I believe, but am not certain, that the US is the only country that it's legal in, all other countries that I know of has banned declawing a long time ago.
From what I can see on this thread, most people think that it has to do with the cat scratching the furniture up and that's the only thing they "fix" by declawing, but like Azure proved with the water gun that's fixable without torture. The cat needs its claws for any number of things -grabbing a hold if it falls or slips, scratching itself, if you as the owner or keeper of the pet throws it down from somewhere like the kitchen counter the cat uses a small part of the claw to steady itself when it lands. Without its claws the cat could get hurt a lot.

And now I get a little nasty: For the dumb fuckers who say that they never saw or heard any complaint or pain from the cat either on the day of the torture or after, u should get some other pet than a cat cos u obviously don't know jack shit about them. The cat is the proudest animal on earth, it would never stoop to show pain to its torturer. Also, any show of pain or weakness is an invitation to be damaged or killed in the animal society. If u think it's ok to declaw your cat, go to a hospital and have ONE of your nails pulled out. Get back to me when u're done. Assholes

Teacher said:

well said! I have two cats and the fact people do this to preserve their bloody precious furniture really bloody angers me.

Don't get a frigging Cat if your couch means more to you.

AzureStar said:

Azure, I am impressed. This is more serious than what I imagined. I hate it when any animal has pain inflicted on them for any reason. I love animals! Thanks for the info.

AzureStar said:

I KNOW I'm glad it's outlawed there too...I wish it was outlawed everywhere and people would just get off their lazy butts and try to train their cats.

applekisses said:

they started the no smoking thing here and it seems like it spread nationwide...I'm sure the animal rights folks will be all over this.

What about laws against ear and tail cropping? So sad seeing a happy dog with it's little stump tail trying to wag...

Essence said:

I totally agree essence! I used to breed pit bulls and I never cut their ears! Most peopledo that to make their pits look hard and mean... me I like their cute floppy ears and imagine the pain they go thru when this is done especially as pups...it ain't like piercing a babies ears that's fa sho!!

pejman said:

You didn't mention their tails man, I've never seen a bull terrier with a tail. It's an amputation of a limb, not like piercing nah...

Essence said:

that's even worse!!! I hate the word AMPUTATION let alone the action of it... I bred pits and it's not common for others to cut their tails but as far as Bull terriers, Boxers, Rotties, Pinchers those commonly get their tails chopped once again for looks... I don't like it either way...What if somebody cut our limb off and we were walkin around with half an ass cheek or sumfin, that would suck...

Essence said:

There should be laws against that too.

pejman said:

You know the amputee puppy is in pain for it's owners preference yeah. In the UK the winner of dog show Crufts was rumoured to of had plastic surgery to be perfect to "pedigree" rules of purity.

The dogs bred too purely end up with breathing problems (Bad noses, bad mouths, saggy cheeks), go blind, heart problems etc. all to adhere to a rulebook...

Essence said:

The dogs bred too purely end up with breathing problems (Bad noses, bad mouths, saggy cheeks), go blind, heart problems etc. all to adhere to a rulebook...


That disgusts me.

My kitty, the one pictured in my avatar, was declawed by her previous owner. In her previous life, she lived with her litter-mate sister, and they were inseparable. After they were declawed, they turned against one another, and the original owners were forced to separate them. I was then offered the chance to adopt one of the kitties. She was 3 years old at the time.

It seems likely that the procedure was responsible for the change in their behavior toward one another. The procedure may have occurred too late in their lives (or as others have suggested, it should never be performed at all). Ask any man who was circumcised as an infant, WITHOUT ANESTHESIA, how it felt - you'll get a blank stare. There is no memory of it whatsoever. Then ask other men who had the same operation, WITH anesthesia, performed as a child or young adult - completely different answer, I assume the same would be true for kitties.

"Amputation" is a loaded term. None of us wants to have a limb or appendage "amputated." But unlike the mountain climber who recently cut off his own arm to save his life, those who undergo the procedure electively benefit from the magic of general anesthesia. The same is true for kitties. During the operation, general anesthesia is used, and there is no pain. The concerns about postoperative pain are very legitimate, but good caretakers can minimize pain after surgery.

Sure, declwing is generally performed to prevent cats from damaging furniture. These cats are rendered defenseless and MUST be kept indoors, away from predators including cruel humans. If cats could talk, I'm sure most would refuse the procedure. But I strongly suspect that proud tomcats would decline bilateral orchiectomy (removal of their testes - so-called "neutering") and female cats would pass on total hysterectomies (including their ovaries - "spaying") if asked in advance.

We, and the humane societies, willingly perform these other surgeries to prevent cat overpopulation, right? Well, then why not perform simple vasectomies and tubal ligations? These surgical procedures address fertility ONLY. Instead, we remove ALL reproductive organs. The reason is simple - we don't like sexual behavior in our pet cats - such as spraying, howling, "heat," etc - just as we don't like clawing on furniture. Is there a double standard being applied here? What would our cats prefer?

In any event, I prefer compassion. If you are entrusted with the care of an animal, make compassionate decisions for them. If declawing will improve your compatibility with your new kitty, insist on early, skilled management with a qualified kitty surgeon. Don't wait until the cat is an adult - it seems unfair. The same applies to sterilization operations.

In my opinion, it is no more immoral to declaw a kitty as it is to remove all of their sexual organs. Timing, generous use of anesthetics and analgesics, and subsequent protection and love of the animal are what matter most to me. My sweet kitty has learned to adjust to life without claws. She plays, "claws" anything she wants without scratching, and enjoys a serene indoor life. It could be worse for her.

Speaking of surgery on those unable to provide consent, what do my fellow orgers think about male circumcision?

[This message was edited Sat May 10 18:00:43 PDT 2003 by TheMax]

TheMax said:

I have heard that part of the reason for complete removal of the reproductive organs, expecially the uterus in female cats, is so that it is not a source of infection over time... after the surgery. However, I am not clear on that.

But, as far as doing a complete operation to make the cat sterile, there isn't as much risk of, if any, that the prodecure will harm the cat emotionally. And, the pain during recovery isn't anything compared to what a cat goes through after being declawed. I also feel that if we are going to take our cat in to make them sterile, to prevent overpopulation, we may as well remove all reproductive organs since they're in there anyway, to prevent those other things you mentioned, the spraying, being in heat, etc.. if they were left, like you said, they would still have the instinct to breed, etc... so, it's not like we're just taking the cats in to have the operation to prevent those things and making them sterile to prevent overpopulation comes second. You know?

Anyway... as far are the male circumcision... I had a hard time deciding whether or not to have the procedure performed on my son when he was born. I did decide to go ahead with it... but I had a difficult time with it prior to and afterwards, especially knowing they perform it without any anesthesia. That was really very hard for me.

(I didn't realize that was your kitty... she's very pretty).