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My cat's back paw claw is hanging sideways. Is it broken or shedding?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

My cat’s claw on his back foot is hanging on sideways, and I can’t tell if he is shedding the nail or if he broke it. There isn’t any bleeding, but from what I could see there was red under the nail (can’t tell if it’s dried blood or the pink part of the claw). He doesn’t seem to be in any pain or limping (he has been playing like normal), but he won’t let me push his claws forward to get a better look. Any thoughts/advice is appreciated.

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2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Tomasz Wnuk

Veterinarian

Published on April 27th, 2020

Hello and thank your contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. It is hard to say what happened to the nail without seeing and examining it in person. I suspect the claw is shedding and the hanging bit is only a thin layer of the shedding claw. If that is the case, you should be able to gently pull it off with your fingers or clip it off with a nail clippers (you should clip the white part of the claw only). If the claw is broken close to the nail base, touching the toe will be painful to your cat and there will be usually blood around the nail. So, try very gently to pull off the hanging part of the claw. If it is causing pain or discomfort, most likely there is also some damage to the nail base and you may need to take your cat to your local vets to clip the nail very short to remove the damaged part.

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Other Answers

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    Answered By Dr. Strydom, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on

    Yes, the nail does look broken. You can use a human nail clipper to cut it off but honestly, if you just left it he will probably pull it off himself. If you do cut it and it bleeds you can use some corn starch or baking powder on it to help stop the bleeding.

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