After almost two years of friendship, Egreck (my cat) and Simon (my other cat) have become impatient with their dear friend (Ari, my son).
Ari shows his love for the “keys” (Ari’s word for kitty) by lying on top of them and kissing them. I try to monitor his affections toward his feline uncles (they are his family after all) because he can overwhelm the “keys.”
This is evidenced by the multiple scratches Ari has on his hands and feet. I don’t see the scratches occur, but I do notice them after the fact.
This whole situation has got me thinking about de-clawing. Gasp! I am a shameless animal lover and would have never considered this option before. I, Sarah Fader, have saved countless cats and dogs from the streets of New York City, cat and dog sat in the metropolitan area for over five years, and worked in a veterinary office for two years of my life.
My understanding is that de-clawing your cats is similar to if you removed the nails from a human as well as a 1/4 inch of a human finger. Naturally, given this understanding, I am extremely reluctant to pursue this option.
But I have tried clipping my cats nails, told my son to be “gentle” and all that positive parenting language. None of this seems to solve the problem that my cats are repeatedly scratching my son.
Readers: Any thoughts?