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Isn't my cat soooo cute!
- Thread starter kingcrowing
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MacRy said:
Aren't cats pleasant? The only cat I've ever had, Kim, who died a few years back, was the same.
Thanks for the thoughts. She is a Vizsla, a hungarian sporting breed used for upland game hunting (I am not a hunter) birds like quail and phesant. Her name was Hattie. My parents named her after the witch Hattie who is fabled (not so famous though) to roam the former Black Swamp area where my parents live. (NW Ohio). Very friendly and very affectionate. But also full of energy. She died when she was almost 14 and was still going strong. Unfortunately, the vet feels she had a stroke.cheekyspanky said:Sorry to hear that- I'm not too good with dog breeds, what type was he and what was his name?
Declawing your cat is just plain wrong, in my opinion, it's inhumane. If you plan to declaw your cat...you shouldn't get one!steve jr. said:
Guess I should show mine off too. All can be seen on my website .
Baby Tigress
Coal with his new squeeze
Forest Gump?
The Late Boots...Just like his dad.
Baby Tigress
Coal with his new squeeze
Forest Gump?
The Late Boots...Just like his dad.
Both of those options; people reccomend trimming claw tips as well as little sock/mitten type things, and there are even little rubbery nubbins that can cap the ends of each nail.GanChan said:
Declawing is essentially ripping out your finger nails from the very root, so that they never grow back. Except for humans, finger nails were never as essential as claws are to a cat. In the wild, cats need claws as self-defense, as hunting for food, as well as marking their territory and climbing away (also self-defense I guess). Some cats when declawed become extremely moody and depressed and many declawed cats end up biting since they can no longer swat w/ their "useless" paws.
Please don't declaw your kitties.
::Edit:: Macry, please don't declaw your cats! You will survive these painful scratches. I have a 2.5 inch long scar on my knee from a friend's cat; if a vain little lady can cope w/ that scar, I'm sure a man such as yourself can cope with a few scars. Besides, scars are sexy.
Depending on laws in certain locations, I think it is up to the owner. With our two cats, they were both declawed as really young kittens (Both cats did keep their back claws. I neglected to mention that.) As for being in the wild, if it is a strictly a house cat as ours were, I don't want them clawing and scratching at my furniture and curtains. We feed them. No need for hunting. I work hard for my stuff and don't want it destroyed. Like I said, just personal opinion of the owner and what local laws say. Personally, I will have every cat I own declawed in the front. I'm afraid to ask about opinions on spaying and nutoring.
steve jr. said:
I'm sorry, but declawing cats is absolutely cruel and inhumane. If you care more about your furniture than you do about your cat, then DON'T GET A CAT!!!
MacRy said:
My cats have NEVER scratched any furniture, NEVER scratched my wife or me, and NEVER scatched our baby. They still play-fight each other, but they know what the boundaries are with us - cats are easy to train provided you start them young enough.
I echo what other people have said on this site - please please please do not declaw your cats. There are very good reasons why many countries have made it illegal, and why most shelters will take back a cat if you get it declawed (it's usually part of the contract you sign with them).
Sorry to rant on, but it's something I feel very strongly about.
Altima 3.5 makes an excellent point...if you are that concerned with your furniture, you should NOT get a cat. My girlfriend and I have 2 black leather couches, and never once have our 2 cats attempted to scratch it. We have toys for them to play with, and they are pretty content with that. If you maintain their claws, i.e... routinely using a cat nail trimmer, you shouldnt have a problem. However, if you are not skilled at doing this, I recommend you have a Vet do it, it usually only costs about $10. Declawing your cat pulls the nail out of the muscle. It's very painful, and usually makes cats mean and depressed. Declawing a cat, is like cutting off your fingers. Cats use their claws for alot more than hunting. Our 2 cats will only ever be inside cats, and we would NEVER even consider having them declawed. This is why most of the time when you adopt a cat, if you plan to declaw they will revoke the adoption. Any experienced vet will also advise you not to declaw your cat. DON'T DECLAW YOUR CAT!!!!
I think I will apologize to any people that I may have offended before this gets too heated. I stand by what I said earlier, I believe it is up to the owner. But this is just my opinion. I respect everyone elses, but most everyone makes the decisioin based on what they are use to. If a kitten is declawed at such a young age to the point that they had almost no chance to use them, why would they miss them? They only had them for a short time. It's like when you have a tooth pulled. Hurts a little at first, but you eventually learn to cope and go without it. I could give a sensitive example more related to an optional alteration of males at birth, but I won't get into that one. Same concept, bigger scale, no?
The point I was trying to make earlier about the "cats in the wild" was in referrence to natural instincts. Claws to cats are not like foreskins for human males. A better comparison would be our thumbs. Or big toes. Claws even allow for proper walking. However, I agree that if there are no laws or contracts from adoption agencies, I guess ultimately the human owner makes the call because really, a cat can't veto a human's vote, can it?steve jr. said:
devilot76 said:
While the claws may assist with walking, I don't think they would play as big a part in comparison as the thumb or big toe. Look at your foot. Look at a cats foot (if they will let you). A "ped" in the very back, the heal, a large "palm" the middle part on a human and, anywhere between 3-5 "toes" that equal human toes. It is basically the toe nail equally on both. It would be the same for us if we never cut them. As for the veto, haha, I don't think so.
So whats the point in having a cat if it can't fetch, go on walks, or even use to restroom outside?
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