Kittens and CLAWS!!

**Kateinportugal** · 16th March 2011, 09:31 AM

I have owned Maine Coons for 13 years now and am totally hooked. However, my latest addition, now 9 months old, we have had from 20 weeks. He is the soppiest most affectionate cat we've ever had. BUT we cannot train him to retract his claws when seeking our attention. We've tried blowing in his face, which has always worked with our other cats, tapping his paws, and as a last resort slinging him off the bed. It is seriously unfunny to be woken at the crack of daybreak by a bunch of five claws on any exposed parts of ones anatomy. He is also very naughty at scratching on furniture. We have sisal scratch posts, and pads around the house. Every room has a cardboard scratch box and they also have a huge playstastion. The easy answer is to shut him out of our bedroom but that would seriously upset our other 2 MC's who are used to sharing our room with us, to separate him would not be nice either. So please, HELP, all sensible suggestions welcome!

**jckkerrison** · 16th March 2011, 09:56 AM

Make sure his claws are kept well clipped,not quite so cruel on you if those little curled tips are not there to hook in so well,we only had trouble for a while with one & we got over it by just holding his paw & saying no claws & putting him down away from us,when he jumped up again would just repeat no claws & if they started coming out down he went again with us saying the same old thing,got a bit boring but got noticebly less after a couple of days & within the week he was as good as the rest.Can be hard though I know because he was the worst one we had ever had but when we stopped & thought about the different personalities of them all he was the one that right from the start wanted to be close up & personal & tended to get extra excited about everything he done,no time to stop & think & reading your post about yours being the most soppiest one you have ever had all ties in with ours.....

**Kateinportugal** · 16th March 2011, 04:29 PM

Thanks for your very quick response. Will try this. Consistency is the thing I'm sure. We will persevere. Again thanks for your response. Kate

**mcguy** · 16th March 2011, 05:34 PM

Definitely start trimming his front nails. It helps to get them used to it to start early, and those kitten nails can be even sharper than adult nails. Even if they aren't very long they can be sharp--just take the very tip off. I find that kitten nails grow fast, so you might have to trim every week to keep them safe for you. Have you ever trimmed your other MCs nails? I know there has been at least one thread on here about how to do it. I personally find the large human nail clippers to work best, but other people do prefer cat nail clippers. Just be certain not to cut into the quick; if you cannot get a clear view, don't cut. I like to do it in bright daylight or with a flashlight, and with some cats it takes two people.

**Tivicoons** · 17th March 2011, 02:25 PM

you could try buying those glue on claw covers... soft claws? I haven't tried them but they might help while you train him not to be so claws-outy.

**Kateinportugal** · 17th March 2011, 04:43 PM

thanks for all your tips.

**Kateinportugal** · 17th March 2011, 04:44 PM

Yes we do clip claws regularly. always have done, don't have a problem with any of them. As you say, start young and they accept most things - err, I was going to say "most" of the time but as we are talking MC's here, maybe I should "some" of the time!!! thanks for your response.