What is Declawing?
You'd be surprised how many people don't know what declawing really involves. Don't be fooled about this barbaric procedure.
While it seems as easy as having a finger-nail removed, declawing is a much more invasive and painful procedure. Enchanted Felines adamantly opposes declawing and our adoption contract requires owners to agree they will not have this surgery performed on any cat placed by our rescue.
A cat's claws may look like they have a lot in common with our fingernails, but that's where the anatomical similarities end. For a cat, the claw is actually part of the last bone in their toe. In order to permanently remove the claw, the veterinarian must amputate the entire bone up to the first joint, along with all the ligaments, tendons and nerves in the area. Since typically only the front paws are declawed, this means 10 separate amputations to complete the procedure. To make a comparison, this would be equivalent to cutting off each of your fingers at the first joint.
After the amputation is completed, the ends of the toes are closed using surgical glue and the cats paws are tightly wrapped with bandages. In most cases, no pain medication is given after the operation or taken home with the patient. Your cat must now walk, climb and use the litterbox while his toes attempt to heal. Complications are unfortunately high for this "routine" surgery. A 1994 study published in Veterinary Surgery found that 50% of the cats they studied experienced complications directly after the surgery while another 20% developed their complications after having been released. (Veterinary Surgery 1994 July-Aug;23(4);274-80)
Don't let yourself be fooled; declawing is neither a normal, nor routine, procedure. There are many safer, more humane options should you feel a cats normal scratching behavior is a problem. Any of the staff at Enchanted Felines would be happy to talk to you about training and other options for you and your cat.
Links to More Declawing Information: