molter@eosp1.UUCP (Larry Molter) (03/27/84)
I agree wholeheartedly on all accounts. I had our female spayed as soon as she was old enough: I didn't want a litter of kittens, nor did I want a howling queen. And, contrary to popular opinion, spaying does no psychological harm to the kitten: They don't miss having the sex drive. Our male was castrated when he was seven months old (the minimum age required by the vet). Before the operation, he was cool to humans, roamed more than we would have liked, and was developing *very* pungent urine. Now, two months later, he has become much more affectionate (he seems to be a different cat sometimes), and stays close to home. What irks me about cat population control are the people that complain about the costs of the operations. I find no basis for that argument. The spay cost us $35 and that included a stay overnight at the vet. The castration was performed during clinic hours and cost about $25. At these prices, I considered it a bargain. Now, on to the issue of declawing. Both of our cats are not declawed, spend a lot of the time in the house, and have done minimal damage to the furnishings. Some scratches are to be expected. A cat owner has to be understanding of the cat's need to pull and scratch. We've had good luck with a scratching post, at least as far as our female cat goes - she runs to it whenever she has the urge. The male is a different story: He'll pull the rug DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF THE POST! Well, it's a crappy rug anyway. It's selfish people that have their cats declawed. They don't want to have to deal with the pulls and scratch marks. Well, there are pet repellants that DO work. We use it with good results. Talk about selfishness, let me relate a story (short) involving a co-worker and her new kitten - It seems that her new arrival is a devil. It claws up everything but it especially likes the grills of her NEW speakers. So... it is decided that it's claws have to be removed. But not just the front ones - the REAR claws have to go to! And you know why? Because "when we play, I get all scratched up.". Do you believe it? Doesn't this person realize (and she doesn't - I've asked) that the poor cat needs its rear claws for scratching itself (you know, if it has an itch?). As a result of this issue, I am not on good terms with this alleged "cat lover". Larry
annej@hammer.UUCP (Anne Jacko) (04/09/84)
I play with my adult female cat with my hands. I also use my hands to show affection for her. How I avoid being scratched: She always play with claws in. When she doesn't want to play, or is feeling sensitive about me touching her tummy, she gives me a signal. She uses all four feet (claws in) to grad my hand and "bites" it (without actually using her teeth). This means that she considers the game over. However, I can immediately switch to petting her without danger of being scratched as long as I am gentle. I would assume this kind of communication only develops over years of living with an animal. I like the suggestion of using the toy to play. That way your cat could really put her heart and claws into the game. -- Anne Jacko, Tektronix
debra@hp-pcd.UUCP (04/13/84)
I read with interest your message and was shocked to read that your co-worker declawed her cat because she said that "when we play, I get all scratched up". This type of situation can be avoided without such drastic measures if an owner will only train HIMSELF regarding his interaction with the cat (and possibly any pet for that matter). I was always impressed by cats that my wise old Uncle Harold owned because they were affectionate and loving with people and wouldn't ever bite or scratch when you held out your hand to pet them. This mellow behavior was not just due to the cat's temperment, he said, it also had to do with how well trained the cat's owner was. I questioned him about what he meant and he let me in on the secret to achieving this behavior in my cats (and I thought other people might be interested in hearing about it too). His method was to NEVER, NEVER play with a cat by using your HANDS. If you do this your cat will learn that HANDS mean PLAYTIME and they aren't able to distinguish playtime from the times that you want to give them affection and love. ALWAYS, ALWAYS use a TOY when you play with your cat. Then the cat will equate toys with playtime, and when you reach out with your hands they will know you want to be affectionate with them. This seemed to be a very simple technique and since that time, whenever I have gotten a new kitten I have followed his advice. So far, I have owned three cats that I have raised in this manner (beginning when they were kittens) and not one has ever scratched me, nor have they scratched and attacked my guests, when people have reached out to touch them. I don't know if this technique will work to de-train a mature cat who has already learned this behavior, but it might be worthwhile to try before you go to such drastic lengths as having them declawed because of your own folly. If anyone has any similar techniques, I wouldn't mind reading about them. Debra