Declawing Cats

NEVER, EVER, EVEN THINK OF DECLAWING YOUR CAT. IT IS A BARBARIC AND HURTFUL PRACTICE THAT IS ACTUALLY ILLEGAL IN ELEVEN MORE ENLIGHTENED COUNTRIES THAN AMERICA.

You will hear myriad reasons why it is okay or even “good” to declaw your cat. Veterinarians, friends, experts, technicians, people who have declawed cats . . . all will be more than happy to make you feel good about maiming your new friend. The only real reason that any of these people have is greed. Some veterinarians will be glad to take your money for such a purpose. They may in fact even tell you that it doesn’t hurt the cat. Why then, must the cat walk around bandaged for weeks after? Why must the cat use paper instead of sand in the litter box if its paws don’t hurt? Why is your friend wearing an Elizabethan Collar so that he can’t lick the deep wounds? Declawing is barbaric. Declawing is painful. Declawing leaves your cat with no defenses . . . can you guarantee protection 100% of the time? If you have expensive furniture that is more important than a living being and if you are so engrossed with your belongings that if they were to be scratched (even ruined) it would ruin your life then you should not have a cat! If a child breaks something is the punishment dismemberment. Shall we cut off the child’s hands? Some people think so.

Let us define what the practice of declawing is. In order to stop cat’s claws from growing back it is necessary to cut your friends paws at the first joint. Compare this concept to yourself. Or perhaps you would like to “declaw” your child. You need to use an extremely sharp instrument and cut off their fingers at the first joint. Now you have an animal that cannot defend itself and is maimed for life.

Please, do not declaw your friend! There is no good reason for such a despicable and hurtful practice. I would like to meet those of you who think otherwise so that I can place your hands on a table and severe your fingers with a meat cleaver.

Having addressed the issue of declawing and made a firm decision against it, let’s return to welcoming your new Zen Cat. And guess what? All of your worry over having your furniture scratched is unfounded. A Zen Cat is at peace with itself and will not scratch your possessions. It is also possible to train almost any cat not to scratch certain items.

One simple deterrent to scratching is to provide your friend with its own scratching post. Another is the use of spray on pheromones that make a cat feel that your couch (as an example) is something “marked” as a place that is good, friendly and should not be touched except to rub against lovingly. There are also small rubber “sleeves” called “SoftPaws” than can be placed on your friend’s nails shielding them from doing any damage. Making a practice of trimming your cat’s nails at least monthly (when you apply his flea and tick medication) is a good practice. Finally, there are devices that use the “invisible fence” principal. If your cat jumps on your precious leather sofa with the intention of honing his nails then a small electrical shock will deter him. I do not recommend these devices but I would rather your cat received a minor shock (that will eventually teach through negative re-inforcement) than to have your cat bloodied by declawing. (Declawed cats bleed profusely for at least two weeks and people say this doesn’t hurt!)

So far we have sprayed facial pheromones such as Feliway Brand on the corners of each item that you want the cat to respect. This must be done on a weekly basis until the cat learns to “like” this piece of furniture and that scratching (or spraying) is off bounds. We have provided a high quality scratching post for your cat to do what is only natural. Next we must address cleanliness and privacy.

from "The Zen Cat"
by Michael Sutton