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because I lived at home with my mom and he was tearing up her 2-year-old custom-made curtains.
I had it done, stayed at home with him and babied him for a few days, and once he healed, did not seem to realize he didn't have them. He "scratched" the rest of his life with his nubs.
I wasn't going to declaw the second cat, but the first one was "scratching" everything and I guess she couldn't figure out why he could and she couldn't. I did notice, however, that her recovery time was longer (Cat #1 had it done pretty young).
Many years later, we got a kitten when cat #2 was about 11 years old. Cat #2 didn't do much scratching by then, and we were able to train Cat #3 not to scratch. We now have another clawed cat, adopted at age 5. He's a bit of a nuisance with his scratching, but it's not to the point where I'd have to do something. If it gets worse, I'll try the nail caps.
IMO it's a very individual thing between cat and owner. And I agree, I think it's better to do that than to subject the cat to abandonment, if that's the only negative behavior involved. |