How Do You Cut Your Cat’s Claws?
Key takeaways:
Trimming claws is necessary every few weeks for your cat’s comfort and the prevention of scratching.
Tools and techniques may ease the process.
Though many say it helps to have a partner, clipping can be done by one person.
Clipping cats’ claws is a necessary chore — one humans and felines alike would like to avoid. Depending on the tolerance of the cat and the confidence of the owner, it can be a weekly battle.
Reasons to trim claws include preventing ingrown and overgrown claws, which can be uncomfortable and potentially painful. Trimming also helps protect human skin, home surfaces and furniture from sharp claw scratches or tears.
The cost for a groomer to do the job has been estimated at $10 to $20 per trimming, or more if done by a veterinarian — and that can add up. So we talked with three cat lovers who have developed strategies to get the job done at home with as little trauma as possible.
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Protective cat nail clippers did the trick
Nikki Hess, a 43-year-old writer and content creator in Philadelphia, had long wrestled with her 20-lb cat, Manny Halloween Cat, when it came time for claw-trimming.
She adopted Manny when he was 5 years old, and he wasn’t used to having his paws touched. “He hates having his claws clipped,” she says.
Then she discovered a helpful tool: cat clippers that have a fixed hole between the blades. The claw goes into the hole, and with a simple squeeze of the hand grips, the sharp blades snap off only the tip.
The fixed size of the hole, which can be adjusted, keeps the clipper from getting too close to the quick (the part of the claw with blood vessels and nerves) and requires less precision from the user than standard clippers.
“I choose my claw-clipping times wisely — never right before a mealtime, because that’s when he’s most amped up,” Nikki says.
She and her boyfriend, John, wait for a time when Manny, now 12 years old, is mellowed out after a meal and a snack and on his side relaxing. Then John can curl around him and keep him still while Nikki does the clipping.
They clip Manny’s front claws and then adjust the hole size in the clippers before doing his back claws, which are thicker.
“If Manny needs a break, he gets a break. We don’t force ourselves — or him — to get through all the claws at once,” Nikki says.
Trimming your cat’s nails can be a one-person job
Morris Armstrong, of Prospect, Connecticut, has learned to be very gentle with his 6-lb, 16-year-old cat, Autumn.
With Autumn’s small size and calm nature, Morris is able to clip her front claws by himself about twice a month. He clips her back claws, too, but not as often. He says replacing clippers regularly is important, so the blades don’t get dull and pull or split the claw.
Morris sits on the edge of his bed and cradles Autumn’s frame with his left arm and spreads her claws with his left hand, then trims them with his right. Kisses on his cat’s nose help reassure her, he says.
“95% of the time I get both paws done without any issue,” says Morris, a 73-year-old founder of a financial firm.
Autumn is nearly deaf, so Morris thinks she leans on one of her other senses, touch, even more acutely. She enjoys the petting time. But there may be another reason.
“I think that she simply allows the grooming because she loves me,” he says.
Distract them with scratches, treats
Joey Lusvardi, 34, of Minneapolis, a certified cat behavior consultant and founder of Class Act Cats, also cuts his cats’ claws by himself.
He says one of his cats, Prozac, doesn’t mind the clipping, but Joey tries to make the clippers inconspicuous just in case.
He keeps several pairs of clippers around his apartment so he can nonchalantly pick them up when Prozac is most relaxed and quickly snip off a couple of claws when he isn’t paying much attention.
His other cat, Poutine, is not a fan of the process, so Joey uses a bit of sleight of hand and a reward system.
Poutine loves scratches on a particular spot on his head, so Joey starts there with both hands and moves one hand down to his claws so Poutine associates the clipping with something pleasant. Treats can also help with that association, he says.
“I do not fight him. It may take two or three days to do it,” he says. “If you can only do one at a time — great.”
Declawing is considered inhumane
For those unfamiliar, all cat owners should rule out declawing, which is the amputation of the last bone of each toe on a cat’s paw. The Humane Society of the United States and the Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association oppose declawing and tendonectomies (severing the tendon that controls the claw) except in rare medically necessary cases, such as removing cancer cells in the nail bed.
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Many countries have banned declawing or consider it unethical. “In the U.S., New York, Maryland, the District of Columbia, and more than a dozen cities have banned declawing,” the groups state.
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