Reply #10: No, don't de-claw your kitty!

[astral]

My cat has razor sharp claws too and is an older pretty mellow cat. I taught him not to 'play with my feet' as I step over him (he generally likes to Lay in My Way -- wherever that might happen to be) and he does occasionally forget.

I don't have no squirt-gun, I got him as an older cat, and he inherited a middle-aged, very Set-In-Her Ways woman as his new servant. So I used extreme firmness, harsh voice when needed, and in extreme cases, a single swat right on the side of his butt for disobedience to my ground rules, which were very simple:

-- STAY OFF the kitchen table, the kitchen counter, and my computer table.
-- DO NOT CLAW ME.

And the VERY rare offense (hey, I DID inherit an older-grumpy-old-man kinda kitty!)
-- DO NOT chomp on my arm if I startle you, annoy you, or accidentally piss you off.

We Git along Great. He is a lovey-dovey lap cat who wouldn't dream of hopping on the table, and he owns the rest of the apartment.