In this post we are going to look at a complete guide on home to cut your cat’s nails at home. Cutting your cuts nails is not as straight forward as it may seem. You will need to know a number of different things such as the correct tools needed, tips & preparation, how to restrain your cat, and how to correctly cut the nails.
Also you have to take into consideration that every single cat has a different personality and will react different. So let’s dive right in teach you everything you need to know on how to cut your cat’s nails at home.
Is It Necessary to Cut Your Cat’s Nails?
It’s not absolutely essential to trim your kitties claws but it is advised to do so. Let’s first take a look at two different kinds of cat’s
- Outdoor Cat: The claws of an outdoor cat are an essential tool for them to survive. They will need them for hunting, climbing, and also to defend themselves. As you can imagine, cutting the claws too low is actually a very bad idea.
- Indoor Cat: For an indoor cat, the claws are not needed quite so much. You may feel the need to trim them down to prevent damage to your furniture and other items in your home.
The answer to the question is, yes you do need to trim your cat’s nails. let’s take a look at the reason why below.
What Happens If You Don’t Trim Your Cat’s Nails?
The number one reason you will need to cut your cat’s nails is to prevent them from developing ingrown claws. An ingrown claw is when the nail gets too long and it starts to curve round and poke into the soft pad of your cats toes.
This can cause your kitty a lot of pain and a possible infection in the area. This commonly happens in cats that are a bit older, as they start to neglect their grooming, but it’s best to keep an eye out anyway even for younger cats to stay on the safe side.
Tools Needed To Cut Your Cat’s Nails at Home
There are several different kinds of nail trimmers you can choose from for trimming your cat’s nails. The most important aspect to keep in mind is to just make sure they are sharp. This is to ensure that they snip straight through the claw with no hassle or problems. Here are the best choices.
- Scissor Clippers: As the name suggests, they cut through a cats nails in a scissor motion. You can get scissor clippers in two different sizes, small and large. Small ones are best if you are new to clipping your cats nails. Larger clippers are a better option if you have an older cat because their nails tend to be tougher.
- Guillotine Clippers: They work by squeezing a handle which generates a sliding blade to cut through the nail. These are a good option for cutting long, thick nails.
- Human Nail Clippers: You be be asking, can I use human nail clippers on my cat? The answer is yes. They are a great tool because they are small and compact. Just make sure they are sharp.
Tips, Tricks, and Preparation
When first starting out, it’s going to take both you and your cat a while to get used to the nail cutting process. Especially if you have a cat who is easily frightened. As with anything in life, the more you do this, over time it will get easier and easier.
So if you have a cat and have never trimmed their nails before, here are some great tips you can follow to make the process a lot easier. You can actually implement this tips for a week before you even cut your cat’s nails.
- Introduce Them To The Clippers: Wait for your cat to be nice and relaxed in their favourite spot in your house. Make sure they are awake so they are aware of what is going on. Place the clippers in front of your cat put a treat such as a cat biscuit on top. This will allow your cat to associate the clippers as something pleasant.
- Paw Holding: As you will need to hold your cats paw when trimming the nails, you will need to get them used to actually holding their paw. Start off by stroking the top of the paw, then build up to actually holding the paw and massaging the pads of their feet. Again, you can also use treats with this process to associate please.
- Extending Your Cat’s Nails: This is a follow up process from the step above. Once your cat is used to you touching and massaging their paws, you will then need to extend their nails, as this is something you will need to do when cutting them. To do this, take your thumb and forefinger and apply gentle pressure on the toe.
- Find The Quick: It’s a good idea at this stage to find the quick. The quick is the lower part of the cat’s nail which contains the blood vessels and nerve endings. Cutting into this area can cause your cat a lot of pain so you have to be careful.
- Sound Of The Clipper: The sound of nail clippers can startle some cat’s, especially if you have a cat that’s easily frightened. It’s a good idea to get them used to the sound of the clippers before actually cutting the nails.
How to Restrain a Cat to Clip Their Nails?
As previously mentioned, all cats are completely different and will react different to having their nails trimmed. Some cats will be very relaxed and require little restraint, whilst others will be frightened and not keep still.
Here are three different methods you can use.
#1 Little to No Restraint
- Put a towel on your lap
- Place the cat on your lap on top of the towel
- Rest your forearm over the cats neck and pick up a foot
- Take the clippers in your free hand to cut the nails
If this doesn’t work, try again another day when your cats more relaxed. If it still doesn’t work, move on to one of the other methods.
#2 The Towel Method
This is a great method if you have a cat the wriggles about and doesn’t keep still.
- Wrap them in a bath towel covering all of their legs
- Reveal just one of their paws for trimming
Here’s an excellent video showing you the towel wrapping technique.
#3 The 2-Person Method
As you can imagine, trying to restrain your cat and cat their nails at the same time is a difficult task. If your cat is wriggling, you also run more risk of hurting them or cutting off too much nail. Two people doing this task is always going to be better than one.
- One person restrains the cat using a grip on the back of their neck
- The other person simply trims the nails
You can actually even combine this with the towel method. You will wrap your cat in a bath towel as described above. Then just simply follow the 2-person method.
How To Cut Your Cat’s Nails
If you look at a cat’s paw you’ll notice they have 4 nails plus 1 dewclaw on their front feet. The rear feet contain 4 nails.
- Expose the claw by applying pressure with you thumb and forefinger on their toe
- Only trim the pointy shard end of the nail
- Do not cut the quick (the lower pink part of the nail)
- It’s better too cut off too little than too much nail
How Often to Trim a Cat’s Nails
This all depends on the activity level of your cat. Also, if you have an older cat you will need to trim them more often as they start to neglect grooming and are not as active. But the average timescale to cut your cat’s claws is around every 10 – 14 days.
Maintaining Your Cat’s Nails Between Trimmings
The best way to maintain your cat’s claws is with a scratching post or tower. It’s a great idea to encourage your cat to scratch from an early age. Not only will this get them used to doing this straight away, but it will also save your expensive furniture.
- Scratch Post Texture: They are generally either cardboard, sisal (a ropy fiber), or carpet.
- Scratch Post Location: Place them close to your cat’s favourite locations.
Also, as mentioned many times in this article, reward them with treats for positive reinforcement.
When to Seek Professional Nail Grooming
It’s a good idea to seek a professional if you have a cat that’s just a nightmare and will not keep still while you are attempting to trim their nails. You obviously do not want to harm your cat so it’s best left in the hands of somebody who knows what they are doing.
A professional is used to dealing with all kinds of different cat’s. They also know how to help them relax to help make the process a lot easier.
How to Cut Your Cat’s Nails at Home Conclusion
Hopefully this guide will give you all of the information you need on home to cut your cat’s nails at home. Get the tools you will need in advance, start the preparation techniques, and then give it a go.
