For humans, besides cleaning the feet, there are many ways to care for or maintain our feet. We can find various foot care products in the store, and we can also find many massage methods. If you often go out with your beloved pet cat, it is recommended that you also spend some time on the cat's four claws. Regardless of whether you help your cat wipe your "foot" when you come back from out, you should give it a more thorough claw cleaning at least once a week. In fact, this won't take you much time.
1. Before cleaning:
Wash the cat's feet for the first time, you should choose a time when it is easier. It can be done after supper, when going home, or when the whole family chats together.
Most cats are very sensitive to their feet. Even the closest owner will encounter resistance if they force their feet. At this time, the owner should treat it gently with a tone and expression like when communicating with the cat. Don't let it connect with foot washing and roughness. Otherwise, not only will the paw washing work be difficult to carry out in the future, but if the cat's paws get sick, it will also resist during the treatment process.
If the cat is very resistant, it does not have to complete the entire cleaning process at once. You can familiarize it with one step at a time and achieve final success step by step.
2. Claw washing tools:
The tools that must be prepared include: water basin (prepare according to the size of the cat's paws), warm water (the temperature may be slightly higher in winter, but not more than 37℃), cotton balls or gauze (better if there is a sponge for women's makeup), water-absorbing towels, hair dryers, "foot" care lotion (can be replaced by Vaseline). If the cat is unable to maintain calmness, you can also use an Elizabeth collar. However, this is an option that cannot be used. If it can be completed without it, it should not be used. Otherwise the cat may associate paw washing with bad things.
3. Preparation before washing:
Hold the cat's front paws and gently put its front paws into the basin. It is best not to choose a basin that is too large, otherwise it will easily splash water everywhere. Most cats will struggle at this time, and their owners should comfort them softly.
4. Gently rub the soles of the claws:
Gently rub the soles of the feet in water, with the purpose of washing away the soil attached to the soles of the feet. You should rub the foot pad first, then go to the rest of your toes and do not let go between the toes. Note that you do not use force to rub its feet at this time, just remove the grass leaves or mud attached to the soles of your feet. If you first wash your paws, rub the meat pads hard. Once there is a hard object attached to the meat pads, it is easy to scratch the cat and owner.
5. Foot inspection: After washing away the dirt on the claws, you can start to carefully inspect the entire claws. Whether there is a foreign object piercing between the meat pad and the toes, whether there is any cut or piercing, whether there is any inflammation or hair loss on the back of the claws, whether there is redness and swollenness on the toes and meat pads, and whether the length of the toenails and soles of the feet is appropriate.
6. Scrub the meat pad:
By this step, we have completely removed the dirt on the surface of the cat's "sole board" and confirmed that there is no abnormality in the bottom of the cat's claws. The owner can start carefully scrubbing the cat's meat pads and toes. A sponge for makeup is a good choice. If you don’t have it at hand, you can also use gauze instead.
7. Use bath solution:
Whether it is a long-haired or short-haired cat, during the final cleaning process, using a cat's special bath solution can make the hair on the paws soft and shiny. When choosing bath lotion, try to choose pet-specific products produced by regular manufacturers with guaranteed quality. Using human-used bath lotion instead is harmful to cats. In addition, it should be noted that some bath liquids need to be diluted and used, and the instructions should be read carefully before use.
8. Wipe the claws
After completely rinsing the foam from the bath solution, dry the claws with a water-absorbing towel, pay attention to wiping the back of the claws and the middle of the toes. Many kittens are afraid to put their feet in towels when they are not used to washing their feet. Therefore, the owner should not put too hard during the wiping process.
9. Blow dry the hair on the claws with a hair dryer. This is the most important thing for every time you wash your feet. If the hair is allowed to dry naturally, the cat's paws are prone to skin diseases. A hair dryer is also a terrible thing for cats. Choose a hair dryer with small size and low noise to slightly reduce the cat's uneasiness.
10. Apply cream
When you clean the cat's paws, you can choose a comfortable position and apply cream to its paws. Vaseline is a very moisturizing product, and other skin care products for babies can also be replaced. However, since cats may lick their paws at any time, they have added various chemical or traditional Chinese medicine ingredients. Do not use them rashly without knowing whether they are harmful to the cat.
11. Massage the soles of your feet
After applying cream to your cat, massage the meat pads to make the cream more moisturized. During rest or watching TV, you can hold the cat in your arms and massage its paws. Some elderly cats have small granular scales at the bottom of their paws, so they can focus on massage. Don't ignore the location between the toes.
If possible, you can also use pet-specific toe-cutting pliers, mini faders, toenail files and mini scissors to trim the toenails for the cat.
After your careful care, your cat will definitely be more beautiful, and in his heart, thank you for your careful care of it!
