Trim Your Cat's Nails

If your cat's nails keep splitting or breaking, you'll need to trim them regularly. You might also want to cut them to prevent the cat from scratching furniture, other pets, or children. It's a pretty easy thing to do, if you train your cat and know where and how to cut.

Steps

 * 1) Condition your cat. Most cats are naturally a little skittish about letting a human hold their paws, so you might need to do some training to teach your cat that having its paws constrained doesn't mean it's going to die.
 * 2) *[[Image:The claw of my cat 1071.jpg|thumb]]When the cat is relaxed and lounging, make it a habit to pet its paws. Try to do it while simultaneously petting the cat in its favorite spots (the back of the neck, under the chin, where its back meets its tail all work well). Do this for all the paws you intend to trim. The cat might pull its paws away, or even get up and walk away. Let it go; don't force it to do anything, but let it know that every time you're together, paws and hands will intermingle.
 * 3) *[[Image:Nail comparison 4767.jpg|thumb]]Eventually the cat will allow you to rest your hand on its paws without pulling away. Once this happens, flip your hand around so the bottom of the cat's paw is on the palm of your hand. Remember to keep rewarding the cat with petting and even treats. Once your cat is comfortable with this, start holding the paw and massaging it with your fingers. Eventually, you should be able to gently squeeze the paws (applying most of the pressure on the pads) to push individual claws out without the cat freaking out.
 * 4) *Get the cat used to "nail trimming position". If you're going to be trimming the cat's nails by yourself, the cat will need to sit on its rear on your lap, facing away from you, while you hold its paw with one hand and clip with the other. If you have someone to help, they can hold the cat facing you, or they can cradle it, while you hold the paw with one hand and clip with the other (it's not recommended that someone else holds the paw for you; you want to have total control so you can sense if the cat is about to move its paw). While your cat is in the appropriate position, give it lots of praise, petting, and treats. Hold its paws as if you're about to cut them; go through each claw. Consider it a dry run.
 * 5) [[Image:Upload 6626.jpg|thumb]]Inspect the nails. Conditioning your cat is good for its sanity, and it also presents an opportunity for you to become familiar with the cat's claws. You'll see that the nail emerges from a sheath and, if the claw is white, you'll see a pink core inside that ends before the tip of the nail. This is a bundle of arteries called the "quick", and it's what you want to avoid cutting because it hurts the cat and results in bleeding.
 * 6) [[Image:Trimming Victoria's claws 1178.jpg|thumb]][[Image:Beauty december_0004.JPG|thumb|Cutting Nails and Holding the Cat]]Cut the nails with trimmers specifically designed for cats. Hold the cat as described earlier and cut the nails one by one.  If the cat has dark nails and you can't see the quick, trim the very tip of the nail--you'll have to trim more often, but it's the only way to avoid cutting the quick.  Have styptic powder handy just in case you do cut the quick. Apply it to the bleeding nail. If you don't have styptic powder on hand, ordinary kitchen flour will work in a pinch.  Try to orient the clippers so that when the nail is cut, the blade cuts from bottom to top. This will help prevent splitting.

Tips

 * You can condition your cat as a kitten - even as young as a month old. At that age, small fingernail clippers work well as the claws are tiny. Just clip off the ends.  Then be sure to provide a treat. The sooner they associate nail clipping with treats, the better.
 * It helps if paws are wet for long-haired cats.
 * Trimming less nail but more frequently is better than taking the chance of cutting too deep. If you cut too deep, it's going to be harder to trim the nails later on.
 * Covering the cat's eyes, or obscuring the cat's vision of the trimming process may help for some cats.
 * Wrap the cat in a towel or blanket and extend one arm or leg out at a time. This works well for cats who put up a fight. If you must do this, however, it's probably because you haven't had time to condition the cat, and it will be harder to do so once the cat associates nail trimming with trauma.
 * If you are unsure exactly where to cut, ask someone to show you how it's done. Most vets, animal shelters, and groomers are happy to provide a free demonstration.
 * Start with the back claws first. Many cats will try to use their hind legs to get free, but if you've already cut them, you won't get scratched as easily.

Warnings

 * Do not use nail clippers or scissors made for humans. It splits the cat's nails.
 * Be very careful not to cut too far back and hit the quick. It is very painful for the cat.

Related Tips and Steps
Wie man die Krallen einer Katze schneidet
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 * How to Make Cat Jungle Gyms and Playgrounds
 * How to Keep Litter from Clumping in Your Kitty's Paws
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 * How to Communicate With Your Cat