Declawing my kitty - I want to make sure it's not done.

My kitty is almost 4 months old and I was presented the option to declaw her when we have her spayed at 6 months. Not knowing much about kittens/cats (she converted us to "cat people" when we took her in), I've really been reading up on it to make an informed decision.

What I found horrified me! I read real stories about it from people (including vet technicians that witnessed the horrors after the poor things woke up after the procedure) and I found out how it was done. My baby is NEVER going to go through that.

When I have her spayed, I want to make sure that they don't do the declaw by accident because it seems like it's so common for pet owners to do when their kitten is 6 months old. I read a horrible story about a woman who said she didn't want it done but then was called later about "complications with the declaw" because the had done it anyway just by routine.

I DON'T want this to happen to my kitten, and I'm very uneasy about it. Any suggestions?

I would find another vet to take your kitty to if you do not think that you can trust this one to NOT declaw. I commend you for doing the research before deciding. It is very grueling for kitties to have their knuckles amputated, and they sometimes come out with worse behaviors because of the incredible pain they have to endure. Bad litterbox habits develop, because the kitty literally hurts when it uses the clay or clumping litter. It is pretty sad that vets will do this for people. It is a large money-maker for them that's for sure.

Milton, thanks for the support. I am SO glad I did the research before I decided...it's so horrible.

I'm sure if you tell your veterinarian that you do not want the cat declawed it will not happen. It's really not part of the spay routine unless the owner wants it done so I can't imagine your vet doing so without your permission.

I'm really glad you took the time to research what declawing is all about before having it done. I can tell you some pretty awful stories that I've witnessed and that makes me all the more angry when it's made to be no big deal. In fact I often discourage people from declawing although if the right person heard me I'd be in some big trouble.

Put your request in writing. Also, make the vet sign a declaration that he will, under no circumstances, carry out this barbaric assault on your kitty.

I would make sure that the vet knows that you feel strongly about NOT having the procedure done. Yola's suggestion is a good one, and just tell him/her that you've heard such horror stories that you just want to make sure it will not "accidently" happen to your kitty.

It is pretty sad that vets do treat it as "routine" when it is anything but. That's what mine did to me, before I knew any better, and they made it sound like that's just what you do. Kudos to you for doing the research that they never offer.

I wouldn't use a vet who offers declawing like it's french fries at McDonald's. It might be a source of revenue for them, but so are SoftPaws, so why not offer those instead? I know most vets start out wanting to help animals. I just don't understand how they could perform such a stupid surgery.

Just a comment on the soft paws-We used to sell and apply them for clients until quite a few of the cats that were regulars became very agressive when they were brought in to have these little caps glued on their nails. Lots of bites and scratched were handed out and it simply became more of a risk than it was worth.

I do recommend soft paws to clients but I don't apply them!

I'm sure results may vary.

I've put them on my friend's two kittens before and they just laid there and looked at me like, 'What the heck are you doing?' And then walked off shaking their feet. lol

Well I think a lot of it is comming to the vet's to have them put on. First there's the awful ride in the car, cramped up in a tiny little plastic box, then they have to come into this place where they have vivid memories of pokes, dogs, and mysteriously waking up to find a part of them is missing. Then you have to strangers trying to sweet talk them into gluing these little caps onto their nails and suddenly they don't feel like being the sweet cuddly kitty they are at home.

"Mmmm maybe if I bite this girl REALLY hard she'll stop.....?"

lol-If I were a cat I'd be nasty at the vet's.

Crystal...I too commend you for researching this procedure before having it performed on your baby. I must admit that when I first got Jedi (and he is my first cat) I didn't know anything about declawing, other than I had heard that people have it done, and I was going to have Jedi declawed when he was neutered.

I can only thank God that I decided to research declawing! I mostly did it to find out what to expect after he had it done and how to take care of him post-surgery. But MY GOD!, when I started reading the horror stories about these poor kittens, and what the procedure actually entails, I could not believe that ANYONE would ever do this to an animal they call their "pet". Story after story...horrible pics, I even read that some cats are in SO much pain when they wake up after the procedure, that they will try to bite their paws off (trying to get rid of the pain) or will bang around in their cage so furiously, that they end up killing themselves! The thought of any animal having to endure that kind of mutilation and pain just broke my heart.

Needless to say, I did not have Jedi declawed. And I also found out a while after I read these horror tales that the apartment complex where I live requires all pet cats to be declawed. Well guess what, they don't know that I have Jedi and if they do find out before I intend to move out anyway (next April) they can throw me out or whatever they feel they have to do since I am technically "breaking the rules". My response to them in such an instance will be, "OK, I will declaw Jedi, right after you remove all of the tips of YOUR fingers up to the first knuckle".

All I can say to people who have this procedure performed on their pets because they are "scratching" furniture or whatever is....

NAIL CLIPPERS, SCRATCHING POSTS, DISCIPLINE!

Have a heart! Spend the time to "raise" your kitty, not just expect him/her to be the perfect angel without some parenting.

Can you tell that this subject "infuriates" me??

I can't believe your apt complex has a stupid rule requiring cats be declawed. Think of how many people probably just do it so they can move in. You should take them those articles and convince them to change their policy. Tell them if a child gets bitten, they could be sued b/c they required the surgery...maybe that will make them think!

I recently fostered a declawed cat. She was an absolute doll. She loved to sit in my lap and make biscuits! But she had turned into a biter. I think perhaps her previous owner had kicked her around a bit, b/c if you walked too close to her, she would go nuts. She would strike at you with her paws, and once she bit me pretty good on the leg.

It really bothers me that vets don't bother to counsel owners on this procedure. If your vet acts like this is just a 'routine' surgery, I would change vets. You don't want them accidentally performing this on your cat. Let's face it, the vet office will have it's crazy days and paperwork can get mixed up. I'd want to know my cat was in the care of someone who will bother to doublecheck the paperwork before starting. There are actually some highly concious (sp?) vets who refuse to perform this procedure. Unfortunately, they are few and far between.

For people that act like all cats 'need' this surgery, I wonder how their kids will turn out. To me, someone who 'has' to have their cat declawed is just lazy. Are they going to hook their toddler up to a catheter until they figure out the toliet on their own?