First, train him. When he comes at you with his claws out, a
gentle "plunk" from your thumb and forefinger on the paw
will make him retract them. If he scratches you, say OW
loudly and tell him no. Take him into another room where
he has a box and food and water, and leave him there
every time he scratches you. Be patient.

Softpaws is a good idea, but you still have to
train him.

I had my first cat declawed, and she lived to be very
old. However, I will never forget how she looked when
she came home from the vet. I did not understand that
it was mutilation. I did right by her, never ever let her
out, etc. But I would never do it to a cat again. I have
trained my current rescue not to scratch. Get your boy
some nice scratching pads/posts, too. When he claws
furniture or rugs, pick him up and take him the the posts
or pads. If you are willing to take the time and patience
to train your baby boy, you will not have to live with
mutilating him. (They chop off their toes.) Good luck.

Your vet or vet tech can put them on for you. I also suggest that you teach him
how to play differently. This is why it's not a good idea to let kittens bite
or scratch as play. When they get older, it hurts. This also happens when some
kitties are separated from mom too early. Mom would teach him not to play with
claws out. I would play with him with toys on a string, never hand to cat.
Reward him for proper play. Say NO real loud if he scratches you and leave him
alone. If that doesn't work, get a squirt gun. Don't scratch his belly. It
might trigger scratching. Only touch him when you are petting him. I couldn't
play with one of my cats directly or he'd slice me to ribbons. I also suggest
wearing a sweatshirt, jeans, shoes until he learns. When he gets older, he'll
calm down more. Exercise his youthful energy with toys. Good luck.

Hi,
Maybe you could give him a large soft toy that he could take out his
aggression on . You could drag it around on a long piece of string or
throw it so he doesn't get you by mistake .

--
       Alison

http://www.maxshouse.com/facts_about_declawing.htm

Trimming Claws & Soft Paws

http://www.maxshouse.com/Claw%20Trimming.htm

You must not play with the cat with your hands, or he will see you as something
to attack.  You must train him to use toys for play, not you.  Unfortunately, I
see this a lot with new cat owners, where they play with the kitten with their
hands.  Then when the kitten becomes a cat, those scratches hurt.  But you
can't blame the cat and he shouldn't be made to pay by having the ends of his
toes amputated.  When he bites or scratches you, put him in the bedroom for a 5
minute time out.  Tell him firmly but gently "no".  By ignoring him when he
gets aggressive with you, he will learn.  One of my cats' favorite toys is the
feather on a stick toy that you play interactively with them.  
________
See my cats:  http://community.webshots.com/album/56955940rWhxAe
Raw Diet Info: http://www.holisticat.com/drjletter.html
http://www.geocities.com/rawfeeders/ForCatsOnly.html
Declawing Info: http://www.wholecat.com/articles/claws.htm

My review of Soft Paws.  I used to apply them to hundreds of cats when
I worked for a feline vet practice.  DO NOT declaw your cat.  It is
unnecessary, inhumane and may create problems which are MUCH worse
than scratching.
-L.

********************8

Soft Paws

Description:  A set of rubber nail covers which are glued to the nail,
after trimming, with a super-glue-like substance.  They are used to
keep the kitty from scratching things that may be damaged by unaltered
nails.

****************

Pros:
They are really, really easy to apply if kitty cooperates, and will
let you trim her nails easily.  They take about 5-8 minutes to apply,
once you get the hang of it.

They are relatively inexpensive (about $10-12/set, if applied at the
vet, and they last 1-3 months.)  They are even less expensive if you
buy your own kit and apply them at home.

They do not interfere with normal claw usage, but protect things you
do not want scratched, fairly effectively.

Some cats do very, very well with them.

****************

Cons:

Some cats *detest* them, and will fight you tooth and nail (excuse the
pun) when you try to apply them.

Some cats pull them off easily.

The glue is very sticky, and will stick to and damage any surface it
encounters (including human skin).

If the glue touches any skin while wet (human or cat), it burns.  It
is fairly caustic.

Some cats are allergic to the glue.

If the nail is trimmed too short, the glue can damage the nail bed,
which results in a crusty/ill formed nail, when the nail grows out.
They work best of the nail is trimmed fairly short, and if the glue is
applied in the inner 2/3 of the cap, before application.

The caps need to be fitted properly.  Many technicians tend to use
caps that are too large, and then the cat is constantly fighting with
the caps, as they "feel" awkward.  (Or they chew them off!)  One cat
may need more than one size of caps to accomodate all nails on the
foot (e.g. mediums on all nails except 'pinky", which needs a small).

The caps need to be applied quickly after the glue is applied...the
glue dries very quickly.  This can be tricky for beginners.

****************

Overall impression:  I think trimming nails often (every 1-2 weeks) is
a better, more wholistic solution to scratching problems, than
Softpaws.  If you are unable to do this, SoftPaws may be a solution
for you.  Overall, it is a good product, but may not be good for every
cat.

Only one reply that I read (from "L") mentioned trimming the nails.  I had
posted that when I brought home my 8 week old kitten , Pickles, she was all
teeth and nails.  I was constantly trimming those nails. (About every week)
When she did a painful scratch I let out a yelp but after a while I noticed
that she just began using her pads on me.  She seemed to learn this on her
own.  The biting has also almost stopped.  She is now 7 months old.  Get a
cat claw clipper and if you have never done this get the vet to show you how
for the first time so you don't clip too much and start some bleeding.

Declawing is so terrible.  I found a stray in the street that had been
declawed.  Now, 13 years later she still tries to sharpen her claws.  She
rubs her pads over the top of the scratch pad to make the same noise as if
she were really doing it.  When I bring home a new scratch pad she is the
first to use it.  I feel so bad about that and wish I could give her back
her claws.

--
Barb
I can only please one person a day.
Today is not your day.
Tomorrow doesn't look good either.

If you have already tried a scratching post, did you try it horizontally AND vertically? My cat
hardly bothered with several scratching posts I used to hang from various doors, preferring instead
one particular corner of the couch, but one day I put a scratching post on the floor for a minute
while I cleaned the door, and he promptly used it, and then seemed to fall in love with it. He uses
it constantly, likes to lay next to it or on it,  and even sleeps with or on it. It's very odd. But
then I think my cat is odd anyway, but that's the subject of another post I'm going to write soon
once I've hung around long enough to see whether my questions are asked a lot already :-)