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  #1  
Old April 13th, 2007, 02:50 PM
Stefx Stefx is offline
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Cat Whiskers are unequal

Hi

We just adopted an abandoned cat, and its snout whiskers are much shorter on one side than the other.

Should we cut the long ones to the same length, or leave them as is?

Regards
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Old April 13th, 2007, 02:59 PM
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jessi76 jessi76 is offline
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Leave them as is. Cats shed whiskers often, so in time, he will grow new ones to replace the shorties.

kudos to you for adopting an abandoned cat! if you haven't done so already, you should take him/her into the vet for a checkup.
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Old April 13th, 2007, 03:45 PM
Stefx Stefx is offline
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Thanks for the advice

We adopted him from the SPCA, basic check up is done.

Back to the vet in 1 month for sterilization and claw removal
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Old April 13th, 2007, 04:29 PM
Kutzy Kutzy is offline
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Whiskers are important your cat so do not cut them. They have sensory properties that provide information to your cat about its surroundings and help it navigate especially at night.

Congratulations on your new kitty.
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Old April 13th, 2007, 04:57 PM
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SableCollie SableCollie is offline
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If by "claw removal" you mean declawing, you should read up on this procedure. It is a very very painful amputation procedure akin to removing your fingers down to the first joint. It is a most unnecessary procedure, if you keep the cat's nails trimmed (a vet or groomer can show you how) and give him an appropriate place to scratch, such as a scratching post you shouldn't have trouble with him. Declawing is so painful, many vets will not do it and it is actually outlawed in some places.

http://www.declawing.com/
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Old April 13th, 2007, 06:45 PM
Kutzy Kutzy is offline
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I missed the mention of claw removal in your post. My neighbors had a cat that was declawed and it was very sad. Aside from the fact that it is unnecessary and painful it also stops the cat from enjoying normal play and cats love to play! Without claws they can’t catch a ball or jump properly. I have had cats all my life and have never had a problem with cats scratching furniture. Teach them to use a scratching post and you should not have any problems. The web site in the prior post is excellent.
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Old April 14th, 2007, 09:11 AM
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muskokapuss muskokapuss is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Stefx View Post
Hi

We just adopted an abandoned cat, and its snout whiskers are much shorter on one side than the other.

Should we cut the long ones to the same length, or leave them as is?

Regards

You should never cut a cat's whiskers. One of the functions of the whiskers is to tell your kitty whether a space is big enough for him/her to get in and out of, if their whisker's are damaged on both sides they can get stuck in places that they either will have much trouble getting out of or won't be able to get out of before, don't worry the otherside will grow back

Congratulations on the newest member of your family.

As far as the declawing, I have 2 cat's, one is declawed and one isn't, the declawed one plays, jumps, and does everything else that the other one does...and usually alot faster, however if I had a chance to do it over again I definitely would NOT have my cat declawed, I have seen some of the damage that can be done when a declaw goes wrong, and it's much easier to train them to use a scratching post and trim their nails yourself (as I do with my other cat and both for the back claws)

puss
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Old April 14th, 2007, 10:51 AM
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dtbmnec dtbmnec is offline
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I got one of my kitties off my boyfriend's parent's farm-ish like house about a year ago. He had the same thing your guy did but with BOTH sets.

A little under a year later he's got them all back and they're nice and long

The others have said what needs to be said about the declawing.

Enjoy your new kitty and be sure to post lots of pics

Megan
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  #9  
Old April 14th, 2007, 11:59 AM
Stefx Stefx is offline
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Thank you for those who replied about the whiskers. I will let the other side grow back.
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  #10  
Old April 14th, 2007, 09:06 PM
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Please don't declaw your cat. It's not necessary and it's cruel.
My neighbours did their cat, and she spends all her time outside
They did it because they didn't want to get her some cat scratch pads or tree posts for her to sharpen her claws on, don't fit in with the decor you know They were afraid she'd ruin their new leather couch
I have a leather couch and 4 cats with claws, not a mark on it and I've had the couch for years.

Cindy
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  #11  
Old April 14th, 2007, 11:51 PM
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Maya Maya is offline
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Glad you decided against cutting the whiskers. I also strongly suggest you DO NOT DECLAW this poor cat.

Do you have a boy, girl, how old? Can we see?
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Old April 15th, 2007, 12:01 AM
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My kitties all have mismatched and different length whiskers...they fall out and grow back, it's normal.

Declawing BAD. (cave man talk)

Oh and CLM, we had our new leather furniture 4 whole hours before it got scratched (total accident, Buddy slipped and tried to hang on) .
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  #13  
Old April 15th, 2007, 01:26 AM
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jiorji jiorji is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jessi76 View Post
Cats shed whiskers often,

.
ah ha!! so they do!! I keep finding them all over the house.


Stefx we'd like to see pics of your kitty
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