain. What's the name of and where can I find this restraint bag?
 
My Cat has all of her claws. I have to chase her down, and wrap her in a towel, which is NOT fun.

But once I get her wrapped in the towel, she is powerless. She just gets pissed because she thinks im taking her to the vet.
 
Mine is declawed. After my first guy (who was 20 pounds and lived more than 15 years) clawed woodwork and furniture to hell, I decided no more after him. And you try clipping a 20 pound beast's claws. I had to help the vet do it. ;) I live in the city, so my cat doesn't go outside. She doesn't miss her claws, and we're all much happier. You might want to get the next one declawed. It's not as bad as you think, and it saves a lot of wear and tear on your relationship with your cat.
 
nah nah, nah nah nah nah I wanna be sedated.....my cat is a bed head. Sedate him any more than he is and he would be a dead puss.

Half an hour on gas mark 4 will do the trick..not with the oven lit of course...that would be cruel
 
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