The Good, Bad, and Baffling: Cat Declawing in California and Elsewhere
Published November 04, 2009 @ 06:26AM PT
I've got good news -- at least if you're a domestic cat in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and some other California cities, that is. But there's no shortage of bad (and baffling) news too, on the very same front. First, the good: last night, San Francisco's proposed ban on declawing cats won 9 out of 11 votes from the city's supervisors; on Monday, the Public Safety Committee of the Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously to ask City Attorney Carmen Trutanich to draft an ordinance banning the practice; and in late October, the Santa Monica City Council passed a ban.
But the United States and Canada overall are still embarrasingly behind other countries in this area, and despite progress in California, a veterinary "welfare" organization in the state just managed to pass a law that will make it illegal for municipalities to pass any further such bans as of January 2010. The people behind the bans? Actual advocates for cats. The people behind the law to stop the bans? The California Veterinary Medical Association, a chip off the good ol' un-animal-friendly American Veterinary Medical Association block.
The bans are sought -- and nationwide bans are in place in roughly two dozen countries -- for good reason. Declawing is not remotely a simple, harmless procedure. A common way of explaining it in human terms is that it's akin to chopping off all of someone's fingers below the top knuckle. The claws are connected to bones -- they are part of the cats' toes. And removing the claws requires serious, painful surgery that removes an entire joint from each toe. But the amputation isn't where the suffering ends. The recovery itself is excruciating, and keep in mind that cats must use their feet after the surgery, to stand, to walk, to jump, and to use the litter box, despite the great pain. Indeed, the removal of the claws and joints and the deforming that results can cause cats lifelong pain, discomfort, and problems. And cats will continue to try to use the nonexistent claws for the rest of their lives. Declawing is not necessary, even for the sake of the furniture. Cats can be taught, they can be provided suitable scratching posts (not all of these are created equal), and they need and deserve to keep their claws.
So the fact that many veterinarians not only condone this amputation but offer and even encourage it as a standard procedure is outrageous. But it's a money-maker for veterinarians. And that's why the California Veterinary Medical Association pushed to stop cities from banning the practice. Like many veterinary and/or welfare organizations, the CVMA and AVMA are tied into the very industries and practices that profit from animal exploitation and killing -- from veterinary organizations with members who like to profit from unnecessary surgeries to welfare groups who make moolah selling "humane" labels to companies that slit the throats of animals. So they very rarely if ever truly speak for the nonhuman animals or stand up for what's best for the animals from the animals' perspective. Instead, they represent humans and the ways humans wish to use animals and profit from them. It's disgusting. And it's something that those who care about animals should consider any time they see an "expert" opinion from such organizations, including veterinary organizations, that seems suspect from the animals' perspective.
So thanks to the self-serving, anti-animal work of the CVMA, it won't be possible to pass local bans in California as of January 1, 2010, but before then, there are still possibilities for bans in a few more cities:
- Bevery Hills will vote on Thursday, November 5.
- The full Los Angeles City Council will vote this coming Friday morning, November 6.
- Malibu will vote on a resolution on Monday, November 9.
- Berkeley will vote on Tuesday, November 10.
- Santa Monica will have a second reading of the ban voted for in October on Tuesday, November 10.
The Paw Project has details and contact information for these meetings and councilmembers.
For more, including tips on living with cats and their claws, see such sites as Declawing.com (including this important page), The Paw Project, and Cats International's "The Truth About Declawing."
I know that if you've already had your cat companions declawed in past years, before knowing all this, the guilt can be heavy once you do learn the facts. My advice in these cases is twofold (and the second goes for all of us, actually):
- Don't beat yourself up forever. Guilty feelings are understandable, but you didn't know. And many veterinarians are failing to tell people just how serious and painful the surgery and results are; too many veterinarians even encourage the surgery and downplay the seriousness. This doesn't mean you don't love your feline friends, and now you'll know next time.
- Take what you do know now and tell other people, spread the word, and do what you can to prevent this from happening to other cats, including campaigning local veterinary offices to start promoting humane ways of living with cats and their claws and to stop performing declawing surgeries.
Finally, this post wouldn't be complete without a shout-out to Los Angeles city councilmember Paul Koretz, who received a well-deserved standing ovation at the Animal Rights National Conference earlier this year for his dedicated, unwavering work on behalf of animals in California, city by city. He is, of course, one of the people in Los Angeles who've been fighting this good fight on behalf of cats.
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Photo of Henry, a declawed cat adopted from a shelter, by Flickr user Muffet
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Comments (24)
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Author
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Stephanie is an independent animal rights advocate, a vegan, a tree-hugging environmentalist, and a freelance editor and writer. She lives in St. Louis with an aging corgi-lab and an adolescent rescued pit bull.
Thank you for this article, it is wonderful and so informative. It really blows my mind that so many people think they are doing their cats a favor by having them declawed. I can't even imagine the pain the poor things have to go through. Great for raising awareness!
Posted by The Voracious Vegan . on 11/04/2009 @ 06:57AM PT
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It is amazing people still believe the spin veterinarians use to get them to spay/neuter and declaw at the same time.
I've witnessed declaws. They are awful and anyone who thinks cats don't experience pain needs to be in the post-op room as kittens struggle to stand, cry out in pain, fall down, refuse to use their litterbox (even with the special litter post de-claw cats are provided), stop eating and look, for all intents and purposes, like they are in pain. Surprising, right?
And if people are so lazy, so unable to provide alternatives to scratching, so incapable of using soft claws/paws or scratching posts or even covering their furniture or using deterrents, etc. ad naseum forever and ever - then perhaps they should reconsider having cats as companions. They are not doing their cat a favor by physically mutilating them.
Since countries WITH declaw bans haven't seen an upsurge in unwanted cats or increased kill rates, it's hard to fathom that the same would happen here. Point of fact, at the shelter where I used to volunteer, between 25-40% of the cats were declawed (my percentage does not include feral cats). I don't know if that's common at other shelters. And most of the cats had been relinquished because they stopped scratching and starting biting, stopped using their litterbox, etc.
Posted by Marji Beach on 11/04/2009 @ 09:56AM PT
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My personal favorites are the assholes who set their cats "free" after declawing thereby ensuring a slow, painful death by starvation since they don't have claws to catch any food. I can't tell you how many I've taken in that I've found in that condition.
Won't people EVER learn to treat animals with respect, kindness and love? There are just too few of us and too many jerks. UGH.
Posted by Rebecca Schneider on 11/10/2009 @ 04:19AM PT
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Take heart dear person, in my childhood I was taught by good hard working farm people not to fret because animals didn't have feelings. It was obvious to me that they did. That was over 70 years ago. I love and respect all animals more than ever and I have seen great progress in that time. Look at us all coming together, I use to think I was alone in caring about our beautiful creatures. Now there are enough of us to make a difference and the number is climbing every day. Thank you for your wonderful heart, we have a lot to do.
Posted by Joyce Dean Jones on 11/10/2009 @ 10:01AM PT
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Sigh. Unfortunately, banning cat de-claws is bad for veterinary business. I wish people understood that the AVMA (and its affiliates) are NOT advocates for animal welfare but advocates for the veterinary profession (read: beholden to their clients and $$$).
Posted by Lauri Owen on 11/04/2009 @ 01:26PM PT
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Check out the AVMA's BS animal welfare symposium coming up. Wish I could attend and report back!
http://www.avma.org/awsymposium/agenda.asp
Posted by Lauri Owen on 11/04/2009 @ 02:01PM PT
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Great news!
"San Francisco Votes to Ban Cat Declawing"
November 3, 2009
http://www.sphere.com/2009/11/03/san-francisco-votes-to-ban-cat-declawing/
Posted by Luke Dorny on 11/04/2009 @ 03:42PM PT
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Wow. I didn't know that declawing was painful. I can only try to imagine if I were de-fingernailed!
Posted by Luella - on 11/05/2009 @ 06:37AM PT
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Yes, Luella -- and it's not just the nails, it's the whole first joint, down to the knuckle. In other words, it'd be like having your fingers whacked off at the first knuckle. Not a pretty picture? RIGHT!
Posted by Jamaka Petzak on 11/08/2009 @ 11:21AM PT
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Ater working in a vet's office and seeing a de-claw and the cat's as they wake up I never had it done to my cats. I fix what they scratch and provide them with something to scratch.
While I knew about the 'cutting below the knuckle' aspect what really gets me is then the vet I worked for (don't know if any vet does this) there is no cauterization then. Just pressure bandages to stop the blood flow. If the cats take them off while waking up everything is covered in blood. After holding down many cats for the vet to rebandage the paws while the cats were waking up smelling the blood on the metal cages while they scratch you up with the back claws...Well it makes me happy that it is being banned.
Posted by Heather Hetrick on 11/05/2009 @ 07:36AM PT
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I had my first cat declawed because the vet suggested it as a way to "cure" his aggressive behavior - it didn't help at alll, in fact it made the aggression worse! I was only 23 at the time, I guess I didn't know all the facts & had just looked to the doctor for reasonable solutions & trusted him because he was the "expert."
After I found out exactly what declawing entailed, I felt horrible about it for ages, but swore I would never do it again.
My current kitty has all 18 claws firmly attached to his body - he was easily trained not to scratch the furniture or the screens in the windows, and uses his many scratching posts around the house (his favorite is one I made by wrapping rope around a 4x4). He does, however, still love to scratch the carpets, so I but inexpensive throw-rugs from Target for him to rip up. He loves it!
I trim his front claws every 2 weeks - I've been doing it since he was a kitten, so now, at almost 10 years old, he sits patiently while I clip. People are always amazed that he "lets" me do it, but it's easy! You just start when they are kittens and as adults they just accept that Mommy is going to trim their claws once in a while! And, just like with a child, if you do it in a gentle, quiet (even fun!) way, they don't mind it at all.
Quite frankly, I love the sound of him scratching on things - I LOVE having a wild animal in the house!!
Posted by Lisa Smolen on 11/08/2009 @ 07:27AM PT
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Besides the horrible physical problems I just read about there is the psychological. I knew a healthy, happy, but curtain climbing cat who got declawed at a year old. She became frightened, hiding from sight, totally paranoid, attacking people from no where doing her best to bite them to death. Even drugs wouldn't help. You don't want to know the out come. In this case they took being a cat away from her. Do you want to take the chance that your cat will find either comfort in being an inside cat and look to you for protection, or becoming a quivering paranoid attack cat? Cat's contract their claws at will. Show them what you like and what you don't like. They want to please you, they LOVE to be pet.
Posted by Joyce Dean Jones on 11/08/2009 @ 12:07PM PT
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i always recommend "soft paws" as an alternative. about $13.00 at my favorite online pet supply jefferspet.com i sat and watched the receptionist at my vet give someone literature on the procedure and pricing...never even mentioning the downside or alternatives. of course, i stood up and begged her not to do it. i told her cities were considering banning de-claws because it's so cruel. the staff seemed unamused.
Posted by Catherine Turley on 11/08/2009 @ 01:53PM PT
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That shit's totally CRUEL! Taking away one of their only forms of defense!
Posted by Candyce Rice on 11/08/2009 @ 01:54PM PT
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I write a monthly companion animal column for my local newspaper. I get ideas for my columns from all sources. Recently, I visited a new vet in town only to find out she had declawed the office cat because he was scratching the carpet and furniture and "after all, this is all new," according to the hospital manager who added that the vet actually cried preparing to declaw him.
So my column for this month will be on unnecessary, inappropriate, and inhumane surgeries including declawing, debarking (also known as convenience devocalization--I ask you, whose convenience??), tail docking, and ear cropping.
Part of the column includes the following quote regarding declawing: The cat is treated as if he or she is an inanimate object…[to] be modified, even to the point of surgical mutilation, to suit a person's perception of what a cat should be. It would seem more ethical and humane to accept that claws and scratching are inherent feline attributes, and to adjust one's life accordingly if a cat is desired as a companion. If this is unacceptable, then perhaps a different companion would be in order. (The Association of Veterinarians for Animal Rights)
Posted by Ginnie Maurer on 11/08/2009 @ 03:36PM PT
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I always believed declawing was a terrible thing to do to a cat. There are always alternatives, and even totally indoor kitties may sometime get lost or stuck outside, where they would have no defense without their claws. There are such things as claw covers, which keep the cat from clawing up furniture and such, but do no harm to the cat. You have to replace them about once a month, but they don't cost that much and it's definitely a lot nicer than ripping their paws apart. (I tried the nail trimming on a cat I used to have, but it only made him claw more to sharpen them back up.)
I also don't believe in tail docking or ear cropping. I would adopt an animal with any of those procedures from a shelter, but would never have it done to an animal in my care.
This is just another sign that most vets, like doctors, care more about money than their patients' well being.
Posted by Susan Yeske on 11/08/2009 @ 04:40PM PT
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"and even totally indoor kitties may sometime get lost or stuck outside, where they would have no defense without their claws."
I'm thankful at least some people realize this. As a caretaker at my local animal shelter, I've seen a slew of stray cats come in off the streets. Many of these cats had clearly been pets before they were lost/abandoned and left to their own devices to survive. I've also taken lost reports for countless declawed cats who escaped when someone wasn't being vigilant around an open door, or were actually indoor/outdoor cats who just never came home.
When declawed cats show up in the shelter after being on the streets, I'm always amazed that they were able to even make it that far. Just about every declawed cat that comes in definitely is worse for the wear. They aren't as capable of hunting for food, so they are usually thin and malnourished. In addition, we're an area with a high feral cat population, as well home to a ton of wildlife, and these poor declawed cats clearly aren't as capable of defending themselves as their clawed counterparts, and typically come in quite banged up. It's heartwrenching to see these cats who presumably once had if not a loving home, at least a place where they were fed, cared for, and kept safe and warm, come into the shelter injured, starving, sick, and frightened.
I'm really hoping the California bans are setting a precedent that the rest of the nation will soon follow. A nation-wide declaw ban is long overdue.
Posted by Samantha Maurice on 11/09/2009 @ 02:30PM PT
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Right, Susan there is lots we can do until the cat knows for sure it's the furniture we don't like them clawing. My daughter gave me a thin clear sheet of plastic, it's lightly sticky on both sides - sticks to the furn and the cat's don't like the feel of it, it helped the kitten make other choices. Now she is done with all but a scratching post. yea! - I already commented on the horrible mutilation called declawing. A good cat's never really happy after that.
Posted by Joyce Dean Jones on 11/08/2009 @ 06:12PM PT
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I Never Realized
Donnie
Posted by Donnie McGinnis on 11/08/2009 @ 07:43PM PT
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This is a cruel and barbaric procedure. I feel that everyone who feels the need to declaw their cat, should have the first joint of their fingers cut off. This way, they can experience the same excruciating pain as their cat.
I volunteer at a low cost spay/neuter clinic in Texas. When people ask me about spaying/neutering their cats and ask me if we declaw, I go into the spell about how cruel and barbaric this is. I also explain to them their cat may start defecating and urinating outside the litter box and they have 3 options. They CAN train their cats not to claw the furniture, they can buy cheap garage sale furniture and not worry about the cat scratching it (which I do) or they can have their house smelling like a litter box. People, you can cover up scratch marks on furniture, but you cannot cover up the stench of cat urine and poop!
Posted by Merry Elliott on 11/09/2009 @ 12:18AM PT
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How about banning declawing in some Orange County cities, or Sacramento, the state capital. A Sacramento ban would make a great statement.
Posted by L T on 11/09/2009 @ 11:03AM PT
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Let's have the US follow the UK example where declawing is an illegal and banned practice.
Posted by Alcio Lapa on 11/09/2009 @ 01:36PM PT
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Thank You so much for speaking out about this issue & A Big Thank You to you for ALL You do for ALL the Voiceless & Helpless.
Posted by Cheree M. on 11/10/2009 @ 12:14PM PT
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Thank you for putting this topic in the spotlight. When I read this last week, I didn't have the energy to post a comment, having spent so much time and energy for years trying to stop declawing! I've worked/volunteered at shelters for 13 years, and I could write a book on the horrors of declawing. I've answered questions regarding declawing on cat forums until I couldn't take it anymore. As if the facts weren't enough to speak for themselves (cat gets anesthetized and wakes up with his/her toes partially amputated) what about all the declawed cats relinquished to shelters because they are aggressive (bite) or don't use the litter box, or simply become neurotic, hiding and refusing to eat. Nobody wants a cat that bites or pees on the couch, so they are not adopted. The humans responsible for this should be punished, not the cat. The neurotic ones starve themselves into hepatic lipidosis, and usually die. A vet tech at a cat shelter where I worked took home 6 declawed cats in less than 2 years to try to save their lives. She hated declawing because of what it does to cats and she managed to save the lives of several declawed cats by taking them to her quiet home, force-feeding them and giving them anti-nausea medication as they suffered from fatty liver disease. They stopped eating due to the pain and stress of being declawed and their "owners" didn't want to deal with it!
Suppose vets started declawing dogs? Suppose people were allowed to have their children's fingers partially amputated so they couldn't draw on the walls with crayons? Amputation as a means of behavior modification is an act of torture which should not only be banned, but should be punishable by law.
My English husband who had cats all his life (we met while working at Best Friends Animal Sanctuary) presented information to our local city council in an effort to have declawing banned, but no one cared!
Posted by Anne Kirkwood on 11/15/2009 @ 04:43PM PT
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