Phoebe sounds adorable - CONGRATS on your new kiddo!
I still had my kitty cat (RIP Einstein) when we got Wylie...and Einstein wasn't too thrilled, to say the least. However, as a discriminating feline - it did give her someone to look down on, and she enjoyed that
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My vet says the exact same thing about the dews -- that it's not a minor surgery and that they shouldn't be worried about unless it's a hunting dog. You'll have to trim the dews, just like the other claws.