My Cat Scratched My Baby...I Need Advice

"If you do get her declawed, you may also want to rip out your child's fingernails so that they can't scratch themselves. It's only fair."

Seriously?
Gosh, cat people can be such weirdos.

Not really. Declawing a cat is like ripping the fingernails off of your own hand. Actually it's worse than that. Could you function with your fingers snipped off at the first knuckle? I would rather be weird than heartless by putting my cat through an inhumane and unnecessary procedure that leaves them defenseless.

If I were going around scratching toddlers in the face with my nails when they pissed me off, then maybe yeah, I could see it as a valid suggestion.

You're acting as if the cat is the aggressor here. She's not. The little boy was bugging her, she had no way to escape him and unfortunately she lashed out. You can't corner a cat and expect it not to defend itself. The less drastic solution would be to trim the nails. It's fairly simple and if you're quick enough, takes but a few minutes. I do it all the time. My oldest cat lets me do it with no issue. My youngest screams like a banshee, but since I've been trimming them, I haven't gotten a single scratch in a very long time.

I did say "when they pissed me off" in my previous reply so therefore, it would be a reaction. I wasn't alluding to the cat being the aggressor, so much as having a disproportionate reaction.

I'm glad you're offering suggestions. I'm not saying the cat should be declawed. My point is the analogy is ridiculous.

Also, I'm going to borrow this from the post just above yours here:

"Especially since it's the kid's fault for bothering the cat. THE CAT IS NOT TO BE BOTHERED! If the cat is bothered the kid gets clawed! Your child was just asking to get hurt."

I have had several cats over the years and did have one we had to have declawed. They only declaw the front paws, she did really well and most of the other cats in the neighborhood were afraid of her! She was still able to climb using her back feet. She lived to be a ripe old age. I am an animal lover, but I am also a toddler's eye lover

Another option might be to allow her some place to "perch" Cats are tree dwellers and enjoy being up where they can observe. She would be out of reach of your toddler and have a space to herself. The cat struck out of self defense and she may actually be less cranky if she can get up out of the way.

This thread is hilarious.

The OP is a horrible parent for putting the cat above the kid.
The OP is a horrible parent for putting the kid above the cat.

It was the cat's fault he got scratched. Get rid of it.
It was the kid's fault he got scratched. Get rid of it.

The OP is a negligent parent.
The OP is an animal abuser.


Damn you just can't win, OP.

Trim your cat's claws with clippers (see a Vet or at least a website for how to do this correctly) and then teach your 14 month old to leave the cranky cat alone. He will learn. I had a cat that hated kids. They learned to avoid one another and life carried on.

Remember your cat is just doing what cats do. You knew that when you had kids (I presume grumpy cat preceded the kids). Cats scratch when challened, fearful, or pissed off. That's just what they do. Keep a closer eye on the toddller while he learns to respect the necessary distance from grumpy cat.

Yikes you guys are sensitive! I used to pester the cat ALL the time when I was really little and that little feline scratched the crap out of me. My mom would wash out the cut and tell me to stop pestering the cat. There was NONE of this freaking out involved. Give the cat a space or room it can be alone in if you are seriously concerned it is going to do serious damage but its not a wild tiger, its not going to prey on the kids so the real concern is kids being kids and running around pulling its tail and whacking it and all the other things that ANY normal kid would do when trying to play. A house cat is simply NOT going to kill a child or seriously maim it. A scratch, even near or on the eye, is not going to destroy your kid as long as its properly washed (kitty claws are nasty.) There are definitely ways to keep them both safe. Give the cat a space it can be alone, raise your kid to not pester animals. I know he's not old enough yet, but it seriously shouldn't be that hard to separate them. I'm massively perplexed by this entire thread.

:drinker:

:drinker: :drinker:

:drinker: :drinker: :drinker:

EXACTLY!!!! The thread was very dramatic. Why post a thread here like this when you really should have talked to a parent or dr? Kids are kids and as toddlers, don't know how to treat a pet. They are rough with pets most of the time because they don't know any better. Is the pet just a animal in the house or is the pet a family member? (pet lovers know what I mean by this) Even a kitten will scratch, even more as they are so playful.

This happens with dogs, too, so certainly don't pay attention to the "Get a dog" people.

I've been told that when I was a baby, I was "sharing" a cookie with the family dog. The dog, being a dog, tried to eat some cookie when it was "my turn" and bit me in the face. My mother apparently had a fit and Dad had to come home and convince her not to kill the dog (kind of him, because he didn't like dogs anyway). Instead, I got taken to the doctor and was taught to not share food with the dog. I also had to be taught to leave my grandparents' and my aunt and uncle's cats alone because they didn't like me, and they both scratched me at least once. (I've always loved kitties more than dogs.)

Anyway.. I second the people's suggestions to put a kitty door in the door to the cat's safe place, try trimming or Soft Tips, and teaching baby to leave kitty alone. Kitty is family, too, and a new animal would still potentially dislike baby or would hurt him while playing.

I honestly feel like these are all poor options. I understand how important it is to protect your child, but you also made a commitment to this cat when you took it into your home.

- Giving her away is probably the best option, but still a piss poor option. There are SO many cats in this world and there are so many cats that are euthanized because of their overpopulation. You are saying you are going to either kick your cat out of your house to another family, uprooting everything it knows, or the other option would inherently have to be giving it to a shelter where it most likely wouldn't be adopted and would be killed.

- Making her an outdoor cat is an easy way for your cat to become dog bait, road kill, etc. She was raised an indoor cat and for you to decide now to make her an outdoor cat is cruel. My last cat came to me as an outdoor cat. He got eaten by a neighbor's dog. I will never let a cat outside again.

- Declawing is cruel. It is removing a portion of the cat's finger (think your knuckle,) not just her claws. You could get those claw caps to cover her claws, but removing them entirely is an awful decision.

I actually laughed out loud when I read that if you got rid of her you'd get another kitten. My kitten is very well trained and very well behaved. The first few months of her life I had gashes all over my arms, face, and legs. In fact, I have a huge scar across my left arm. A new cat isn't going to be any more behaved than your other cat.

What you could do is be a great pet owner, keep your cat, let your child grow up and learn how to be a responsible pet owner, and don't let the cat and the baby close enough to each other for this to be a problem again.

I'm not trying to be rude and I'm sorry if it seems that I am be, but your commitment to your 6-year-old cat can't just be tossed away so easily. It sucks that your child was scratched, but keep them apart from each other and you won't have that issue.

You failed both your son and your cat. It is your responsibility to make sure the cat always has access to a safe place. You should also be assuring that the cat's nails are properly clipped so they are not sharp enough to do any real damage. Declawing is absolutely not necessary if you are willing to take responsibility for proper care.

I'm sorry, but you misspelled "child" in your second sentence.

WOW... WOAH
At first I was like "hmm tough question" then quickly turned to :indifferent: :sick: :noway: :grumble: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

While everyone has a right to their own opinion, I have all rights to laugh my *kitten* off to said opinions...

It is a no brainer for me. I would get rid of the cat. My MIL has a b!tchy *kitten* cat that would go out of it's way to scratch a kid. My MIL also knows that the cat is to be locked up in another room while my child is there. I love animals, always have and I would never ever do anything to harm any animal. HOWEVER, a human, especially my child or spouse, triumphs over any other animal. I am not going to swerve my car and risk landing in a ditch or tree to not hit Thumper or any other small animal. And some of ya'll would probably curse me and plot my death if you knew what I would do to an animal that caused severe harm to my child or threatened severe harm to my child. Let's just my 1911, 12g or 38 would handle situation.

And to the "commitment" to the animal? Yeah, the "commitment" to the child I carried for nine month and birthed WAY outweighs any commitment to an animal that continuously harasses my child.

OP - If this is just a once every now and then type of thing, those claw caps people are mentioning do work... My mom used them on family cat we had when my brother was younger. I don't know if they have improved since then, but I do remember a few of the popping of here and there. However, if the cat is anything like my MILs, there is no way I would keep the cat in the house with my child ( I have a daughter who just turned one). The cat has territorial issues and doesn't know any better and is just acting on cranky natural instincts and I know that there really isn't any use trying to teach a child that young to stay away from mean kitties. You can teach them to respect animals, but words like gentle and not so hard are very complex things to explain to a toddler. But that's just my opinion.

There should be no tolerance when it comes to toddlers, declaw her, she need the attitude adjustment. Violence against humans is a one way ticket in my house.

you obviously have no pets or children in your life...And shouldn't, ever....At 19, you have apparently, no understanding of family and or pets....

A declawed, nasty cat will still be a nasty cat. With teeth. And the surgery kind of sucks for the animal. So I'll repeat what others have said - cap the claws.

Or you could try kitten mittens. Look at how happy this feline is!

Oh how I wish I wasn't at work right now. I've got tears rolling down my cheeks from trying to supress my laughter.

Silly MFP and your reposts.

I honestly feel like these are all poor options. I understand how important it is to protect your child, but you also made a commitment to this cat when you took it into your home.

- Giving her away is probably the best option, but still a piss poor option. There are SO many cats in this world and there are so many cats that are euthanized because of their overpopulation. You are saying you are going to either kick your cat out of your house to another family, uprooting everything it knows, or the other option would inherently have to be giving it to a shelter where it most likely wouldn't be adopted and would be killed.

- Making her an outdoor cat is an easy way for your cat to become dog bait, road kill, etc. She was raised an indoor cat and for you to decide now to make her an outdoor cat is cruel. My last cat came to me as an outdoor cat. He got eaten by a neighbor's dog. I will never let a cat outside again.

- Declawing is cruel. It is removing a portion of the cat's finger (think your knuckle,) not just her claws. You could get those claw caps to cover her claws, but removing them entirely is an awful decision.

I actually laughed out loud when I read that if you got rid of her you'd get another kitten. My kitten is very well trained and very well behaved. The first few months of her life I had gashes all over my arms, face, and legs. In fact, I have a huge scar across my left arm. A new cat isn't going to be any more behaved than your other cat.

What you could do is be a great pet owner, keep your cat, let your child grow up and learn how to be a responsible pet owner, and don't let the cat and the baby close enough to each other for this to be a problem again.

I'm not trying to be rude and I'm sorry if it seems that I am be, but your commitment to your 6-year-old cat can't just be tossed away so easily. It sucks that your child was scratched, but keep them apart from each other and you won't have that issue.

:drinker:

Finding another home for your cat may not be as easy as you think. I'll share my story in case it helps you make a decision.

We had three cats. All were very mild mannered and, although we took careful steps to introduce our babies to them, we didn't have any concerns about them hurting the kids. Everything went great until my son got very mobile. When he first walked at 9 months it wasn't an issue but at 12 months when he could run and climb and go as fast as the cats could run away, we had one cat that started having trouble. He started refusing food and drink and due to lack of water was urinating blood. He was at the vet about every other week and we tried every suggestion the vet gave and every suggestion I've seen in this thread. After dropping 2lbs in 2 months (he only started out as a 9lbs cat) we had to put him in a room alone. We had started looking for a new home for him. We posted flyers and pet finder ads. We had a few calls but all of them were families with children under 5. I called every no-kill shelter in Michigan and some in Northern Ohio. They were either full or told me disdainfully that they didn't take "owner surrendered pets". I offered the shelters to pay up to $100 per month for the rest of his life for his upkeep. It did not make a difference. We finally found an older woman who wanted our cat. She kept him for three days and then called us to say, "If you don't pick him up I'm taking him to the Human Society." He wasn't cuddly enough for her after only knowing her three days. Despite appetite stimulants and pheramone dispensers and everything else you can think of our cat still barely ate or drank. After six months of this, our only option seemed to be the Humane Society - which I am deeply against.
Our grandparents built out a barn for our cat providing a heated water dispenser and heated cat bed. They live about two hours from our house so we went out every weekend to visit him and our grandparents played with him daily. There was a door so he could go outside if he wanted but didn't have to - we still provided food and a litter box. He lived in the barn for about three months. He started eating again and his coat was shiny. After that, he's been seen in one of our grandparents neighbors barns hanging out with other cats.
It still makes me sad that we couldn't give him the life he needed. Fortunately our other two cats are still adjusting well to the kids. My son is 2 and they are even starting to enjoy when he pets them. We've had lots of teachable moments.
Even though I love animals, I will not bring another animal into the house until my kids are elementary school aged. At that point, they can help choose and care for the animals.

Train the child to leave the cat alone.