Declawing?

GreatUnknown:

I am totally fine with it, the only issue there would be is that if you got a cat declawed when they have an outside life. That's where I believe it's wrong. When my cats got declawed, I got informed on it, didn't really like the sound of it but after the surgery, they were still themselves and after a few weeks they were back to normal. That's when I was okay with it.

But why on earth would it ever be necessary?! I think it's just out of laziness that people feel the need to completely deform a cat, since you can obviously keep them non-sharp and safe if you just trim them. Which isn't impossible to do at all, regardless of how much a cat may dislike it. God, me and a friend managed to trim the claws of two cats who were really wild cats that we'd rescued and that we couldn't even touch or barely look at. Sometimes it's a struggle but I think you owe it to a cat not to take the easy way out and simply force them to have unnecessary surgeries...

And also, what Dru said.

We don't even trim my cats claws and he's just fine. It's the same as docking tails and that kind of thing. Just...why?

The Rumor:

We don't even trim my cats claws and he's just fine. It's the same as docking tails and that kind of thing. Just...why?

I can get trimming the claws if you have more than one cat and they like to rough-house it. My cats need to have their claws trimmed because they love play fighting and otherwise they could accidentally injure each other. I can also get it if you've got kids, or they're indoor cats that may leave marks on furniture etc. But I don't get putting them through an operation and such.

And also, I do get not trimming the claws if they don't do any harm to anything.

GreatUnknown:

I am totally fine with it, the only issue there would be is that if you got a cat declawed when they have an outside life. That's where I believe it's wrong. When my cats got declawed, I got informed on it, didn't really like the sound of it but after the surgery, they were still themselves and after a few weeks they were back to normal. That's when I was okay with it.

But regardless of whether or not they have an "outside life" you can never be 100 percent sure they won't get outside. My cat, Mouse, isn't allowed outside, but I would never declaw her because who is to say she won't run past me one day or if I move she won't get out somehow during the transfer?

Also, what about older people with cats? If they pass away, and no one takes responsibility of the cat, what then? Not to mention that not everyone with animals are committed; what if they abandon the pet?

What I'm saying here is basically you can never be sure and taking away an animal's main source of protection is barberic and inexcusable.

I personally think declawing is completely unnecessary unless the cat frequently scratches people pretty deep. If the cat is simply just clawing furniture, buy them a tower or something they can claw on. My two cats have one, and one of them is declawed, but he still claws at it like he still has one. And I don't believe they amputate the toes. My grandmother, who's raised cats her whole life, has told me they put the cat under and slightly fracture its knuckles, and then they can somehow just take the claws right out. I don't know, possibly there are multiple ways to do it.

Also, as for cats with an outside life, I think they should keep their claws especially. My grandma has a cat that goes outside sometimes, Jinxy, and he isn't declawed. Neither was her other cat that went outside, Missy.

GreatUnknown:

I am totally fine with it, the only issue there would be is that if you got a cat declawed when they have an outside life. That's where I believe it's wrong. When my cats got declawed, I got informed on it, didn't really like the sound of it but after the surgery, they were still themselves and after a few weeks they were back to normal. That's when I was okay with it.

After you made your cat suffer, you were ok with it? No kidding. Sure, it doesn't seem so bad, if you forget you amputated part of their toes off and put them in excruciating pain for no reason at all besides your personal convenience; it's easy to clip a cats nails if you're a responsible and persistent pet owner (and if you're not, you shouldn't have a cat in the first place).

---

If I cut my dog's toes off so he didn't scratch up my floor, I'd be in jail for animal abuse. It's ridiculous that it's acceptable to do that to a cat.

More from me on the topic, including a picture of the procedure:
http://annagiladi.deviantart.com/journal/Declawing-Cats-311438929

Cutting a cat's actual toe bone off is just...unnecessary. After you declaw it, there isn't much harm it can do afterward.

I've had my cat since I was four--Cisco--and we declawed him in the front. So, he still has his back claws, because most cats cause the most damage with their front claws instead of their back.

But I also realize that the claws of a cat are more than we think; it's not like nails for us. It would be the same as if someone cut off the top part of our finger. When small children are around the house, like I was when we first got him, then I believe it's necessary to at least the declaw the cat in the front.

Yes, I know there are the teeth as well. But when it comes down to things you really can't stop, then it's part of the parents' responsibility to make sure the child knows how to react around the cat until the child is mature enough to know by themselves.

itsy bitsy spider.:

Cutting a cat's actual toe bone off is just...unnecessary.

That's what declawing is. You remove the first digit of their toe, including the bone, tendons and ligaments. It's not just yanking out the claw.

itsy bitsy spider.:

After you declaw it, there isn't much harm it can do afterward.

I've had my cat since I was four--Cisco--and we declawed him in the front. So, he still has his back claws, because most cats cause the most damage with their front claws instead of their back.

But I also realize that the claws of a cat are more than we think; it's not like nails for us. It would be the same as if someone cut off the top part of our finger. When small children are around the house, like I was when we first got him, then I believe it's necessary to at least the declaw the cat in the front.

Yes, I know there are the teeth as well. But when it comes down to things you really can't stop, then it's part of the parents' responsibility to make sure the child knows how to react around the cat until the child is mature enough to know by themselves.

Cats can get infections that require amputation in their paws after declawing. They can bust their stitches open and they're in a lot of pain, even if things go perfectly.

If you have small children and you're worried the cat may harm them, you shouldn't have a cat. Plain and simple. You can keep the baby away from the cat or supervise anytime they have together, other options exist besides declawing. In my experience cats do everything they can to avoid obnoxious kids anyways. I don't think mutilating an animal for the sake of kids is acceptable reasoning. Like I said, even if I have small children, I couldn't cut my dogs toes off to make sure he doesn't scratch them, and you shouldn't be able to put a cat through that either.

@ itsy bitsy spider.

itsy bitsy spider.:

When small children are around the house, like I was when we first got him, then I believe it's necessary to at least the declaw the cat in the front.

No, it is not. Declawing is a popular thing in America as far as I know, but other non-declawing countries have cats and babies in the same house too and there are no problems whatsoever.
1. Scratches heal. Unless the cat was fighting for dear life, scars will fade within weeks.
2. One should ask oneself if small children and any animals should ever, at all, be together unsupervised
3. The hysteria over cat scratch disease is ridiculous. Worst case scenario is 2 weeks of feeling a bit under the weather.
4. It won't do any kid any harm to grow up respecting animals and their limits. A well-earned scratch may help teach that respect.

Lastly, cats and very small children should never be left alone together. Cats can be affectionate as hell and they love warm places, so feline face-sitting is a likely scenario, and so is the toddler suffocating to death with the cat on his face. That, unlike bleeding to death from a scratch, has already happened.
Animals are not ever, NOT EVER, toys. Expecting them to tolerate every extent of abuse or else mutilating them, is when you should reconsider having a pet at all. Scratches sting for a little while and then fade into nothingness. Claws do not ever grow back, and the pain of the procedure will stick along longer and disturb the animal more, than any scratch will ever harm a child.
It's just so silly and over-protective to freak out over (the possibility of) a scratch on your child. Children hurt themselves so much worse when they play and scrape their knees, slam their chins and scathe their elbows.
I mean, are dogs being de-toothed? Way more children suffer serious injuries - or death from getting their heads crushed by the family Rottweiler - from dog bites than from cat scratches. Declawing is neither fair, nor logical when you look at it that way.

@Kurtni

I do know that you're actually cutting off a part of the toe bone, but I mistakenly thought that the posts before me were discussing people cutting off the entire toe bone. I may be wrong, but I thought that when you declaw a cat, you cut off the first joint of the toe bone instead of the whole thing. But I probably just mistunderstood them.

If you declaw a cat just because of a child, I think that's acceptable. It's their child, and if they don't want them to get hurt, but they really want a cat, I don't see a problem with that. But keep in mind that it usually isn't the only reason--there's furniture, there's a chance to get outside if it's not supposed to, etc.

The problem is the cruelty they inflict on the cat for selfish and unconvincing reasons. So they want a cat. But only if it suffers massively so their child doesn't get a scratch on him, which is what children do, cat or no cat.
Goes to show that "wanting" something, isn't the same as "loving" it. If you love your cat, you will weigh the disadvantages it suffers from declawing, against the disadvantages you (or your silly couch) will suffer from not declawing, and find that the cat will be totally dicked out if declawed, while nobody will feel any notable loss of quality of life from some scratches, be it on skin or on leather. Some love! Cats are not there just to look pretty and be cuddled. They are living beings. They poop, they shed, they puke, they scratch. Like babies. Take it or leave it.

As for furniture, so the couch is more precious than the wellbeing of the cat? Aha. Yeah, such people should not have pets. The couch doesn't feel pain and you can sit on a scratched couch. A declawed cat feels pain. It BLEEDS.
FOR YOUR STUPID COUCH!

@Shtrudel

You're acting as if a scratch to a child doesn't mean anything at all. Sure, it heals, over time. I once had a scratch from my cat that lasted two months. But it's not just a simple thing--the child can lose any want or love for the cat just because they may not understand that they're bothering the cat. Yes, they will probably get older and not even understand why they had been so oblivious to it, but you can't know how a small child would react if it got scratched.

Furniture is usually not the only reason why they declaw the cat, so it really isn't fair to say that the wellbeing isn't as precious as the couch. Although the cat won't understand, if it's an inside cat--like mine--then declawing it could keep it inside, away from the harmful animals around our house. When he had claws, he could open and close doors, locking himself in, and do all these other things that could harm him. But he's safer now without his front claws.

lila.:

@Shtrudel

You're acting as if a scratch to a child doesn't mean anything at all. Sure, it heals, over time. I once had a scratch from my cat that lasted two months. But it's not just a simple thing--the child can lose any want or love for the cat just because they may not understand that they're bothering the cat. Yes, they will probably get older and not even understand why they had been so oblivious to it, but you can't know how a small child would react if it got scratched.

A cat is not an object of entertainment for a child and people who think that way are the exact type of people who should not own any pets. If the child loses interest in the cat, oh well, the cat won't care. It's not hard to discipline a child for mistreating an animal, in fact it's absolutely necessary for having small children.

As for the furniture thing... it makes me furious to know there are cats in homes where a stupid chair is valued more than the life of an animal.

lila.:

When he had claws, he could open and close doors, locking himself in, and do all these other things that could harm him. But he's safer now without his front claws.

How is being locked in a room harmful? He meows and someone lets him out. Big deal. You're coming up with outlandish reasons to justify hurting an animal, and frankly they don't make sense. Your cat is no safer at all- if he ever got outside he'd be defenseless and unable to climb well. You put your cat at a disadvantage.

Declawing has no benefits for the cat, as any veterinarian will tell you. It's done for entirely selfish reasons that only benefit the owners.

lila.:

If you declaw a cat just because of a child, I think that's acceptable. It's their child, and if they don't want them to get hurt, but they really want a cat, I don't see a problem with that. But keep in mind that it usually isn't the only reason--there's furniture, there's a chance to get outside if it's not supposed to, etc.

A cat bite is much more of a risk than a scratch, so can I rip all my cats teeth out if it's for the well being of a child? Or, should I be a responsible adult and realize that just because I want a cat doesn't mean my home life suits having a cat.

(Personally, I still think you're entire line of reasoning that a cat poses danger to children is completely unfounded and a far stretch of the imagination.)

@Kurtni

Let me say this; would you rather have the cat in your home, where you can be responsible for it, or would you rather it be euthanized in a pound? Just because you think a cat may not be an "object of entertainment" for a child, that's not even the point of what I was saying.

Also--we rescued my cat because he was wandering around in the wild, and it was a miracle he was still alive. He was terribly wounded, and it was also a miracle that they could heal him. The mere fact that people even buy cats that were put in any sort of danger--which is an unfortunately big amount of one third of all cats in homes all over the United States--is such a miracle enough that talking about a cat's well-being in the terms of declawing is just outrageous to me.

Before my cat was declawed, he once locked himself in a closet for two days while we went on a road trip. He had extremely long but dull claws and it was easy for him to open and close doors. But when we declawed him, he never opened another door again--as much as he tried to. Do you think it's safer to keep a cat inside, in a place where there's a better chance of protection, or outside with claws against alligators, snakes, and bears?

I know that's not the setting for everyone. But you never know what will happen.

lila.:

@Kurtni

Let me say this; would you rather have the cat in your home, where you can be responsible for it, or would you rather it be euthanized in a pound? Just because you think a cat may not be an "object of entertainment" for a child, that's not even the point of what I was saying.

Also--we rescued my cat because he was wandering around in the wild, and it was a miracle he was still alive. He was terribly wounded, and it was also a miracle that they could heal him. The mere fact that people even buy cats that were put in any sort of danger--which is an unfortunately big amount of one third of all cats in homes all over the United States--is such a miracle enough that talking about a cat's well-being in the terms of declawing is just outrageous to me.

Before my cat was declawed, he once locked himself in a closet for two days while we went on a road trip. He had extremely long but dull claws and it was easy for him to open and close doors. But when we declawed him, he never opened another door again--as much as he tried to. Do you think it's safer to keep a cat inside, in a place where there's a better chance of protection, or outside with claws against alligators, snakes, and bears?

I know that's not the setting for everyone. But you never know what will happen.

I would rather people never get the cat in the first place, and if they do have a cat and then have a child, then they should take supervision responsibilities, not cut the cats toes off. You keep neglecting the fact that people don't have to cut their dogs toes off when they have kids; and a dog has much more force and thicker claws. It's just "easier" to declaw a cat; not a necessity. It's what lazy pet owners do.

So by doing one nice thing for the cat, you're justifying doing something else thats cruel? That makes no sense.

That's your fault for leaving your poor cat alone for two days. I can't believe someone would do that and blame it on the poor cat and its claws. Declawing wasn't the proper solution there- being responsible for your pet is.

And of course I think its better for the cat to be indoors, the point is cats can run out doors and get lost, and you'd be leaving him or her defenseless in an entirely new place.

@Kurtni

I honestly don't see any problem with leaving our cat alone for two days. We once left him alone for a week with somebody to come over and feed him, but we gave him enough food and water to last him for those two days.

And I wasn't blaming it on my cat; it was just one of the learning experiences that we had because of his claws. I can see how you are kind of shocked by that, but it's never been a problem for us. My cat misses us, but I was a little child chasing him all around the house when we went on our road trip. He was glad to be alone.

Anyway, that's besides the point. We can't be with our cat every day, and it's not like we can just take him wherever we want to. You may think that declawing a cat is cruel, but it sometimes is for their well-being--to protect them.
Yes. They will be defenseless when they go outside. But I'm getting a little aggravated that I have to keep pointing this out--if you declaw the cat in the first place, then it has far less of a chance of even getting outside. With the claws, the cat could open the door one day and scramble out while everyone is at work or school or doing something.

I'm just going to jump out of this thread, because I find that I keep repeating myself over and over again. I do respect your opinion, though. :)

My mom got our cats de-clawed. I wish she never had. I clip their back claws all the time, and I could have just as easily done the same for their front claws. My cat, Bella, has never been the same since we took her in to get her spayed and de-clawed. She had this scary episode the day she returned with wraps around her paws. She had been a really sweet cat, and although I can't be sure they are related, has been terrified of people since. Very hostile and mean. Poor thing.

@ lila.
Keep your doors secure, check your closets and other cat-hideouts before leaving, and lock doors you don't want opened. No argument to mutilate your cat over. Keeping danger away from your cat is basic ownership responsibility, and the quick fix of declawing does not make a very flattering statement when used instead of keeping the environment cat-safe.

Also, cats ENJOY scratching and climbing. How can one take that away? When I assembled the new $500 scratch post I bought to protect my 400$ couch, my cats were excitedly using and abusing it before I had even put two pieces together.

Yeah your cat stopped opening doors, because he's handicapped! You amputated his dexterity!

As I'm typing this, my 2 young toms Chetzi and Ravioli are flying across the room and the only reason they don't crash ontop of each-other on my desk is because they use their CLAWS to break their flight on the 6 foot scratch post where they reach out, grab the pillars, and climb up rather than tumbling all over the place. And they're loving it and I love them, which kills even the beginning of the thought of taking that away from them. I got my cats so they could make me happy and in exchange, I make them happy and we ping-pong the happiness. We all have to make sacrifices and concessions; my cats will never smell grass, and I will never have an intact couch and need to watch my doors and windows. So what. Nobody said having a pet would be convenient.