How many claws does a cat have on its paws?

Not even all inveterate cats know exactly how many claws a cat has on his paws. What can we say about ordinary pet lovers! Logic suggests that the claws should be 20, as, for example, a person - 5 on each limb. But is it really so?

Why would a cat have claws?

Once these animals were not pets, but lived only in the wild and did not even think about associating with a person. Over time, people have tamed these wayward beauties, and since then they live in peace and harmony. But no matter how little the cat is on the street, she remains a hunter.

Surely you saw how actively your pet starts behaving when you see a fly or a bird outside the window. It is in it that a hunting instinct laid by nature awakens. In order to successfully earn a living, any animal needs a weapon. In the cat, this role is played by claws. They allow you to accelerate, push off from the ground when jumping, climb trees and, of course, catch prey. In addition, claws help to better balance and land correctly.

How many claws does a cat have?

Having learned that the cat has 18 claws on its paws, you probably will not believe it. After all, like the nails of a person, they should be 20. But this is not so. Having asked this question, people usually try to find out their number on their own. At first count how many claws on the front paw of the cat. Straight on the foot, four leathery fingers are clearly visible, each of which is equipped with a sharp claw. Their cat uses most often. But the fifth is not so evident - it is located much higher than the foot. In this respect, the foreleg of the cat is like a human hand with a thumb tossed aside. The fifth claw is easily palpable, and in some animals it is even clearly visible to the naked eye.

Now you can go to the hind legs. In their structure, they are somewhat different from the front ones - first of all by the fact that there is no fifth finger on them: only 4 on the foot. Thus, we found out how many claws in cats: on hind paws on 4 and on front legs - on 5. Total 18.

Why does a cat spoil things?

The owners of almost any animals sooner or later face the problem of spoiled things. Dogs tear their shoes, birds destroy paper, and cats grind their claws on their favorite upholstered furniture. And no matter how much they are abused for this, they continue to destroy the expensive upholstery of sofas and armchairs. The question of how many claws a cat has, goes into the background, when all thoughts are occupied with how to disaccustom an animal to ruin furniture.

First, you need to understand why it does it. Claws on the forepaws of a cat grow much faster than on the back. In this case, the animal, who is always at home, is not used to climb trees, run and jump. Accordingly, the claws are constantly growing and do not blur about the various obstacles. But nature has not foreseen such a measured way of life predator and did everything to ensure that the claws grew quickly. Therefore, the animal and forced to constantly grind it, so as not to cling to each corner.

What to do with claws?

How many claws a cat has, we've already figured out. It remains to understand how to get rid of them so that they do not harm the animal.

For many, the problem of long cat claws is not only spoiled furniture, but also scratches on the hands and body. Some animals are not able to control their "weapons" and in the rush of an active game can scratch a person even a face. Especially it is dangerous for children. Some use special silicone attachments for protection. They will need as many as claws in cats - on the hind legs to 4 and on the front to 5. They are mounted on each claw and reliably held for a long time. If you just want to protect your furniture, you can use attachments only for the front paws - the rear ones are not dangerous in this case.

Some people prefer to cut cats with cats. A good way in case you are going to go to a veterinarian or have the appropriate experience. The fact is that the claws of cats are not arranged like the nails of a person. Accordingly, their haircut is more labor-intensive process. If you look at the claw carefully, notice that the lumen is visible to the vessels. They should never be touched with a haircut. You can stop the blood without problems, but keeping an open wound from infection will be much more difficult. If the claw is pigmented, that is, it does not shine, the vessels are not visible at all, then the danger of injury to the animal increases.

It is not recommended to remove claws at all. Many veterinarians are skeptical about this. The main reason is that when removing the claw, a whole phalanx of the finger is destroyed , which leads to a skeletal disruption. Plus, the cat is deprived of the opportunity to defend itself, that for any animal a lot of stress. It's not so important how many claws a cat has - all of them were conceived by nature in the required quantity, and it's not worth trying to fix it.

What are the other ways to protect furniture from claws?

If you are not ready to attach plastic to the paws of an animal or to use scissors, you will have to look for another way to combat the destruction of furniture. Asking about how to distract a cat from the couch, many remember the so-called scratching. There are special boards, covered with a rigid cloth, and entire multi-storey complexes with corridors and shelves. The only question is how much money you are willing to spend on such a structure and how much space can be allocated for it. It is also worth remembering that not all animals enthusiastically accept such a gift - many simply ignore it.

Now you know how many cats have claws on their paws. Take care of your animal and treat it with understanding - so all complex issues will be solved much easier.