Can a declawed cat defend herself against other felines?

Of course you CAN bring another cat into the house. I certainly don’t agree with declawing but what’s done is done. Just because she’s declawed doesn’t mean she has to be an only cat. Introduction must be done slowly as with any new cat into a household. It’s always best to separate the new cat for at least a week up to a month for the cats to get used to the smells of each other. And the new cat to get the smell of the household on him/her. The key to slow introduction is to avoid any cat fights. Most cats hiss and swat when a newcomer arrives. We have a cat that HAD to be declawed as she had deformed nails. She’s 13 years old and was one of the original cats in our house before we adopted 9 more and then the 20 feral cats we trapped.

I wouldn’t put a declawed cat outside to fight against the neighborhood cats but YES you can adopt another cat. As catsofmany said, do a slow introduction as you would would any new cat into a household.

You could bring another cat into your house but be careful. Cats that are declawed feel very insecure and unprotected against other cats. Being declawed makes cats feel defenseless and this can affect them mentally as well. Good luck!

It wouldn’t be a great idea. Your cat could possibly defend itself but not as well as a normal cat and it could not give “warning” scratches the way cats usually do and would have to resort to biting or flipping over and doing that “bunny kicking” thing that is really quite dangerous to another cat.

Cats really shouldn’t be declawed becuase it’s an inhumane procedure and can cause all kinds of problems like arthritis in the paws, behavioral problems and chronic pain, but since it’s already been done your best bet is for your cat to be the only pet in your home and she needs to be kept indoors because she cannot defend herself well against dogs and other cats.

If they are properly introduced to each other, there shouldn’t be any big troubles. Even with playful fighting, most cats don’t use their claws, or use them sparingly. Boxing and wrestling normally don’t involve claws. Even ‘bunny kicking’ is usually more show than anything else. I used to be quite worried about the kittens eyes when there was bunny kicking of the head involved, but none of my cats was ever injured by it (in the over 600 instances of it that I have watched). Mostly it is a matter of pushing the head away.

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Also, since cats never sharpen their hind claws, those claws are not needle sharp like their front claws, and in fact can be very dull. Think butter knife as opposed to steak knife.

By: jpete46   1808

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