[Beckie D]

I recently had my two year old cat declawed. I'm not sure how to care for her and treat her pain when she returns home. Are there any recommendations?If I use special kitty litter, is it ok for my other cat to use it, or should I keep him on the regular kitty litter? How do I keep my newly declawed cat out of his litter box if I use two separate ones?

[Diana S]

The vet will let you know what you need to do or not do. The most important thing is to be real careful where you walk. Her paws will be real tender and she may be moving slower than usual.

[Bess2002]

You'll need to use shredded paper or Yesterday's News litter in her litterbox instead of regular litter for the next couple of weeks, and try to keep her from jumping too much. The vet may carry medication that you can give your cat for pain. The veterinary assistant who gives you your cat when you go to pick her up should explain everything to you - if he or she doesn't, be sure to ask, and ask if they can send you home with some pain medication. DON'T give your cat human pain medicines - they are poisonous to cats. Be understanding and gentle with her while she recovers from the surgery.

[vivib]

Your vet should have informed you at the time you sch your appt. Do not let her use kitty litter, you need to use shredded newspaper for about a week to 10 days. Hopefully she was sent home on some pain meds that will keep her calm or sleeping. She will lick the paws which is fine. You will notice when she walks for a few weeks , that she will shake her paws like she stepped in water.

[Sassy6702]

I actually just about 3 months ago had my cat declawed and spayed. It was soooo terrible i felt so bad for her cause they are naturally in alot of pain, i was told to do a paper litter for her for about 5 or 6 days, i took a bunch of paper and cut it into little pieces cause if you use regular litter it will cause an infection. then i was given pain meds for her and it pretty much had her sleepy all day, when i brang her home she didn't have any bandages or anything and they told me to monitor her and make sure that she didn't try to bite at the incision cleaning is fine just no tugging at the stitches. well my cat ripped one of the stitches out so she had to go back to the vet and i had to buy a collar thing to stop her from biting her paws,which she looked soooo pathetic walking with that around her neck..... just give her lots of love and affection and she will be fine..... good luck to ya and your kitty

[lollypoptig]

This was a hard decision for me and I wish you the best of luck in caring for your kitty....as for advice.... this is what I did personally when my kitty was declawed....I used shredded newspaper in the litter box so she wouldnt get dust and litter in her paws, I made a pretty big pile so it would be as soft as possible and cleaned it often. I kept the collar on to prevent biting and licking of the wounds the 1st couple days and used elevated dishes for food, plus gave her water with a medicine dropper to prevent dehydration. As far as pain...I treated her like I would treat myself after a surgery....STICK to the pain med schedule....dont wait till she is agonizing to give her the meds but if she is "out of it" dont give her any and dont DOUBLE the dose. Just keep it on time. After the 1st couple days I took the collar off and let her clean her paws herself but monitored very closely to prevent biting. I had no issues while she was healing and only had to take her to the vet for regular scheduled appointments. The best way to prevent the two cats from using the same box may be to seperate them with their individual boxs for a while. Besides...when you bring home the cat that had surgery she will smell of anesthetic and the other cat will probably growl at her for a while, this may cause her stress and she wont be able to relax.