Kitty question. My kitty seems to be trying to pull out her toenails, mostly on her rear legs.

[Paper Roses]

I know they fall off from time to time but I see her tugging at her toenails, trying like the dickens to pull some of them off.
Is this a normal cat thing? My other kitties never did this. The nails shed naturally.

I do cut her nails every now and then. Could it be possible that there is something wrong? Her toes look fine.

[CurtEastPoint]

1. It's normal. They can't 'claw' the old nails off the back

so they pull them off w/their teeth. That said, DO make sure there's nothing amiss down there but mine do it. I think it's kinda funny!

[Curmudgeoness]

2. Most of my cats have done this too.

I never knew what they were doing---whether it was the nails they were manicuring or the toe jam they were intent of cleaning, but after checking that there was nothing wrong, I just let it go as "one of those cat mysteries".

If it happens for a long time or seems to be too frequent, you may have a problem. I had one cat who had a split at where the paw pad attached to the skin, and it was not really visible with a cursory look. She groomed that foot too much, and when she started to limp slightly, we went to the vet who saw the injury----and some antibiotic cream cleared it up. So they can have a slight injury that is not noticable too. Just keep an eye open.

Best of luck, I hope it is just a cat being a cat.

[ginnyinWI]

3. mine do it too.

Not to worry.

[kestrel91316]

4. Not to worry. She's doing a pedicure.