Cat Nail Caps

Cat nail caps are soft plastic caps that fit snugly over each of your cat's nails. They are an option that many cat owner's turn to in order to prevent their cat from clawing up furniture, carpet, or other rough surfaces in the home. These are a much better option than declawing your cat. Declawing is cruel as it is equivalent to having your own fingernails removed. It is natural for cats to scratch and they should not be punished for that.

At least with cat nail caps, you protect your furniture and your cat can continue to scratch. We tried these caps on our own cat when we first adopted him. They worked great but we ran into some issues. The caps we used were held in place with glue. The first problem was our cat continually tried biting the caps off one by one and he succeeded.

Obviously they were unpleasant for him. While we saved our furniture, he was not a happy camper. We decided to go with another option.

Since the cat nail caps were not a good fit for our cat, we turned to a scratching post. Our first post was one covered in all carpet and he immediately started using it. He doesn't even bother scratching our couches anymore. However, with all of the scratching, the post became worn out very quickly. Our next post was made from sisal, a much tougher material than carpet. He's had it for about 2 months now and it still looks as new as the first day we bought it.

I think sisal is a much better option for scratching posts. I recommend getting one tall enough for your cat to be able to stretch. Once your cat becomes accustomed to using one, you will notice he won't bother the furniture anymore. If you have a problem getting your cat to use the scratching post, try attracting him/her to it by rubbing catnip on it or spraying it with catnip spray.

When I come across cat owners who mention declawing as an option I always recommend cat nail caps and scratching posts. Often, new cat owners are so frustrated they just want to save their furniture and turn to declawing as a fast and permanent solution. If you find yourself in this situation, please stop and consider the feelings of your cat. Scratching is natural and brings pleasure to your cat. It is a way for them to mark territory as they have scent glands in their paws. Keep your cat happy and try other safe options rather than turning to declawing.