Declawing cats. UGH! I had no idea.

[OreoRosies86]

I for one apologize if I came off as self righteous. Truly and without a hint of sarcasm.

Edited: internet tone is a tricky mistress.

Kenny is right, why is America so far behind the curve on this? It really is an interesting subject.

 

[ForteKitty]

And yes, animals hide pain, and they hide it very well. I've sat w/kitties that were dying, and they laid in my lap and purred...until they just were quiet. When Sadie got stuck in the kennel fence and was hanging by her back leg, the only way you could tell she was in pain was the look in her eyes (well shock by then had probably taken real pain away). She had to have her leg amputated and you'd think that would be unbearable pain. The vet (who did our declawing) commented that the pain tolerance of animals is astounding. Soon as she was not woozy from anesthesia anymore, she was out of that cage and trying to do zoomies, she was so excited to see us. I am tougher than wang leather when it comes to pain but no way could I ever be that tough.

Packrat, I really love your entire post, but the bolded part made me bawl my eyes out. My mom and I rescue stray and abandoned cats and we've been in that situation more than a few times. Breaks my heart. It's astonishing how much pain animals can tolerate.

 

[Laila619]

Not flaming, but just because the cats didn't "appear" to be in pain, doesn't mean they weren't actually living with residual pain every day of their long lives. They are very good at hiding pain.

Really?? What do they say to you??

In all seriousness, I don't think my animals are in any pain whatsoever. They are super happy and healthy... despite my 15 year old being a chubby baby.

Wow, msop, your attitude about declawing is shocking. It's wrong and INHUMANE, plain and simple. Justify it any way you want, but it doesn't make it okay. It is just so, so cruel to mutilate an animal in that way.

And also, it's not that hard to get educated about the subject. When I adopted my first cat when she was 6 months old, not knowing any better I scheduled a vet appointment to get her front paws declawed. Then I did a few Google searches on the topic and promptly ran to the phone, dialed up the vet, and cancelled her appointment. No way in HELL was I going to do that to my sweet, innocent kitten. It is so sad to me that some people seemingly care more about their furniture than their pets. There are so many better and humane options--trimming claws weekly, Soft Paws claw caps, etc.

 

[Laila619]

I do also think that even if say on the pain scale the pain is a 1 or 2 - very mild for the rest of their lives - you're still taking away a primary function of who they ARE as animals/creatures...it's THEIR toes/fingers...it's what they climb with, what they fight with...such an integral part of who they are...so I think for me I wouldn't even care if research showed the pain is not that great...I still see it as taking something away from them that shouldn't be taken.

So, so true CJ.

A cat's claws are such a vital part of him. Read this as to why they need their claws:

http://www.theanimalcenter.org/content/WhyCatsNeedClaws.pdf

An excerpt:

"A declawed cat is not the same. He’s
missing the ends of his toes. He can’t get the
full benefit of a scratch. His gait is altered
because the front of his paws are gone. He can’t
spear a toy or manipulate it as well as if he had
claws. He can climb easy surfaces, but on more
challenging terrain he can’t avail himself of
front claws that serve as supporting clamps,
brakes, and hooks. He’s at a ten-claw
disadvantage if he’s threatened. It’s simple:
there are some things that you can do with a set
of sharp barbs that you can’t do with a flat pad.
But those are only the mechanical
differences. Cats are notorious for hiding
discomfort and stoically putting up with
handicaps. It’s unfair to the cat to assume that
he doesn’t miss his claws just because he’s
not explicitly complaining. Respect for the cat
demands that we give him the benefit of the
doubt, and presume that he’d miss something
that he’d otherwise use every day.
Dr. Gordon Stull, VMD, is owner of the
Vetco Veterinary Clinic in Tabernacle, New
Jersey, and has seen his fair share of
declawed cats. He says, “Declawing is a quite
simply a mutilation that can cause physical as
well as emotional damage to the cat. Not
every declawed cat will suffer obvious
emotional damage; some can seem like any
normal cat. But if I walk into an exam room
and see a domestic cat showing aggressive
tendencies (threatening vocalizations, a
dominant aggressive nature, and a propensity
to bite) in my mind I know that nine chances
out of ten this cat has been declawed, and that
the aggressive behaviors are the cat's way of
compensating for the traumatic declaw
experience and loss of natural defenses
caused by surgical declawing.”

 

[Gypsy]

I've had cats most of my life.

I've never declawed. And I've never seen a reason to. My cats are just not that destructive at all, to furniture, etc. And the ones that have a favorite chair, or whatever... I clip their nails with no problem.

MSOP, I've volunteered with rescues a lot. I've seen hundreds of cats, declawed, with behavioral issues and pain and infections from declawing.

And as a cat owner with a cat with cancer eating her from the inside out, I PROMISE YOU, that cats are AMAZING at hiding pain.

One of my oldest friends declaws her cats. And it is a subject that we agree to disagree on because she feels that it's better de-clawed than dead. And she de-claws them young, to avoid behavioral issues (kittens have a better chance of adapting), but to me... why perform life altering surgery on an animal that has not proven to have a problem?

I currently have six cats. Only one of them threatens my furniture (though cardboard lives in dread fear in my house) in any way. If I had gotten them all declawed, that means I would have penalized my other 5 for something they never have done.

And to me it's very clear. 1) I would not penalize a FAMILY MEMBER for what it MIGHT do by declawing it as a kitten. 2) If I do get a cat as a kitten I can socialize it to claw trimming 2) I would never declaw an adult cat even if it threatened my furniture when I could simply clip it's claws. and 3) I don't value ANY inanimate object over my cats.

 

[kenny]

 

[CJ2008]

I do also think that even if say on the pain scale the pain is a 1 or 2 - very mild for the rest of their lives - you're still taking away a primary function of who they ARE as animals/creatures...it's THEIR toes/fingers...it's what they climb with, what they fight with...such an integral part of who they are...so I think for me I wouldn't even care if research showed the pain is not that great...I still see it as taking something away from them that shouldn't be taken.

So, so true CJ.

A cat's claws are such a vital part of him. Read this as to why they need their claws:

http://www.theanimalcenter.org/content/WhyCatsNeedClaws.pdf

An excerpt:

"A declawed cat is not the same. He’s
missing the ends of his toes. He can’t get the
full benefit of a scratch. His gait is altered
because the front of his paws are gone. He can’t
spear a toy or manipulate it as well as if he had
claws. He can climb easy surfaces, but on more
challenging terrain he can’t avail himself of
front claws that serve as supporting clamps,
brakes, and hooks. He’s at a ten-claw
disadvantage if he’s threatened. It’s simple:
there are some things that you can do with a set
of sharp barbs that you can’t do with a flat pad.
But those are only the mechanical
differences. Cats are notorious for hiding
discomfort and stoically putting up with
handicaps. It’s unfair to the cat to assume that
he doesn’t miss his claws just because he’s
not explicitly complaining. Respect for the cat
demands that we give him the benefit of the
doubt, and presume that he’d miss something
that he’d otherwise use every day.
Dr. Gordon Stull, VMD, is owner of the
Vetco Veterinary Clinic in Tabernacle, New
Jersey, and has seen his fair share of
declawed cats. He says, “Declawing is a quite
simply a mutilation that can cause physical as
well as emotional damage to the cat. Not
every declawed cat will suffer obvious
emotional damage; some can seem like any
normal cat. But if I walk into an exam room
and see a domestic cat showing aggressive
tendencies (threatening vocalizations, a
dominant aggressive nature, and a propensity
to bite) in my mind I know that nine chances
out of ten this cat has been declawed, and that
the aggressive behaviors are the cat's way of
compensating for the traumatic declaw
experience and loss of natural defenses
caused by surgical declawing.”

This is what it's all about for me Laila.

 

[lulu]

The EU has banned sales of all products tested on animals. The US is nowhere near that point. Why? I wonder that too.

 

[LaraOnline]

Not flaming, but just because the cats didn't "appear" to be in pain, doesn't mean they weren't actually living with residual pain every day of their long lives. They are very good at hiding pain.

Really?? What do they say to you??

In all seriousness, I don't think my animals are in any pain whatsoever. They are super happy and healthy... despite my 15 year old being a chubby baby.

Wow, msop, your attitude about declawing is shocking. It's wrong and INHUMANE, plain and simple. Justify it any way you want, but it doesn't make it okay. It is just so, so cruel to mutilate an animal in that way.

And also, it's not that hard to get educated about the subject. When I adopted my first cat when she was 6 months old, not knowing any better I scheduled a vet appointment to get her front paws declawed. Then I did a few Google searches on the topic and promptly ran to the phone, dialed up the vet, and cancelled her appointment. No way in HELL was I going to do that to my sweet, innocent kitten. It is so sad to me that some people seemingly care more about their furniture than their pets. There are so many better and humane options--trimming claws weekly, Soft Paws claw caps, etc.

Wow I am reluctant to weigh in on this thread because it showcases some of the worst of PS behaviour - like a family, PS members can save their best and worst for each other.
I find it surprising that internet friends can suggest they know msop's cats better than her; for a start she lives with them.
It is likely she is not imagining their well being. Infection usually results in high temperature and malaise, for example.
How bizarre that a group of people that hold msop's opinion in high enough esteem on other topics will completely dismiss her own experience on this one, simply because it doesn't sustain a rather political view.
Aggressive cats may be aggressive for a variety of reasons. We see many aggressive cats that have not been declawed, for example.

Also, I have found it hard to swallow the general and outrageous slurs against the general veterinary industry in this thread.
So often, it seems that people who have experienced a few animals confidently 'know better' than the science nut who has dedicated a lifetime of study to the health of the species in question. Rescuing an animal or even six does not make you more compassionate, or more of a biological expert than the person who has dedicated their lives to animal patients, sorry.

I could go on but my husband has begged me not to get involved with thread. So I will not be responding to anything directed at me in this thread.
Declawing is not at all common where I live. We rarely see it.
Most vets want nothing more than happy pets living in happy families. To suggest anything else is unfair and to be honest pretty offensive.

 

[Sky56]

I've had cats for a lot of my life but don't have any now. I'm surprised at the 25% statistic for declawed cats in the US as I have met very few declawed cats.

When we had cats, furniture damage was very minimal because we had things for them to scratch on which they loved. More than the posts, they loved this thing. I'd also put catnip underneath the round pad. Happy, they would spin the ball around and claw the pad, then loll about in a catnip daze.

 

[OreoRosies86]

Not flaming, but just because the cats didn't "appear" to be in pain, doesn't mean they weren't actually living with residual pain every day of their long lives. They are very good at hiding pain.

Really?? What do they say to you??

In all seriousness, I don't think my animals are in any pain whatsoever. They are super happy and healthy... despite my 15 year old being a chubby baby.

Wow, msop, your attitude about declawing is shocking. It's wrong and INHUMANE, plain and simple. Justify it any way you want, but it doesn't make it okay. It is just so, so cruel to mutilate an animal in that way.

And also, it's not that hard to get educated about the subject. When I adopted my first cat when she was 6 months old, not knowing any better I scheduled a vet appointment to get her front paws declawed. Then I did a few Google searches on the topic and promptly ran to the phone, dialed up the vet, and cancelled her appointment. No way in HELL was I going to do that to my sweet, innocent kitten. It is so sad to me that some people seemingly care more about their furniture than their pets. There are so many better and humane options--trimming claws weekly, Soft Paws claw caps, etc.

Wow I am reluctant to weigh in on this thread because it showcases some of the worst of PS behaviour - like a family, PS members can save their best and worst for each other.
I find it surprising that internet friends can suggest they know msop's cats better than her; for a start she lives with them.
It is likely she is not imagining their well being. Infection usually results in high temperature and malaise, for example.
How bizarre that a group of people that hold msop's opinion in high enough esteem on other topics will completely dismiss her own experience on this one, simply because it doesn't sustain a rather political view.
Aggressive cats may be aggressive for a variety of reasons. We see many aggressive cats that have not been declawed, for example.

Also, I have found it hard to swallow the general and outrageous slurs against the general veterinary industry in this thread.
So often, it seems that people who have experienced a few animals confidently 'know better' than the science nut who has dedicated a lifetime of study to the health of the species in question. Rescuing an animal or even six does not make you more compassionate, or more of a biological expert than the person who has dedicated their lives to animal patients, sorry.

I could go on but my husband has begged me not to get involved with thread. So I will not be responding to anything directed at me in this thread.
Declawing is not at all common where I live. We rarely see it.
Most vets want nothing more than happy pets living in happy families. To suggest anything else is unfair and to be honest pretty offensive.

If people ever stop questioning those in the medical field, we're all screwed. I say that as someone who has a huge respect for the work they do.

 

[Indylady]

I knew it hurt cats, but I had no idea either, since I've never had a cat myself.

 

[packrat]

We need to question, there's no doubt about that. We wouldn't be where we are today if *nobody* questioned. But just so long as we understand that it doesn't take *every* person to question *every* member of *every* profession about *every* thing they say. And just so long as we understand that if someone *doesn't* question *some*thing (or *every*thing as the case may be) doesn't make them ignorant buffoons worthy of contempt.

 

[ForteKitty]

Nobody suggested that msop's cats are in pain, did they? If she says her cats are fat and happy, then I'm happy for them. Since my offending statement was quoted, I felt I should clarify. I merely stated that cats can hide pain well, and people may not notice if they suffer from mild pain. It's not absurd to assume that there just might be some residual pain from amputating the tips of the fingers.

Lara, if you read the whole thread, you would see that I did not say, "hey msop, your cats are hurting and you don't know what you're talking about". You seem to have made that part up.

 

[packrat]

After we had Clem done, (who was the last) there were times where I'd notice she'd jump down from the table or counter (yes I am one of *those* kitty mom's with a cat on surfaces), or the vanity in the bathroom (cuz you just can't pee by yourself) and she would, for lack of a better word, wince. She would land, and just stop/hesitate for a second, before walking, and a few times I caught her shake her front paws after. Not just a week or so after having her claws out, this was a couple months after. Our other cats were relatively young when they had it done, just a few months old (Bella was a little older, 6-9 months b/c she wasn't a little kitten when she came to us) and I not ever once saw them do anything but walk a little gingerly for a few days. But Clem was about 3 1/2 years or so. Made me sad to see my kitty hurt. Even JD felt bad, especially since from the second we bonded at home, she became my heart-kitty after losing Bella. She doesn't do it anymore.

Those of us who have declawed kitties do love them, and we're pretty in tune w/how they feel. Now msop and I know things to look for, and if they start to act like they're having problems, that gives us an idea of where to start.

 

[distracts]

The first cat we had growing up, which my mom must have gotten 30 years + ago, because the cat died when I was in grade school but was well into her teens at the time, was declawed on the front paws. My mom always said it had been a mistake and she'd never, ever declaw a cat again. I don't think the cat had health problems to do with it (that I knew about, anyway, but I was OBSESSED with cats so I probably would have known), but my mom didn't like that the cat couldn't climb trees or defend itself well in a fight (all our cats have been indoor/outdoor because my mom - who used to live on a farm - thinks keeping a cat indoors is bad for its mental health). Our next cat was not declawed. There weren't many problems with furniture scratching once he grew up a bit - he preferred the cardboard scratching things that lie on the ground.

 

[Imdanny]

Kenny, yes, it's evil. I don't want to watch this because I already know what's involved. I have a cat and wouldn't do this to her in a million years. It should be illegal. I'll stop now before I say something I'll regret later.

 

[CJ2008]

I was just researching lasers for surgeries for cats and ran into a veterinary hospital who has this on their website:

Did you know?
Laser declaw surgery procedure is done as an out patient surgery. Your pet will go home the same day of the surgery. No bandages and no sutures to worry about. Laser declaw is the only humane way to declaw a cat or kitten.



I am tempted to write them a note...they're advertising that it's HUMANE to do this.

 

[mochiko42]

Don't want to get into the politics of this, but declawing is illegal in Hong Kong too, as well as the UK and many other European countries. I'm surprised to see it is still allowed in the US.