Just a reminder that declawing is mutilation. I’m...

vet-and-wild:

40ouncesandamule:
great-and-small:
champawattigress:
vet-and-wild:
Just a reminder that declawing is mutilation. I’m not being dramatic, it’s an amputation. Multiple amputations in fact because you are taking the distal part of their toes off.
Just to give people a little visual representation of the human-equivalent to cat declawing. The red dotted lines are the lines of amputation.
In order to remove the claw, the entirety of the distal phalanges must be amputated. Distal phalanges, for those of you not overly familiar with anatomical terms, is the fancy science way of saying YOUR GODDAMN FINGER TIPS.
So yeah, maybe keep that in mind next time you consider getting a cat and/or start despairing over some scratched furniture.
I have found that many cat owners have no idea how inhumane this procedure is. Please, never declaw your cats. It can cause brutal arthritis and behavioral changes down the road, and I can promise you no furniture is worth the pain it causes your cat. There are tons of humane alternatives to declawing.
This ignores the myriad of other reasons beyond “scratched furniture” people get their cats declawed
While not ideal, it is certainly infinitely more humane than putting them in a gas chamber
And what good reason is there for performing multiple amputations on weight bearing appendages? Scratching people? Declawing cats makes them more likely to bite because they can no longer defend themselves with their claws. Immunocompromised? Cool now you won’t get scratched but you’re gonna get bit which is significantly worse! Also a survey was done that showed that the majority of immunocompromised people with cats wouldn’t even consider declawing. So what about cancer in the digit? That’s not declawing, that’s amputating diseased bone. That’s not an elective procedure for human convenience, that’s an actual medical procedure. So again, what good reason beyond human convenience is there for performing a major surgery that has been proven to cause:
—Chronic pain
—Litter box issues
—Increased aggression
—Inability to perform a natural behavior
—Surgical complications
—Arthritis

Also your description of humane euthanasia for animals is very disturbing and completely inaccurate. Besides the fact that the complications listed above could easily lead to euthanasia, rehoming isn’t a bad thing. Responsibly rehoming a cat is far more humane than declawing. And a cat scratching furniture is far more likely to be adopted than a cat that bites or has litter box issues. A lot of rescues won’t even adopt out cats with litter box issues because no one wants them.
But please, continue to tell me, a veterinary professional, that there is a good reason for surgically amputating the equivalent of your cat’s fingertips.