When I think of writing a passion blog, my mind immediately jumps to the subjects I have been learning about in my free time for years: animal welfare and wildlife conservation. Many animals across the globe are suffering because of human decisions, and I wish to educate the people on both certain issues and why I have come to have such strong opinions about them. We will start this journey close to home, because if you don’t personally own a cat, I’m willing to bet you at least know someone who does.

Fig. 1 New York State Legislature

This past June, the New York State Legislature passed a law banning the declawing of cats across the state of New York, making New York the first state to pass a bill on this subject, although others are currently considering it and many cities have already passed local laws. A ban on the declawing of cats is incredibly important to animal welfare efforts across the country. Many people believe that the declawing of cats is a benefit, as it means that they can no longer scratch up their owner’s furniture, but declawing is a much more devastating procedure than it is advertised as. When a veterinarian declaws a cat, they are not just removing the claw, they are actually amputating the toes of the cat up to the first knuckle. This intensely painful procedure can not only have severe complications but can cause chronic pain throughout the rest of the cat’s life. Additionally, many behavioral issues further down the line have been linked to declawing, including increased biting and avoidance of the litter box. Cats without claws feel defenseless, sometimes causing complete changes in demeanor. A completely happy and friendly cat can be traumatized and turn fearful and aggressive all due to one avoidable procedure.

I used to be a volunteer in an animal shelter, and through my work there I have seen first hand the devastating side effects of declawing. The shelter I worked in was in a city where declawing was already banned, but occasionally a cat would be surrendered having already been declawed elsewhere. A majority of these declawed cats had noticeable behavioral issues and even had to use special litter boxes that wouldn’t hurt their feet. In many instances, these were the reasons the cats were surrendered in the first place, which made it extremely hard to find people to willing to adopt them.

Fig. 2 My Cat Using His (Thoroughly Destroyed) Scratching Post; Image by Author

There are many alternatives to declawing cats, such as getting their claws regularly trimmed by yourself or your vet, and there are even products made to cover their claws so that they do not scratch the furniture. Even if you opt not to do either of these options, you can always try to make sure there are plenty of scratching posts and alternatives to your furniture for the cats to exercise their scratching instinct, or you can just do what I do: accept the inevitability of dealing with damage to the house from time to time.

Progress is being made in this fight against declawing, but it is not happening quick enough. Every day, more and more cats and kittens go through this procedure that will ultimately affect their lives forever.

Ultimately the decision on whether or not a person declaws their cat is not mine to make, but if you are considering this procedure, I urge you to reflect on what matters more: your furniture or your pets’ happiness and well-being.