Would You?

[SmartMove]

We have 3 cats, the girls Lilly and Chloe are going sailing. Linus our little male adopted us as a stray. When we brought him into the house -- after discovering our cats liked him and he liked our dogs living in the house at the time -- we discovered he had very bad manners. After he tried to shred our new leather sofa on numerous occasions, we had him de-clawed.

Everyone tells us he cannot go sailing because he has been de-clawed -- cannot self rescue. We love him and while our daughter is willing to take him, we are having a hard time.

My question is what would everyone here do and what are your experiences?

[Nemo55]

Do not bring the poor animal onto a boat without his only means to climb.
If you do anyway,,,make sure he is tethered 100% of the time if he gets let out ondeck.

[norsearayder]

mgirl had a large coon cat with only front claws taken off,while not a boat cat he learned to defend himself and rule the neighborhood including rouge ferals,he was often seen running the rooftops,and i ounce had to stop him from picking a fightwith an irishwolfhound.he learned to climb our6 foot stockade fence in a rapid motion.if he is not a young cat his chances are good,older is wiser.my seinor orange male age unkow mised jumping from the dock to tehe boat one dark night,since then he has a great respect for the foredeck and cockpit,the interior of the boat is his home for the last 8 months and thats where he stays in a ll but the calmest anchorages..cats are all different give him a try and make him a rope ladder,he ill use it.young cats havr a problem sometimes there feet outrun there brains,best of luck

[Bash]

no. absolutely not. He would have to be on a leash even when at anchor or in a slip. That's not a good life for a cat.

Parenthetically, I'm surprised there are still vets out there who will perform such procedures. A shame.

[rebel heart]

I'm sure I'll sound like a prick but giving away our dogs once we moved onto the boat was one of the best decisions we made for ourselves and for them. They're much happier running around having fun. I know dogs aren't cats and I know some folks are making it work. But maybe run the thought process real quick on whether you have animals on the boat because it's better for you or for them.

[Cheechako]

have you tried your cats sailing yet? My best buddy had to stay with my sister when I went cruising, although he lived aboard with us prior to that. But every time we moved the boat he was sick... just never got over it. Some people say you need to raise them on the boat as kittens. This cat was very ameniable to everything else, riding in the car etc....

[Nemo55]

People with pets get very emotional when considering such surgery, i know i do,,i could never cut a cats claws off.
But i am not you,,so my short answer is: leave the cat on dry land, why take a chance that the cat could go overboard and not be able to get back out?

Good Luck.

[Nicholson58]

I don't like the de-claw option either but in some places, the laws may reflect an "outdoor lifestyle". In the US, many cats never see the grass. We used to clip the claws of our siamese weekly. He liked the grooming. Use fingernail clippers and stay away from the quick. I am not so sure how important claws are on a fiberglass deck. It might also depend on how your deck is configured. We have an 8-inch thwart all around. If you had webbing as many folks do for children on board I say take the cat along. You can also put a pet jacket on them. Our dogs wear jackets. If the cat feels uncomfortable on a moving deck it will stay below or in the cockpit. They are pretty smart about their abilities. My dogs and grandkids don't need claws to stay aboard.

[capngeo]

Just a reminder that this forum is about cruising. It is not a bully pulpit for political rantings... And like it or not, animal rights are just as political as guns, reproductive rights, and who is the current idiot in politics.