Nail caps

Soft Paws or Soft Claws

By: Sheryl Reeder, mom to Jax.
They all come from the same manufacturer. Created by Veterinarian, Dr. Toby Wexler, as a safe alternative to declawing. Invented in 1990, people have been using these products on their cats for the past 18 years. The nail caps are completely safe to use on kittens or cats. The plastic shell and glue used are non-toxic. If a kitten or cat should accidently swallow or ingest one of the nail caps, it will travel through the digestive system with no problems. For more information see the FAQ page of the manufacturers website. There have also been rumors that using the nail caps may keep your cat or kitten from retracting their nails, this is also false.

You can put them on your new Ragdoll kitten the day he/she comes home. Once you get the initial set on, you only need to replace one or two caps per paw every week or two. Ragdolls are so good natured that they are very tolerant of being held for the few minutes it takes to apply them. Most cats will ignore them once they are put on and caps will fall out as the claw grows out.

We have many adoptive families happy with the use of Soft Paws and would highly recommend them for your kitten or cat.

From the manufacturers website, here are the instructions:
Step One: Carefully trim the very end of the cat’s claw.
Step Two: Put the non-toxic glue with tip completely into the non-toxic soft paw nail cap. Fill it with glue until you can see the glue, and withdraw the glue tip. This should leave the soft paw one third full – any more and it will get on the cat’s fur.
STEP 3: Extend nails by gently pressing thumb on top with index finger on bottom of paw -- slide nail caps onto nail.
Helpful Tips: Position the cat in a sitting position on your lap with the cat’s back to you. Trim all the nails first, then fill all the caps you will need for one paw at once. Then, quickly put them on the one paw. Repeat for the other paw. Hold for a minute or two after the tips are on. Until you get used to it, you may want to fill one cap at a time. Customer service is amazing and you will get your claw covers from the manufacturers in less than a week.