BTAH

Kittens learn at a young age to sharpen their front claws.  Many times, furniture is the target.  If you decide to have your cat’s claws removed, we can perform this procedure at our hospital.  Your kitten should have this procedure done at or around three months old, the cartilage surrounding the nails will be soft allowing for a quicker surgery and faster recovery. To ensure there is no food in the stomach at the time of surgery, please deny your cat access to food at 8 pm the night before the surgery.  Water should not be restricted.  You and your cat will be welcomed by one of our staff members who will explain the surgical procedure and recommend pre-anesthetic blood work.  Just like with humans, certain underlying medical conditions such as liver or kidney disease may exist and go undetected.  It is best to check a blood sample before undergoing surgery to ensure all looks great.  If his or her blood work is in great shape, we will continue by administering medication for pain prior to surgery.  Your cat will be given a sedative, and an endotrachial tube will be placed into your cat’s windpipe to administer oxygen and inhaled medicine to keep your pet anesthetized during the surgery.  Each claw will be surgically removed and a stitch will close the incision.  We will place bandages on the feet, and your kitten will stay overnight with the comfort of pain medicine to help heal.  The bandages will be removed the next day, and, at the scheduled release time, all post-operative instructions will be thoroughly discussed.  The stitches will not be removed.