Should House Cats Be Declawed?

We know cats have claws. We know cats like to scratch as a past time (as a former cat owner, I can tell you that a scratch post doesn't always temper their desires to claw other items around the house.) How do you feel about owners of cats having them declawed? My cat wasn't and although he didn't shred everything in sight, it was an ongoing battle to keep him from trying to.

Declawing is considered a cruel and barbaric act and people are looking into having it outlawed as declawing not only removes the cat's claws but the first digits off its paws, which would be equal to chopping off the top parts of our fingers at the first knuckle. That said, we have a cat who IS declawed, but she was declawed when her last owner had her, same owner who later left her behind to starve, (I'd say that owner had some severely screwed up priorities). And she's outdoors mainly, but when she comes inside, she gets up and 'scratches' a lot of things, in which case it's actually lucky for us that she doesn't have any claws, but I don't think I could do that to another cat.

I used to have a cat and I believed that having her declawed was the best thing to do at the time. I have since changed my beliefs on that issue. I thought it was just a simple, quick thing that didn't really hurt them that much and that didn't require much "recovery". After I had my cat declawed I felt really bad for her. Her feet were bandaged for 5 days and she couldn't walk without pain for about a week. I had to give her antibiotics with her food so that she wouldn't get an infection from the surgery (which is apparently pretty invasive).

I now think that declawing cats is cruel animal abuse that is only done for the benefit of the owner. Animals should not be treated like simply property, but as members of our families. If you buy a cat, buy a scratching post! If you can't handle a cat scratching in your home, then don't own a cat. It's that simple! We are not supposed to alter their bodies to conform to our standards. That's called animal abuse! I also disagree with cropping dogs ears and clipping their tails. That is also cruel animal abuse that shouldn't happen. Either accept the cat or dog the way that they are, or don't own one!

If I get another cat, I would never have it decalwed. I would never have my dogs tail clipped or ears cropped either. If I have a son, I would not have him circumcised and if I have a daughter her ears won't be pierced until decides that she wants earrings. People who do these things to their children and pets are really only acting in their own best interests which is very selfish.

I have to be honest. I never knew there were downsides to having a cat declawed for the cat. If I ever own a cat again, I will research it before making a decision.

I did own a cat, and got her declawed. She now lives with my dad because she was not into being a big sister when my son was born. But, she lives in a rural area, and still catches mice, sans claws.

Hmmm. I have been contemplating getting a cat....but I don't know about getting them declawed. Just seems cruel....that's not to say I wouldn't do it, but I would wait and see how well they act without going that route.

Having a cat declawed is cruel. What happens if the cat gets out of the house and encounters some other animal, its natural defenses will be gone. I had a cat for 18 years, she only went out of the house a few times but I never had her declawed. I taught her not to claw the furniture, yeah she had a place or two she liked to scratch but she did not destroy the house because I would scold her and I know this sounds cruel but I would keep a water bottle handy and when she clawed somewhere I didn't want her to, I shot her with the water and thats how she learned not to claw furniture and other places I didn't want her to. She had a favorite place, it was a piece of molding on a door which I didn't care because it could be replaced quickly. I was never cruel to her and my cat loved me to death.

I was thinking about having my cat's claws removed but a friend of mine built a cool cat tower for me and my cat loves it and has completely stopped clawing my furniture.

Agree with Tony. Declawing your pets leaves them too defenseless against predators. It also depresses them, because they know full well that they are without power. Train them instead. If more pet owners took the time to train them or send them to obedience school, it would severely cut down on their naturally wild tendencies.

JM130ELM wrote:Agree with Tony. Declawing your pets leaves them too defenseless against predators. It also depresses them, because they know full well that they are without power.

Well, such is not the case with our kitty. She still kills everything smaller than her that she can catch, and still manages to rip another cat's fur out during a fight, and she doesn't need her claws against them because she just chases them away.

I wouldn't do it.

Cutting off a cat's claws, which are actually adhered to the bone in a cat's foot, is akin to cutting off a humans toes or cutting off the first knuckle of a human's fingers. Cats actually walk on their claws, so the entire time that they're healing they're in constant agony. They have to use their front feet to claw in the litter box (can you imagine how much that would hurt?), to walk on,to play with.

Here:

http://www.declawing.com/
That's written by a veterinarian. It's more of an opinion piece than anything else, but...

http://vetmedicine.about.com/cs/beha...lawdilemma.htm
There's a more fact-based article.

Read up on it. It's a cruel and inhuman operation, and I wouldn'trecommend anyone do it to a cat.

I've never declawed any cat. I feel that it's a terrible form of torture. You may believe that your cat will always be an indoor animal, but my cat "escaped" once when a friend was watching her while I was out of town. She came back a month later just fine. I was very thankful that she wasn't declawed, because who knows what she did and go into during that time away. So long as you keep your cat's claws trimmed and get them a scratching post, you should be fine.

No one ever suggests declawing a dog.