The damn things are all but useless, require routine maintenance, and are magnets for splinters. I’d be a damn sight happier if they were gone, with nice skin all around.
We have two cats. I consider them tools, not pets. They live outside, and their job is to keep rodents (especially mice) away from the house. Nonetheless, I did get our cats’ front paws declawed, in an effort to keep them from scratching up the house’s exterior woodwork. It hasn’t affected their rodent control duties in the slightest; they’re still expert mouse catchers.
Shayna The only pain I’m aware of for most cats is the pain of the actual procedure/recovery, that’s all that I was referring to.
No debate, I’m sure your cat is perfectly happy and comfortable. 
I agree, many declawed cats are very happy. I’m glad they are where they are, and I have no major problem with their owners.
Not trying to be unclear. I’d like to point out, every post on the subject, I’ve said my problem is with doing it as a safeguard, automatically, when you’ve had no problem, etc. Also, that I think it’s much better than any of the alternatives, if you’re cat’s clawing behavior can’t be tolerated by you. Kids, other pets, climbing the drapes, you don’t need to defend your reasons to me. I just think there should be an actual reason.
My sole and entire point is that I think it’s important to consider the actual situation, and that it’s preferable for animals to be able to keep their natural physique/behavior when it doesn’t cause any harm.
I’m repeating myself, so I’ll stop.
I can’t speak for the pain during surgery because I wasn’t there for Athena’s surgery. She had the laser surgery which was $150, but it was worth it. There was no blood and there is a faster recovery time. She didn’t even have stitches. She had some antibiotics to take twice a day and nothing else. She didn’t seem to be in pain though. I would’ve known it if she were. My cat lets me know when she coughs up a hairball, needs water or food in her dish, and when the litterbox needs attention. If she were in pain, I’m sure she could and would’ve relayed that information too.
In my home, kitty has claws. All the cats I’ve owned have had claws. It’s part of the package. I made a substantial investment back in January when I purchased my two RagDoll kittens. It was in the breeder’s contract that the cat(s) will not be declawed. And that’s fine and dandy with me. I’m not posting to pick a fight, just presenting some evidence.
Cites? Let’s begin with the CFA. They would seem to know a thing or two about kitties, wouldn’t they?
http://www.cfainc.org/health/declawing.html
Then there is lisaviolet’s site. Has links to pictures and an interview with a vet tech.
http://declaw.lisaviolet.com/
Let’s not forget the Humane Society of the United States.
http://www.hsus.org/programs/companion/pet_care/declawing.html
I like what Shayna and Laurange said, specifically, if the loss of the claws ensures a safe, loving home, is it so bad?
I dont get this though: we neuter animals, which HAS to cause some pain - how is that not as bad?
Preventing reproduction is good, preventing damage to people and property is bad?? HUH? Animals have a natural instinct to procreate, by neutering them, dont we deny them of a fundamental purpose in their life? No person in their right mind would argue against spaying/neutering an animal, would they?
As far as having the claws removed, I have a couple of points, my precious Charlie, adopted from the SPCA, him and his claws tore through the screens one hot hot june two years ago, (despite the SPCA’s assertion that he was ‘an indoor cat’) and he was flattened in front of the house.
I have known some declawed cats, and for the most part found them to be more aggressive with their mouht, biting etc.
Murphy was a kitten returned to the pet store/vet clinic at 4 months old, the vet/pet store owner neutered him and declawed him in the front, and I bought him. He has never been aggressive in the slightest, he still claws the furniture, the walls etc to mark stuff I suppose, but if he HADNT been declawed, I would have ben forever bitching at him, disciplining him, squirting him with water. He would NOT be the loving creature he is today.
Would I have had it done? Probably not, am I glad it was - you betcha!
And re the op - well, DO you eat meat? I swear this is the pet owners equivalent ot JDT. Where are all the people who thought he was a nut for saying circumcision was a violation to baby boys?
Well, both the CFA and HSUS sites call declawing an “unnecessary procedure,” but stop short of calling it mutilation or resorting to namecalling and shrill emotional appeals.
As to the Lisaviolet site, the less said the better. I suppose I’m largely biased against it form get-go, as I find the site design atrocious and the MIDI on the main page repulsive. That aside, however, I find the attempted argument from authority to be amusing. Vet tech, forsooth. I’ve known quite a few, and I know very well that just being a vet tech does not mean one has the medical sense of a half-rotted gourd. Otherwise, I find Lisaviolet to be whiny, shrill, manipulative, and obfuscatory.
The upshot, as I see it, is that declawing is not a medically necessary procedure, and most professionals and advocacy groups actively discourage it. And it doesn’t warrant the kind of vehemence evinced by some folks in this thread.
We had our cat declawed, using the laser technique, for one very simple reason: cat scratch disease.
My mom picked that up from a Siamese we had when I was a kid. It was an anomaly; Sophie loved my mom to death and never, ever scratched anyone on purpose…but she was trying to jump up on my mom’s lap (when Mom was wearing shorts), lost her balance, and zip! Mom’s leg got shredded. I might add that Sophie’s claws got clipped regularly. Clipping does not always work to keep every cat’s claws blunt enough not to scratch.
The following is a link explaining some of the health complications from said disease. Not the best, but it’ll do.
http://www.astdhpphe.org/infect/catscratch.html
We have a cat now that we adopted from the local shelter. My husband and I discussed the issue before we had her declawed (laser method). We finally decided that the possible health risks (especially to his youngest child) outweighed our wish to keep her whole. We’ve provided a loving home to the cat, which is a strictly indoor cat, and she’s absolutely wonderful. She continues to knead and flex her paws and I honestly think she doesn’t realize the claws are gone. If I don’t have a problem with my kid having a tonsillectomy to prevent recurring infections (and I wouldn’t, if such were necessary), I certainly am not going to cavil at a much less invasive procedure for the cat in order to prevent disease.
So am we bad pet owners because we chose not to expose our family to possible disease when we gave this cat a home? No. There are simply other issues that we have to take into consideration – like many other pet owners, we can’t afford to be cyclops-eyed and pretend that nobody else but the cat lives in the household.
I read that to my cat, and she’s rolling on the floor laughing, if you can believe it. No, I’m not kidding. She’s in hysterics. She told me to tell you that’s the best one she’s heard all week.
(She is indoor/outdoor so she’s all there…I’d rather have in/out cats that scratch a little than in cats that stink alot. Ain’t nuthin’ quite as disgusting as a catbox. And the only ones that don’t are ones that have just had a complete change of litter. Yuck. I’m never gonna have cats again after these guys go…)
andros, I’m glad you found an upshot. And you are right about lisaviolet, she has very strong feelings on the matter. A google search will turn up countless sites similar to hers, but I only posted one such example. I, too, found the CFA and HSUS sites to be rational about their stance.
I learned years ago that the declawing issue doesn’t lend itself to gentle debate. It’s a hot button of sorts. I don’t declaw my cats, nor do I allow them out of doors. But some people do. It’s an alien concept to me. And that’s just the way it is. Some people don’t spay or neuter their pets, now THAT steams me up.
truthbot I must be misunderstanding you. Apparently you’ve just purchased two purebred RagDoll kittens, and yet you are annoyed at people who don’t neuter their pets? Have you told your breeder?
If I am misinformed, then so be it Shayna. Regardless of the “veterinary/medical” concerns, I still think it cruel. Animals are great at not letting you know when something hurts or bothers them. They may let on that something is an irritation, but they don’t carry on like us humans when something hurts.
Declawing is to me a horrible thing in my mind. I would rather have a torn up couch than have a feline without his/her claws.
You can sit there and tell me till your blue in the face that “it’s okay, because so many professionals say it’s okay” when in my eyes it’s not. It’s just not going to happen in my house. Do with your cat as you will but I will not subject my cats to declawing, ever.
BTW, I said I had heard that, I didn’t say it was law.
In fact, here comes my little princess, full claws intact to jump in my lap and be the sweet thing she is, with her needle sharp claws. I have been on the receiving end of her claws and I have healed. I will only have my animals neutered for the sake of too many animals that are put to death every year. If we lived in a land where we didn’t have euthanasia because of over popuation of cats and dogs, I wouldn’t subject them to that either.
You do realize that this is basically the equivalent of putting your fingers in your ears and saying: “La la la… I’ve made up my mind, I’m not listening… La la la.”
LaurAnge, so I must rely upon other people to tell me whether or not doing a medical procedure on my animal is cruel? No, I rely upon my own self and think it through based on my own experiences. This is one of those that I would prefer that my friends and family not do to their cats. If not because of the fact I think it’s cruel, but because it is sooooo overly unnatural to remove an animals claws. And since this is a topic that seems to be that I am full of shit…
Looking through the Cat Fanciers Association website, they explicitly state:
Bolding mine.
Oh and from the Humane Society:
So, I am full of shit I guess. I went and found two very reputable resources to prove that it is still an unacceptable procedure.
If you want to read all they wrote, you find the articles, I did it…
techchick, I have no problem with your position. No, I don’t think you’re full of shit.
I just thought that your expressed unwillingness to be open to new information and opinions was a bit childish. That’s all.
Let’s talk about a surgical procedure that nobody has anything against. Male circimcision. 
Seems to me that she read the “new information and opinions” and decided that it wasn’t pursuasive enough to change her mind. How is that childish?
Anyway, has anyone used SoftPaws?
In my life, I have never known a cat that was declawed. My fiance has met only one cat that was declawed. It sounds (from what I’m seeing here), that declawing is very common in the United States. A pet is under your care; you are its guardian, not its owner. When you get a pet, you have a responsibility to protect it from harm. Our animals are completely at our mercy; what we do with this power shows our humanity. Someday, maybe humans will come to realize that we are not the only organisms on the planet; we are part of the animal kingdom, not the rulers of it. And just because we can declaw cats for our convenience doesn’t mean we should.
LaurAnge, I guess I was just a little mad at Shayna for doubting me. I knew I had heard that, probably from my mother, many years back. I am not one to try to be childish, but sometimes it comes out that way.
I 'spose I should have provided the proof like I did in that last post in an earlier post. But I know I am rarely full of shit. If I honestly am not sure, I will say so (as I did.) But if I am accussed of acting like a child then I will prove my claim otherwise, even if I am still acting like a child. 
Oh and to add to my post this was also from the Humane Society website:
For an organization with that much influence and helps so many animals, I tend to believe more of what they might say than what a vet or someone on a message board might say.
I agree with them in so many ways. Not just on the cat declawing but also with cropping ears, tails, etc… To me it is cruel.
If a woman wants to get a breast enhancement or a guy wants a penis enhancement, great I am all for it, but if he or she wants to clip her dobie’s ears, he or she needs to get a wiff of air and realize that we choose to do such things, we are the caretakers of sweet and innocent animals.
Opal:
I haven’t, but everyone I know who has used them swears by 'em. I gave it ocnsideration a few years ago when my tom was in a clawing phase, but he got over it.