Kitten Declaw..?

Question

I actually wanted to clear something up for all the rude people that responded to me yesterday regarding my cat being declawed. In a way I think it's cruel, but I wanted some suggestions on it. I had on girl call me an animal abuser. and a few people actually flipping out on me about it. Well.. let me tell you this. I SAVED this poor cats life. And I am by far one of the biggest animal lovers ever. If it wasn't for me, this poor cat would have died. Her previous owners walked into a pet store with her and told the pet store owner if they didn't take her, they were going to leave her on the side of the road for dead, because they couldn't afford to put her to sleep. I over heard these scums and walked up to them and said I will take the cat and take care of her. The second I held her in my arms I couldn't help but cry because this poor kitten (12 weeks) had never ate a day in her life & her back legs didn't even work. Because of me she is still alive. So DO NOT call me an animal abuser

Excuse me it may have eaten VERY little. I could feel every single bone and her body and she could barely stand on her own. When she first went to go use the litter box she layed down in it to pee. I'm not over exaggerating. Thanks.

Answer 1

I responded to your other question (then I read that someone else gave you pretty much exactly the same info!) so if you read my answer there I think you'll find another alternative.

Best of luck to you.
I know that when you asked the question you probably weren't aware of the negative effects of declawing, and that's why you asked. You didn't needed to be bombarded with people accusing you of being cruel. It's not necessary. I do hope that you decide not to declaw though. You obviously care a lot about your cat, so I assume you won't want to put it through that much pain! I really can relate to being a fashionable animal lover though. There are so many people out there who let their pets destroy their houses and furniture. It drives me crazy when a cat claws on an expensive couch!!

Answer 2

I also rescued an 8 month old cat, except he was being used as a chew toy by a Lab. I brought him into my home knowing that he had claws. I have bought him a scratching post (which he now uses quite a bit), but there's something about the furniture that he enjoys. No matter how many times I tell him not to scratch, there's always the time when nobody is home to tell him not too. Just because I rescued him does not mean I'm going to take his claws away from him. I value my "claws" so why would I want to take that away from him?

I appreciate your loving nature and willingness to take the poor kitty home, but you should put yourself into his shoes for a moment and then consider it. Would you want to have the bones in your feet cut off? Would you want to scratch in a litter box with sore, swollen feet? Would you miss scratching your back or your neck? Would you miss your balance if you lost your toes? Just consider all of this before you go through the drastic surgery. And yes, it is a serious surgery. It's not done by a laser as one has said. They have to CUT the bone.

In my personal opinion, if I was that worried about my personal possessions, I would not have brought the cat home in the first place. However, since you did bring it home and you do seem to love the cat very much, I hope that you will do more research on the subject itself and consider your feline friend over your furniture.

Have a nice day!

Answer 3

First off, thankyou for saving the kitty.
Secondly, declawing IS a personal choice for an owner. It's like deciding if you want your child to have an operation because they cannot decide themselves.
However, cats are feral animals. They're made to be in the wild with teeth and claws. If they were meant to be in houses, then they would have no claws.
I personally, do NOT agree with declawing, a cat loves it's claws, so why take it away from them just for your own gratification?
I'm not saying you're a horrible owner, this is just my opinion.
I don't find it humane in the slightest, in fact, where i live, in the UK it is illegal, so it can't be great for a cat can it? If it's illegal in a country of animal lovers.

Please think of other options for your kitty, how about taking him to the vet and getting him to apply those little plastic covers over his nails. Yes, they will have to be replaced every so often, but that's better than your kitty being in pain.

Answer 4

Both my cats are ex-feral kittens who were found starving on the streets. (Where I live in Cyprus, cats are considered little more than vermin and a lot of the local people deliberately poison them). The vet told me that our male cat would have been dead within a week if we hadn't taken him in. He was literally skin and bone and I thought he was about 8 weeks old, but the vet estimated that he was nearer to 12 weeks old. He too would have died if I hadn't picked him up that day, but I never once thought about making him change to fit in with my life. My reward was to see him make a full recovery.

Despite being feisty as kittens, with love and patience, both of them have grown into loving, healthy adults. Just like every cat I have ever owned, I have taught them to use a scratch post, and they never even show the slightest bit of interest in scratching any where else. It takes patience to teach cats claw manners but it's well worth it.

Here in Europe and many countries, declawing is illegal on the grounds of animal cruelty. In the UK, the law actually refers to it as "unnecessary mutiltion" which is why so many of us are horrified by the thought of someone doing this to their pet.

Do you know what saddens me the most? Some cats who've been declawed suffer behavioural problems afterwards, and their owners then decide to dump them at the shelter. If you don't believe me, read the story "Stella Has No Feet" and you'll understand what I mean.

http://www.stellahasnofeet.com/whois.html

Answer 5

First off, thanks for saving the kitten. That was very thoughtful of you.

Why do you want the kitten declawed? I'm going to assume that you don't want your things scratched up, is that right? Well, I've got four cats myself, and I've found tiny little methods to keep them away from certain things. We just got a new couch, and yeah, they really like to scratch it, but we're not going to rip their claws out for it. I've found that backwards facing tape usually does the job. Cats don't like the feel of it. Also, you can find spray products at the store that repel cats away from the items it is sprayed on. I don't remember exactly what it's called, but walk into PetSmart or something, and I'm sure they'll be able to tell you what it is. Eventually, they'll stop going near your furniture.

Overall, I don't think you should declaw, because there are many other ways to deal with a cat scratching your furniture. They do need SOMETHING to scratch, though. Cats just really enjoy scratching things, so if you're going to keep your kitty off of everything in the house, at least do her a favor and give her a scratching post. :D

I wish you the best of luck, and I hope your kitty lives a long, happy life.

Answer 6

Now, I Will Say That De-Clawing Is Something That I Would Never Do To Any Of My Cats. I Do Think Its Cruel, And Something That Shouldn't Be Done.

Now For You To Make Your Mind Up On It....Thats All On You Sweetie. My Suggestion Is Don't Do It. Especially If Your Cat Is An Outside Cat. They Have No Way To Defend Themselves If You De-claw Them. But That Also Applies To Inside Cats As Well.

This Is Something That Only You Can Make Your Mind Up About. Don't Let Me Or Anyone Else Make The Decision For You.

Answer 7

Well done for saving the kitten, but declawing is still wrong. I know you think it is a choice where you live, but in most other countries it is even illegal, because it is considered animal abuse. So, although your intentions are good, declawing was not a very good idea. BEsides, I have taught all my cats (more than 10 have passed from my hands) not to scratch in another place other than their scratching rug. Just trim their nails every 2 weeks and grab them softly and say NO when they try to scratch something wrong, and put them on the scratching rug instead. It never took me more than 3 times until they learnt.
So, at least try to teach the kitten next time.

Answer 8

Yes, you did save the cat, but that doesnt mean that declawing your cat is any more humane.

Im not here to judge, but before you make any decisions, look up some images on google images. They use CABLE CUTTERS to snap off the last knuckle of the cat... and they are left with bleeding holes. Also, cats get pleasure from scratching, so why take that away from them? Buy them a kitty condo or a scratching post.

Now, I agree that some people do say things that are WAY out of line. I dont think you are an animal abuser, you obviously came here for advice to help you decide. I do hope you re-consider declawing, but i wouldnt sit here and insult you, that only clouds my message.

Answer 9

That is great that you saved the kitten, is how is she doing? I have 3 cats, 2 of them rescued, and one of them was starved, sick, pregnant and on her last limb, barely able to walk. I know how you feel, but I would not ever declaw them because it is very painful.
If you give them lots of things to scratch on, and train them to not claw your furniture they won't. Get a few scratching post and put them throughout the house, different kinds, and anytime you see scratching on undesired spots, calmly pick the cat up, and set in on the scratching post, and move her paws on it like he was scratching. She will figure it out right away, and you don't need to spend all that money on the procedure anyway!

Answer 10

I hate to break it to you but whether your cat came from the best of places or the worst of places, declawing is still cruel, inhumane, and completely UNNECESSARY. It will also cause behavior problems in the future.

I do believe that you are exaggerating the situation a bit, a 12 week old kitten that had never eaten a day in it's life would be DEAD.

There are a lot of us out there who take in animals in dire situations. Some of them are worse off than the kitten you have taken in. It does not give us grounds to chop the ends of their toes off, just because we "saved their lives". So what, you saved the cat, now it owes you one...... Off with it's toes? It doesn't work that way.

Buy the cat some soft paws, or try to teach her to scratch appropriately. She owes you her life, but you owe her some consideration as well. Cutting off toes is NOT a loving thing to do.


**edit**

MV...there are a lot of vets out there who will NOT declaw. There are countries who have ruled declaw illegal and inhumane. Rights activists are anti-declaw, but they don't regulate the laws. It IS inhumane (and in-human as you put it), but some less than ethical vets do it because it is money in their pockets.