Grooming IX

Continuing the grooming process into the finer details ensures a cat has been provided with the necessary care for maximum comfort and hygiene. Regardless of breed, cats will appreciate having some of these smaller areas cared for and will benefit from this on a daily basis.
All cats have claws. They are natural predators and use them for a great deal of things. This of course includes hunting but they also allow better manoeuvring around surfaces, grip for stretching out the body and general self-defence. This part of the cat body is used on a daily basis and if they grow out to an extended length can prove to be a nuisance for both owner and feline.
Certain cats lack the ability to retract their claws. This doesn't mean they are always hunting or on guard, it's simply a biological feature. Long claws make moving around on harder surfaces a little difficult and perhaps unpleasant. Not to mention the amount of scratching that might occur. A nail trim is in order to assist this and help maintain healthy claws. If allowed to continuously grow even cats that are normally able to retract them will struggle.

The length of clipping is important also. While trimming them short as possible may seem like the best course of action, cat claws are a line of defence. If a cat is to be roaming outdoors, an appropriate length should be kept to allow the cat to defend itself. A balance should be established to help a cat live easier and also remain safe.
Claw clipping is a delicate process. It does not need to be done often and is best carried out by a qualified person (the vet). Within claws, a blood vessel may be observed. This should never be cut as doing so will inflict excruciating pain and bleeding on the beloved feline. All necessary measures should be taken to avoid this. The correct equipment should also be used, under no circumstance should a conventional nail clipper used by humans be employed for usage on cats. Doing so will distribute incorrect pressure and result in splitting the claw.
In certain cases, cats can be operated on for declawing. Regarded as a highly unfavourable practice, declawing removes the ability to grow claws and renders a cat defenceless. A practice that is not recommended and in some countries regarded as a mutilation against animals.