Judi, the nails aren't taken out. If you read LDG's post above it will give you more information as well.
-
Too many ads? Join our community of cat lovers now to reduce ads by 90%! Click here to join for free!
De-claw what is the big deal?
- Thread starter newcat19
- Start Date
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #42
I never did research elsewhere. I just read all the posts in this thread.Originally Posted by mschauer
I assume you have done research at other sites? Can you share with us what arguments the "other side" uses? What seems to you to do the most persuasive argument in support of declawing? I'd like to know in the spirit of "know your enemy".
My dad recently had shoulder sugery, & he's having a painful recovery. But
it occured to me that my dad injured his shoulder & was already having alot
of pain, so the surgery was done to alleviate the pain. Although a recovery
process is often painful and can be somewhat lengthy.
So if surgery is such a painful process, why subject any animal to it unless
its absolutely necessary. My cat's paws are fine at the moment. So why risk
getting a surgery, if it ain't broke don't fix it.
Actually, I forgot to include the part that the declaw procedure doesn't just "remove" the nails:
You can link to the site this is quoted from for more info.
The problem is that cats walk on their toes - their "ankle" is about 1/3 the way up their leg! So "declawing," which is a misnomer, forces the cat to walk on partially amputated toes. This is why it is particularly horrific.
Laurie
I can speak from expeirence...please don't de-claw!
When I was a child (some 20 and a bit years ago now) we got our first cat and not knowing any better we had her front paws de-clawed. What a horrible mistake! She developed a terrible infection post surgery in 2 of her toes which had to be amputated and the recovery process was slow and painful. Yes it did curve her ability to scratch us but she quickly learned that her teeth did just as good of a job
My mother remains to this day angry that she didn't get the proper information before deciding to have the surgery done.
You've come to the right place to get the information you need
When I was a child (some 20 and a bit years ago now) we got our first cat and not knowing any better we had her front paws de-clawed. What a horrible mistake! She developed a terrible infection post surgery in 2 of her toes which had to be amputated and the recovery process was slow and painful. Yes it did curve her ability to scratch us but she quickly learned that her teeth did just as good of a job
You've come to the right place to get the information you need
I was glad to see your response that you are educating yourself about the pro's and con's of declawing. I think that being open minded about the education you get from us and other sites is important. Growing up I had always had declawed cats. When I moved out at 25 I took our family cat with me. She was 4 paw declawed because when I was young it seemed that almost everyone with indoor cats declawed them. When I began working with a shelter and spending time on this site I realized that is not the case. I now have 4 cats and all of them have all their claws. I can no longer imagine having a cat without claws. I guess now I know the truth and I know that it is not necessary to have a declawed cat. So again good for you for doing your research.
Glad you asked, you must really care about your cat to be researching and asking a question on a cat site. He does still use have use for his claws, even if he isn't hunting, they use them in other ways that are healthy and important for a cat. And you can clip them or put soft paws claw covers on him if you don't like them sharp. Also you can redirect his clawing to approved posts, buy a huge cat tree, he will like that. And some like the paper ones to claw on too.
Declawing actually cuts a bone. It is very painful. And confusing for the cat.
Say your cat should escape, that takes away all his defenses, making him defenseless against real threats.
I think I missed it, but what is the name of your kitty?
Like some of you who already posted, I have seen countless people who come to the adoption events I work at, rueing the day they decided to declaw.
They have their declawed cat with them in the carrier. They show us their cat's paws permanently ruined from a botched procedure. They are crying and sobbing and asking what to do now. Their cats cannot use a litter box without severe pain. Their cats cannot walk. Their cats are in constant pain. Or they are now timid and "different".
Many of these people beg us to take the cat, offer money. They say it is beyond their ability to help the cat. And also what they are not saying- THAT THEY NO LONGER WANT TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR WHAT THEY PERSONALLY DID TO A PERFECTLY HEALTHY ANIMAL.
I say to anyone who is thinking of declawing- Can you live with the possibility of a botched procedure, a personality change, a behavior change, a crippled cat? Can you look at your cat limping, in pain, timid, every day, knowing that you are responsible? Can you clean pee from everywhere but the litterbox every day?
One of my permanent kitties is a foster girl who was returned by someone who did a declaw, and then could not live with the fact that her declawed kitty immediately became a pee cat. So she is mine.
I love her so much, but I also wonder what she would have been like if someone had not wanted to protect their furniture at her expense.
They have their declawed cat with them in the carrier. They show us their cat's paws permanently ruined from a botched procedure. They are crying and sobbing and asking what to do now. Their cats cannot use a litter box without severe pain. Their cats cannot walk. Their cats are in constant pain. Or they are now timid and "different".
Many of these people beg us to take the cat, offer money. They say it is beyond their ability to help the cat. And also what they are not saying- THAT THEY NO LONGER WANT TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR WHAT THEY PERSONALLY DID TO A PERFECTLY HEALTHY ANIMAL.
I say to anyone who is thinking of declawing- Can you live with the possibility of a botched procedure, a personality change, a behavior change, a crippled cat? Can you look at your cat limping, in pain, timid, every day, knowing that you are responsible? Can you clean pee from everywhere but the litterbox every day?
One of my permanent kitties is a foster girl who was returned by someone who did a declaw, and then could not live with the fact that her declawed kitty immediately became a pee cat. So she is mine.
I love her so much, but I also wonder what she would have been like if someone had not wanted to protect their furniture at her expense.
I'm so glad that I live in a country where this is not up for discussion. It just isn't allowed.
When I was a child, we had our family cat declawed. She was never the same. Walked slow like an old lady, would often hold her paw in the air while sitting...she just looked in pain and we all felt really bad for causing it for her, to the point that the 5 or so cats we've had after her have remained with their claws. Just get a clipper, trim them often, get a scratching post and discipline kitten when he/she starts clawing furniture. Never had a problem.
I second this, I'm not a doc but I'm a nurse where sometimes we have to do emergency surgeries on the unit. BP/HR definitely go up if we don't have adequate pain control during the surgery, which is otherwise hard to gauge because the patient is kept paralyzed so they won't move!
I, too, am appalled by poster Plar's comments and can only think they must be due to ignorance rather than callousness or worse. Thanks to the many other posters for setting the record straight. Cats are sentient (feeling) beings with central nervous systems; they are if anything more sensitive than humans to pain, and declawing most definitely is disfigurement and cruelty and should be illegal, period.
As to the issue to sterility, yes, many humans, being aware of the fact that we as a species have overpopulated this planet and polluted it and killed off other species to the point that we are all on the very real brink of annihilation, have opted for sterilization. I am one.
As to the issue to sterility, yes, many humans, being aware of the fact that we as a species have overpopulated this planet and polluted it and killed off other species to the point that we are all on the very real brink of annihilation, have opted for sterilization. I am one.
I've made my views on declawing very clear on this website. I didn't even know such a procedure existed until I joined here. I don't know if it's illegal in the UK but I do know that it isn't done at the veterinary practice I use. It is a monstrous procedure and those who are not convinced should ask themselves how well they'd respond to having their own fingernails pulled.
As to clipping, I'm not convinced about this either. My vet won't clip except in the rare case of it being a health issue for the cat. I once asked him if Thingy's claws were getting too long for her comfort and he said simply that she was a cat that spent a substantial part of her day outdoors and she needed her claws. Their length would be controlled by use. If someone has a cat that never goes out and the claws are very long, then there may be a case for human intervention but not otherwise.
I've seen these "soft paw" things advertised and I really don't see how they would work. Thingy cleans her paws and claws regularly, even rasping at her claws with her teeth. For that she needs bare claws.
I guess I'm lucky because she doesn't go in for clawing the furniture much at all. When I took her on, she was a very nervous and sick cat but over three years she has become extremely relaxed with her body up to "fighting weight" and her medical condition under control. She has become much more trusting of and affectionate towards humans and her odd moments of petulance are controllable with suitable rebukes, which she takes in her stride. I put her well-being and balanced behaviour down to my respecting her as an animal, giving her space and refusing to sentimentalise or anthropomorphise her in any way (I do hold one-sided conversations with her but I do that with the furniture as well - it doesn't mean I'm daft enough to think she actually understands me).
As to clipping, I'm not convinced about this either. My vet won't clip except in the rare case of it being a health issue for the cat. I once asked him if Thingy's claws were getting too long for her comfort and he said simply that she was a cat that spent a substantial part of her day outdoors and she needed her claws. Their length would be controlled by use. If someone has a cat that never goes out and the claws are very long, then there may be a case for human intervention but not otherwise.
I've seen these "soft paw" things advertised and I really don't see how they would work. Thingy cleans her paws and claws regularly, even rasping at her claws with her teeth. For that she needs bare claws.
I guess I'm lucky because she doesn't go in for clawing the furniture much at all. When I took her on, she was a very nervous and sick cat but over three years she has become extremely relaxed with her body up to "fighting weight" and her medical condition under control. She has become much more trusting of and affectionate towards humans and her odd moments of petulance are controllable with suitable rebukes, which she takes in her stride. I put her well-being and balanced behaviour down to my respecting her as an animal, giving her space and refusing to sentimentalise or anthropomorphise her in any way (I do hold one-sided conversations with her but I do that with the furniture as well - it doesn't mean I'm daft enough to think she actually understands me).
I believe declawing is outlawed in England (you folks are smarter than we are in NA). By the way, they don't "pull out" the claws - they cut off the whole first section of the toe much like cutting off each of our fingers to the first joint.
Here in NA we tend to keep our cats as indoor only so clipping their nails is usually necessary. Bijou and Mika get their nails clipped about every 10 days. They are so accustomed to it that it's no big deal. In fact I don't even have to hold Bijou to do it, just lift his paw and clip. Mika, well, that's another story - she definitely needs to be firmly held but she gets a treat immediately after and she's a pushover for treats.
Many folks here have used the soft paws and they work fine for them. I personally do not like them and wouldn't use them but that really is just my personal feeling. Others here that use them love them. They are also good if you have someone in your home whose health could be compromised by a cat scratch.
As for understanding you, I think you might be surprised at how much they do understand.
I trim Kit's claws because if I don't they get long and she sticks to the carpet. She sounds like Velcro and I know it's time for a trim.
I've used the Soft Paws but stopped when one wouldn't release from Friday's claw and started to grow into his pad. The vet had to remove it and told me that frequently happened with them. I'm lucky too as we don't often have cause to complain about scratching.
I've used the Soft Paws but stopped when one wouldn't release from Friday's claw and started to grow into his pad. The vet had to remove it and told me that frequently happened with them. I'm lucky too as we don't often have cause to complain about scratching.
My sister's cat was declawed 2 years ago, at the same time that he was neutered. She was lead to believe that the two procedures went together by a "you want fries with that?" vet. When she booked the apt. for his neuter she was asked "You want a declaw with that?" Being ill informed, and trusting her vet, Binou was declawed. Why? Because she thought that he HAD to be. That being said, thank you for taking the time to research, and making an informed decision, regardless of what that decision is.
Congrats on your new kitten btw!
It is. It wasn't actually illegal until recently (just not done) but it was made illegal in the 2006 animal welfare act - it comes under the category of "mutilation".
I don't agree with you about clipping. Clipping doesn't impair a cat's ability to scratch or be a cat in any way, and is essential for indoor cats. When they get long and sharp, I find they get caught on soft furnishings (eg sofa throw) and that can be distressing for the cat when they can't free it easily. I trim the claws regularly, but I only trim off the tips. It's completely painless and they have plenty of claw left!
I agree that it's good of you to have asked - but there's another concern. You said, you've never had a cat before, have no experience with cats or kittens - but you took in a feral kitten. I just hope you are prepared. It's wonderful (in theory) to adopt a feral animal - but had you started with a kitten that was socialized, raised around people - you'd have had a head-start. With a feral cat there may be many more issues that arise. I wish you the best of luck - but also hope you aren't too frustrated if the cat doesn't settle quickly.
We placed a brilliant kitten (a really special guy) with an older couple - who for a year kept calling and asking what they should do about his biting - kitten loved the guy's toes. I finally realized the only thing for the man to do was to wear shoes.
Kittens do what kittens do.
We placed a brilliant kitten (a really special guy) with an older couple - who for a year kept calling and asking what they should do about his biting - kitten loved the guy's toes. I finally realized the only thing for the man to do was to wear shoes.
Kittens do what kittens do.
