If you are thinking of declawing your cat the best person to ask is your veterinarian. They would know if they type of cat(s) you have could tolerate such a procedure. I mean it is a serious surgery where a cat’s toe bones and claws are amputated. If the same procedure was performed on a human, his finger would be amputated at the last knuckle. At worst there is chronic pain, lameness, bone spurs, necrosis, and nerve damage, aversion to using the litterbox (due to the cat’s pain in their paws) and increased biting (in compensation for the loss of claws). That's why it's illegal in most European countries, as well as Israel. Many Californian cities have passed declawing bans, including Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, West Hollywood, Burbank, San Francisco etc. At best there is no real side-effect to the cat (that is physically visible.) Again, only your veterinarian can really know and give you the truth as to whether your cat(s) should be declawed, but my opinion, do it if you think it will benefit your 'baby', not just to save your furniture because that's a risk you took by getting one.
It is not a serious surgery. It is very minor, no real pain, no risks. And they go home the same day. It also not amputation.
Yeah there are some vets who won't do it but there are also idiots and vets who think you should not spay nor neuter them because it is depriving them of something. And no it isn't.
The biggest thing this country needs is more people taking care of their own life and less time spent trying to tell somebody else how to live theirs. If people don't want to declaw their cats then that is fine. But that same person doesn't have the right to attack or scream and yell at somebody else because they do. And I know people personally who have took it that far.
Please educate yourself. Declawing absolutely is amputation and therefore a major surgery. The distal phalanges are removed at the joint. It is not painless and it is not risk free. As with any surgery, there are risks of complications and infection, both during the surgery and after. This is not a necessary procedure for most cats. This should be the very last resort for cat owners who have exhausted all other attempts to prevent destructive behavior.
Pets are a lot of work, and cats like to scratch. It's their nature. If you don't want to put the time, money and effort into training and caring for a pet, please don't get a pet. If your furniture is more important than your cat's health, please don't get a cat.
Please educate yourself. Declawing cats is not amputation. Nor is it major surgery. Pretty sure my vet knows more about it than you do.
As for the rest of your smart alec response I would bet everything I have that I take better car of my pets than you would yours. Like I said before you need to mind your own business and take care of yourself and not worry about what I do or what somebody else does.
Well I'm a certified veterinary technician, so I'm pretty sure I'm educated. I'm required to be educated on a yearly basis in order to keep my certification.
dictionary.com says:
amputate
[am-pyoo-teyt]
verb (used with object), am·pu·tat·ed, am·pu·tat·ing.
1. to cut off (all or part of a limb or digit of the body), as by surgery.
2. to prune, lop off, or remove: Because of space limitations the editor amputated the last two paragraphs of the news report.
3. Obsolete . to prune, as branches of trees.
Please see definition 1.
LOL. Claws on a cat are not limbs. And anybody can claim to be whatever they want to be on the internet. Like I already told you - I believe MY VET not some random yahoo on line that wants to try to prove everybody wrong. And can only do so by talking down to everyone.
No, claws are not limbs, but they are directly attached to digits. They grow out of the distal phalanx, which is the last bone of the toe. When cats are declawed, part or all of the bone is removed. If just the claws were removed, they would grow back, much like our own fingernails and toenails. Therefore, it is technically amputation. All of this information can easily be googled, if you don't believe me. Many countries have already banned the procedure.
I don't know why you are so defensive about this. I never attacked you. You said it was not amputation. I, as well as others, replied that it is. My job as a vet tech is to educate clients about pet health. I do not berate or shame clients who choose to have their cats declawed, but it is my job to make sure they understand the procedure and that it's not just some kind of intensive nail trim.
Odds are that your cat will be fine after declaw surgery. That doesn't mean it's a procedure that should be done without consideration. If you removed all your fingertips at the knuckle, assuming everything healed as expected, I'm sure you would adapt and do fine without them. But is it natural? I use my fingernails for a lot of things without thinking about it. They're not just cosmetic. I adopted my cat, already front declawed. She doesn't appear to be in pain. However, she still scratches like she has them. And when she's got the zoomies, she sometimes crashes into things and falls off the furniture or her cat tree. Maybe she's just clumsy, but I've seen her instinctively try to grip onto something as she falls, and she can't because she's missing part of her anatomy.
Like I said before, I'm not condemning cat owners for making that decision. I just think there are plenty of scratchers and toys and training methods that should be exhausted first and that declawing should be a last resort.
Community Forum
Topic: Declawing Cats (Read 7592 times)
February 24, 2010, 07:44:19 pm
