Would you patronize a vet who does declaws?

[lionessrampant]

Originally Posted by Kai Bengals

Maybe someday the USA will follow that lead.

What? The most self-centered, me-me-me, convenience before compassion-oriented nation on this big earth outlaw declawing? It will never happen. Putting our furniture first is part of our culture. Perhaps this is why we are loathed by the rest of the world, but I digress.

I'd love to find a vet who refuses to do declaws. Unfortunately, that's almost impossible to do. At this point, it's more something that I talk friends and family out of doing, and those that HAVE done it, I make sure they know that they've mutilated their cats and that they shouldn't ever do it again. As for wanting to see cats go to a good home and declaw then stay at a shelter...I'm only speaking for the shelters around here (of which, I only know of one kill shelter, which is the city pound, but I'm sure there are more somewhere) but most of ours are clean, compassionate and progressive. Many of them are completely cage free (unless the cat has a non-chronic condition which requires isolation, in which case, the cat wouldn't be doing much running and climbing anyway. Cats with say FIV or Herpes are kept in cageless room with other cats with the same chronic disease). These shelters, while still stressful, I'm sure, are extremely homelike, and I'd love to see a cat spend 3 years hanging out there before finding a home then have him or her immediately be adopted and declawed. But again, this is an ideal situation.

I had a conversation with my boyfriend last night about signing a lease that requires a declaw or getting a cat when your lease requires a declaw. I told him I'd never do it and if the landlord demanded it, I'd present what I know and hope to change her mind or compromise on softpaws (which, hey, even diabetics or hemophiliacs could use), or I'd break my lease. Simple as that. He thinks I'm crazy, but I asked him if he'd rather break a lease or drive me to the hospital to get the tops of my fingers cut off. To me, it's the same thing. I don't really see my fingers as being more valuable than theirs, and to do so in the name of health and convenience is totally despicable to me. And I'm a professional flutist! Pain doesn't really distinguish between species the way we have chosen to do in this country.

 

[drdebjo]

I don't believe in declawing, but would not hold it against the vet. I guess they're a business, like any other one, and customer satisfaction is important to them to keep their business going...

 

[silverbook]

My vet does declaw, but only if requested. They educate owners about the procedure first. I don't know if they apply soft paws, but they do offer nail trimming.

 

[semiferal]

Originally Posted by GoldenKitty45

Whenever I take a cat in for neuter/spay I make it very clear to NOT declaw. I've had some offices say "you want the cat declawed too?" without me even hinting at that. I don't like that "pushing" for declawing to make more money.

See, that is the sort of thing that would cause me to take my business elsewhere without a second thought. I can live with it if a vet performs declaws. I am not okay with a vet that treats it like something that is as routine as s/n and vaccines. That's where I draw the line.

 

[carolpetunia]

Someone suggested that a vet hospital is a business "like any other" -- implying that it is therefore acceptable for a vet to offer declawing for the sake of his business's profitability.

I respectfully disagree. There are some professions that are NOT like any other, professions which absolutely must be practiced with INTEGRITY FIRST, and profitability somewhere farther down on the list of priorities. That's a principle our ultra-Capitalist society has, for the most part, forgotten -- but we desperately need to reestablish it, particularly in the field of healthcare.

I can ALMOST accept the idea that if a vet cannot dissuade a cat's owner from declawing, he might choose to do the surgery himself rather than send the cat to a hack who could botch the job. But I cannot accept that any decent human being would mutilate a cat just for the income. Being a doctor (for humans OR animals) is a sacred trust, and people who don't recognize that don't belong in the profession.

Okay, rant over. Thanks for listening.

 

[lunasmom]

after reviewing some of the posts, its funny too see how the posts from people that live in countries where its outlawed vs. where there is no law against declawing. It would be easier for, say the US, to say "yes we would patronize that vet" if it were made illegal here.
Most people here get their cats declawed for cosmetic reasons. They're afraid their $3000 sofa may get scratches, or they're just too lazy to spend a weekend chasing their cats trying to get their nails clipped...or not confident enough to know where the quik is to cut.
All in all though, as much as Peta or any other animal rights group may fight, it won't be until the US economy is under control before a bill to outlaw declawing gets brought forth. Think about it: number of cats adopted + vets that charge $150-200 per declaw = a portion of revenue per vet. If we take that revenue opportunity away, some maybe many vets would either have to raise their prices for surgeries or office visits or may go out of business all together because they can't pay the bills.