De-Clawing

[StinaKSU]

there are things you can do if you have outdoors cats to ensure there healthy safety

Oh so you can keep an outdoor cat from getting hit by a car or killed by another animal?...

 

[robin]

OK I'm confused ....... Does "Free Range" mean cats without a home? Or are they cats that are owned by someone that takes care to keep their outdoor pet fed, up on all vaccinations, and get regular vetrenary care?

i dunno. my dad used to shoot the "wild cats" but the outdoor barn cats were always taken care of.

 

[robin]

Oh so you can keep an outdoor cat from getting hit by a car or killed by another animal?...

poo happens sometimes, just as it can with indoor cats

 

[Grinning Geckos]

See, I don't have the facts like you guys do, but all I can say is I HATE seeing the cat running around in -25 wind chill and 7 inches of snow.

I hate that also (I just saw that the other day...poor cat!).

That being said, growing up, our cats were always declawed in the front. Tigger spent 1/2 her life as an indoor/outdoor cat. Mind you, this was in Texas...not Chicago. She hunted with NO problems ... she liked to leave gifts for the neighbors. She could also chase german shepards out of the yard. She lived to a ripe age of 19.

Troi, 16ish , was several years old when he was declawed. He was tender for a few days, and in a week you'd never know the difference. He was also an indoor/outdoor cat for many years. He still tries to sneak out every now and then. Sadly, I don't think he'll be around much longer ... he's getting to be an oooold man with kidney problems.

Mitsu, our "kitten", is 5 years old. I couldn't WAIT to get his claws removed (done at the same time a neutering). Talk about a cat that liked his claws. Mitsu is not a normal cat, and thankfully I'm not a normal owner. He was a rescue cat that was ADORABLE at the shelter and turned into a pure hellion at home. We think that not only was he removed at too young and age (he liked to suckle on your fingers for about a year), but we also think he was abused. To let you know how bad he was, I would NEVER take my animals to a shelter...they're part of the family...but I was tempted to take him back (and this was WITHOUT claws). I KNOW almost any other family would have taken him back. I won't go into what we had to do to train him....because stubborn is his first, middle, and last name.

Ok, so that went way, way off course ... but that's what you get when you talk about cats. I guess what I was saying (in a round-about way) is I'm fine with declawing and I think it's invaluable in some cases.

 

[StinaKSU]

you're saying a cat that's kept indoors is just as likely to die of smt as an outdoor cat that's exposed to the MAJOR risks of cars and predators??

 

[robin]

robin, your "experience" with, what was it?...6 or so outdoor cats, does not make it the average.... and your experience doesn't make you better than or know more than anyone else either. I am not claiming or acting like I am better than anyone else...I am sharing the information that I have learned...and it having been from books and school does not make it any less respectable or correct than experience. and I gave you info, you just choose to ignore it b/c it came from me. I'm sure I could find more information, but I know it won't make any difference with you and I just plain don't have the time....vet school is not exactly a pursuit that allows a whole lot of free time to waste trying to prove things to people who won't listen anyway.

:O six is almost the least amount of cats i have ever had. Stina, try 30 outdoor cats at one time.

 

[StinaKSU]

and that is an average representation of the millions of cats in the US how?...Did they all live to the average indoor lifespan of over 10? Even if they did, I don't see how that is really a significant difference from 6 of millions...

 

[robin]

Do you know what verbatim or copy and paste mean? Try to find my quote, which is from a source you claim to respect, in stina's posts?

Can't find it? Well I guess it's not what stina said verbatim, which means she certainly didn't copy and paste it.


It's time for you to back off, robin. Obviously it's personal, because you simply haven't backed up any of your statements other than by attacking stina.

steve, i simply don't like her and think she is a know it all.
i do not claim to be a vet or all high and mighty i go from my ezperience and don't quote books with stuff i have personally never dealt with

 

[robin]

you're saying a cat that's kept indoors is just as likely to die of smt as an outdoor cat that's exposed to the MAJOR risks of cars and predators??

i said, poo can happen to both indoor and outdoor cats alike

 

[robin]

and that is an average representation of the millions of cats in the US how?...Did they all live to the average indoor lifespan of over 10? Even if they did, I don't see how that is really a significant difference from 6 of millions...

they lived well over ten years of age. yes it doesnt compare to millions but it give me a better working knowledge of outdoor cats. 30 is not all the cats we had, we just had 30 cats at one time (highest count for that time) but we have had many many more

 

[SteveB]

steve, i simply don't like her and think she is a know it all.
i do not claim to be a vet or all high and mighty i go from my ezperience and don't quote books with stuff i have personally never dealt with

So the world revolves around you and your 30 cats at a time all living to ripe old ages and facing no more risks than an indoor cat in this perfect robin world.

Forget all about what experts have spent their whole lives researching, this is robin world. How could I have forgotten!!

And god forbid anyone disagree with robin, because they are know it alls for pointing out trivial details like facts and research and using big words... this is robin world after all.

 

[robin]

i love you kelli

 

[robin]

So the world revolves around you and your 30 cats at a time all living to ripe old ages and facing no more risks than an indoor cat in this perfect robin world.

Forget all about what experts have spent their whole lives researching, this is robin world. How could I have forgotten!!

And god forbid anyone disagree with robin, because they are know it alls for pointing out trivial details like facts and research and using big words... this is robin world after all.

yes it is :main_thumbsup:

 

[KelliH]

OK, that's about enough. This isn't Fauna for crying out loud! ;-p

Can we please just agree to disagree and move on?

 

[brandy101010]

Have you ever known a declawed cat that didn't try to scratch things? The MAIN purposes for cats to scratch may be to mark territory and for claw maintainence...but they are not the only reasons. Some cats just like to scratch (like dogs that just like to bark...it can be a self rewarding behavior that can be nearly impossible to train them out of)...and a lot of times "scratching" is the cat stretching and then deciding to just take a bit of a scratch while they're at it. My roommate's cat that I mentioned before is a cat who does that....she does a full out stretch on the wall and then relaxes and pretends to scratch at it (and no I'm not talking about marking behavior) and my cat does the same thing to the carpet (except she has claws and I yell at her when I catch her doing it...lol). Both of our cats have done this their entire lives (she had her cat since birth, I've had buie since she was about 6 weeks old) and the behaviors don't change with environmental change. Also cats naturally mark their territory when they're feeling perfectly content, not necessarily because they're stressed out in some way...and many cats that are stressed out will hide and try to make themselves as unnoticeable as possible.

Ok. I should have said they are the MAIN reasons for scratching. Yes cats do enjoy scratching. scratching exercises the muscles of the forelimbs and is perfect for a good stretch. But it still does not change that MOST cats will do this behavior in their designated spots (if it is not for marking purposes) Do you have a scratching post that your kitty uses? I'm not saying that every single cat is that easily trained. But in my experience and others that I know and from my studdies most cats with some effort will not scratch up your house.

I belive if a cat is not in the city and is not in a lot of danger from traffic then it is ok for the cat to be able to go out doors. Cats that have free access to outdoors will have a full and natural lifestyle. they will live a mentally and physically stimulated life.

 

[KelliH]

Oh, and I love you too Robin. Meow.

 

[Russ S]

This isn't Fauna for crying out loud!

You're right Kelli, if it was Fauna people would have been banned till they paid $10.

 

[brandy101010]

You're right Kelli, if it was Fauna people would have been banned till they paid $10.

LOL! :main_laugh:

 

[KelliH]

You're right Kelli, if it was Fauna people would have been banned till they paid $10.

LOL Russ.

 

[StinaKSU]

But it still does not change that MOST cats will do this behavior in their designated spots (if it is not for marking purposes) Do you have a scratching post that your kitty uses? I'm not saying that every single cat is that easily trained. But in my experience and others that I know and from my studdies most cats with some effort will not scratch up your house.

I dont' disagree with you...(there are "designated scratching areas" for them...which buie uses regularly...she just sometimes scratches whenever and wherever she happens to stretch as well...lol)...I was just saying that there are cats who scratch for the sake of scratching and sometimes you can't train them not to (especially if you have a time consuming job or smt that keeps you gone most of the time). As far as marking goes, from what I've seen cats use very specific places to mark and will mark the same locations over and over, which should be easy to control b/c you can just put scratching posts in those locations....unless you have a cat that happens to like marking by urinating....like my friend's cat likes to pee on the landing of their stairs.....LOL (completely irrelevant...but funny....)...they need some puppy piddle pads...