Cat Behaviour Archives - Page 2 of 2

Why we decided to stop declawing cats – Interview with two no-declaw clinics

Last updated October 27th, 2017

There are a few veterinary clinics in Montreal who have decided to take a solid no-declaw stance and have stopped performing declaws. The Pierrefonds Animal Hospital and the Centre Vétérinaire Riv Sud are two such veterinary clinics. I have reached out to them for an insider view of declawing and why they have taken this major step to stop practicing it. The good news is that both clinics report a growing awareness among their clients about what declawing is. These clients are very willing to accept the many humane alternatives. However, there still seems to be that tiny percentage who will insist, but they now happily decline them. Eventually with persistence and education, hopefully these requests will be a thing of the past. Below is my interview with Anita Cuisinier DVM and Susan Brown DVM.

Declawing – why it needs to stop

Last updated September 30th, 2019

paws need claws, a tortie cat showing off her beautiful claws

Scout proudly shows her claws, in true tortie style.

Declawing in North America is a controversial topic. I had never heard of declawing before until I moved to Canada. I knew that North American cats, for the most part, lived an indoor pampered life of luxury and comfort and that of course, like everywhere else, are valued members of their families. What I didn’t know was that there existed a culture of declawing for reasons none other than to spare the couch from damage. Roughly 31% of these pampered North American cats are missing a vital part of their anatomy, their toes. Try as I may, I could not come to grips with the fact that it is done purely for the convenience of the owners with zero benefits to the cat. As someone who has had the honor to have been owned by many clawed cats all her life, the idea of declawing is not only cruel but totally absurd. Why remove a body part that is as vital to them for their functioning and well-being, as our limbs are to us? As many as 28 countries all agree that there is nothing controversial or debatable about the amputation of cats’ toes, it’s just outright inhumane and shouldn’t be practiced.

March 29 is National Declaw Awareness Day. The goal is to create awareness around this heated topic, educate cat guardians about what declawing entails and help put an end to this unnecessary procedure which is still very much rife in North America. But what exactly is declawing and why is it still practiced here?