Don't want to declaw, running out of options?

I'm going to paste in a link for you to learn how to clip the cat's claws. Do this at the first of every month. Alternatives are to have the vet tech at the vet's office do it or a groomer do it. The vet tech knows how far back to clip and can clip way back so that it only needs to be done every other month. You won't so do it every time you flip the calendar over.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YLDQMvskH8

About that scratching post - is that post at leave 5 feet tall and weighted? Most posts are a waste of money because when a stretched out cat leans into it the post tilts over. You need a solid post that doesn't move. One that is wrapped in sisal rope works well. It's unattractive but cats seem to love the stuff.

Another alternative is to go to the pet supply store and pick up the corrugated cardboard scratchers that just lay on the floor. There is a cat toy called a turbo scratcher that has a ping pong ball running around a circular groove and the inner part is the card board scratcher. I just buy the inserts and put them down. My cats love them.

You can also pick up inexpensive mats and carpet remnants for the cat to scratch on.

If the cat has lots of energy and wants to play then pick up a kitty teaser and a laser light and give the cat 30 to 60 minutes of heavy duty play and chase time so he's tired.

http://jacksongalaxy.com/category/cat-behavior-and...

It sounds like he is just going through a phase. All cats do this when they are 1-2 years old. He needs lots of toys, and for the kids to never allow feet to be involved in play time, so if they are playing and the cat goes for their feet, do not let them encourage this by moving them around. Simply exclaim "NO" in a stern voice and tell them to do the same. The good thing about a baby is that the cat is really not going to have any contact with the baby as they will be in their own room, in a crib or play pen, when they aren't being held or supervised by an adult. Hopefully by the time the baby is old enough to be running around on his own the cat will have outgrown the "teenage" phase.

Also, keeping the cats claws trimmed is very important especially for an indoor cat. They need to be trimmed every couple of weeks. If you have trouble doing this, have someone restrain him while you trim the nails. This will make the scratches less severe and be more comfortable for the cat.

Cats don't attack with no reason. Your kids are teasing and tormenting the cat, you either are allowing it or don't 'see it' and the cat feels it has no choice but to defend itself

De clawing will only make the cat even more aggressive and it will move right to biting and you will dump the cat all because you didn't teach your kids how to behave around the cat. Re homing the cat is not the solution, the cat will be dumped by the new owners as well

I've had cats since I was 6 years old - and I'm now 26. My parents absolutely insisted on declawing our cats - though they only declawed the front paws. I didn't have a say in it as a kid, but I will say that neither of the cats we declawed ended up biting people, and they didn't pee outside of the litter box. They had no issues with the declawing. They went on to be just normal cats.

Now that I'm an adult, I decided that I wouldn't declaw any of my pets. But I also got lucky. My little kitten doesn't claw at things other than his scratching post. But his claws are sharp, and you can get scratched by him accidentally when you hold him, so I trim his nails. I wait til he's comfortably laying down & then I trim them. He doesn't fuss with me at all. He'll patiently sit there & let me trim his nails.

And, yes, some cats DO attack people unprovoked.

I wish I could offer a better solution. With our previous cats, we had a hard time training them when they would jump up on counters when they shouldn't, etc. We tried all the tricks. They were just stubborn. I would suggest trimming the nails, and see if that at least lessens the scratches.

Maybe the cat wants attention from the boys?

I don't particularly suggest declawing the cat, but having seen both sides of it - if your cat is an indoor cat, he/she will be ok after you declaw him. If that really is what you decide is the best solution to your problem, you may want to only get his front claws declawed as they can't attack with their back paws.

You have a frustrating situation to deal with and I feel for you. Usually declawing issues are black-and-white with me:that its wrong. However, there are so many homeless animals and not enough homes and you do love him and are looking for solutions instead of just tossing him out.

*Before I go on, please be aware that declawed cats can and often turn into biters since their first choice of "defense-their nails" are gone. Does he bite now? The first thing I would consider is this being a behavior issue. Talk to your vet about the situation and get his/her input. Talk about the whole picture. If he's doing it out of play, getting him a buddy might help.

If he is really attacking, maybe the boys did something to upset him (not suggesting you have mean kids but sometimes kids do things before they are taught or realize it is mean). Cats are very sensitive and what the boys see as play might actually being terrifying the cat and he is deciding to attack before "they can."

Good luck-I hope everything works out. Really talk to the vet about it. Or even a rescue in your area. These people have been around the block when it comes to their rescues and have probably either experienced it or have solutions that others, including vets, haven't thought of.

You should try SoftPaws! I have not used the because I haven't had scratching problems with my cat (keeping her nails trimmed really helps), but my friend has and says they work.

If trimming nails is a very difficult process with your cat, applying the soft paws may still be tricky, but at least you can go a little longer until you have to repeat the process. Plus, the nail caps fall off one at a time, so your cat won't have to sit through getting all his nails "manicured" ;).

My only hesitation with them is that I don't see how the cat can retract his/her nails. I mean, if he's scratching your child though, I think it's more important to take care of that. It seems to not be a problem though, from what I've read and heard.

Check it out for yourself: http://www.softpaws.com/

Start clipping his nails. I use a human nail clipper to just take the tips off. I find them easier than the scissors type trimmers. Do a nail per day so he doesn't flip out. My cats will nap right through it. I've been doing it since they were 4 months old & they are 6 years old now.

I have also used Soft Paws, which I liked a lot. I got the vet to do it. They always fell off when I did it myself. The vet ones stayed on at least 6 weeks. I got a blue that was the same color as their eyes, lol.

I'm wondering if the cat is actually playing a game with boys since he never goes for the adults. Kids quite often play a game of hiding and jumping out at the other one. So wonder if you could create a game where they sit around the scratching post and the end result being scratching on the post as the reward. Just an idea, sometimes with creatures you need to be creative. But by all means try to keep his tips clipped. Good Luck and Congrats on the baby.

You have NOT tried everything. You make NO mention of keeping the nails trimmed short on a weekly basis. You didn't mention trying to use the SoftPaws nail caps either.

When you keep nails trimmed you don't have cats that scratch or bite or claw - my cats get their nails checked and trimmed as needed on a weekly basis and we don't have any problems.

Declawing can make things 10x worse because the cat will resort to biting or peeing outside the litter box.

These types of issues are generally parenting ones, and not cat behavior ones. There is something going on that is causing the cat to become aggressive with your sons. Cats do not attack "unprovoked". Declawing is absolutely the worst thing you can do. A cat that attacks out of fear or aggression with their claws is going to attack with their teeth. If you cannot determine what is really triggering the attacks and put an end to it, then do find him a new home. Declawing is never the answer, and will just make a bad situation worse.