Thoughts on declawing a cat?

[buck-wild-chick]

Ill ask my mom (vet tech) but I think that is how the procedure is done. Something about reflexes.I dunno don't really care but ill ask her in the morning (if this thread stays civil and not locked)...

 

[redhen]

Quote:
I asked the same thing when I would continue to witness this. From what he told me cats cannot get the same doses of meds as say a dog could and with the declaw they didn't give as big of a dose...just enough to make the cat "lazy" pretty much. It's how it was done there. I asked my new vet here and they do it the same way. He said it is very painful for them but with the meds it takes the edge off. Sort of what they tell you in childbirth..here let me give you this medication to take the edge off. UM Nope didn't work for that either LOL

I have only worked at that one vet, and it was over 10 years ago so yes...things could be different but I just asked recently about this at my current vet and still get the same answer...just enough meds to take the edge off.

Weird!
All i know is..
when my cats got declawed..they were fixed at the same time...so they were really "under" .
I hope vets arent doing this without cats being totally asleep...

*shivers*

 

[insiderart]

Ok I didn't read all the drama before this post. But I will say. Better to be declawed (fronts only), than sent to a shelter to be put down. There are millions of homeless cats, and if it takes a declaw for one to get a great home, well then that's a small sacrafice for a wonderful long life.

I worked at a veterinarian for several years, and then worked at a cat clinic for about a year. Declawing consists of clipping off the nail and end fingerbone. The nail is expressed out of the sheath and a simple nail clipper (like you would use on animals) is used to clip off that small bone and nail. The animal should be completely sedated as for any surgical procedure, it should never be awake in any capacity. I've seen probably a hundred declaws and never have I seen an animal awake. They do need pain management after, and special litter for a couple weeks. There is some pain and discomfort involved for a couple weeks, and then they should be right as rain. If any cat had pain later on it's because of inept surgical procedure, and well that just means you need to be an informed consumer and get a good vet.

I had 2 cats who were declawed and 3 cats who weren't. Luckily the 3 who weren't were not bad scratchers. The 2 who were declawed were declawed as a stipulation on my rent agreement at the time. Those 2 cats lived long (14 and 18 years) and happy lives.

So, don't let the hysteria get you down. Make an informed decision and do what suits you best. I have the personal opinion that if you take on a cat (or dog), that unless it becomes vicious (or a family member is seriously allergic) you are bound to that animal for the duration of it's lifetime. They are not disposable, can't get rid of it because you don't want to train it not to poop on the floor, etc. So with that in mind, if you are prepared to keep this cat for the duration of it's lifetime (and declawing it make this a reality) then that is far better than turning it out, dropping it off somewhere later, or taking it to a shelter (where it will linger and be put down) when it becomes a scratcher later.

Better to have a happy home with no front claws, than front claws and no home.

 

[KDbeads]

I rescue/foster cats and have for over 10 years, lost count of how many I have had come through. I currently have 9 cats in the house ALL have their front and back claws. I still have all of my furniture intact and unshredded .

I don't agree with declawing but I'll not begrudge the person who doesn't want to take the time to properly train a cat NOT to shred off limit items As long as they don't call me to rescue the cat it it's personality changes after the procedure (some cats do change quite a bit). It's not easy, it takes constant vigilance but it can be done. I have a system down for new cat training here. Usually takes 3 days for them to learn not to scratch anything but what they are allowed to in this house.

 

[TipsyDog]

Quote:

Agreed.

I would NEVER declaw a cat!

 

[lishah2000]

I adopted a cat that already had all four feet done. She has bad balance problems, falls because she can't hold on and is very picky about litter. Most litters seem to hurt her feet. Her feet are very sensitive and she walks different than most cats.

I never believed in declawing and even more so after seeing what she goes through. I would never have it done myself.

If it must be done - PLEASE - only do the front feet and do it young. And try training first.

 

[redhen]

Quote:
yeah..thats it! I dont want to take the time to train my cats! You nailed it!

Please think before you accuse people of things you really know nothing about .....
please dont get this thread closed...

 

[amity3520]

I find it entirely unnecessary, especially if there's even a sliver of a chance that it could ever escape from your house, it would have no means of protecting itself or hunting.

 

[redhen]

Quote:
thats not totally true..sorry.

But, i DO agree that they need to stay inside! I'd be heartbroken if my cats ever got outside..

 

[paintedsavvy]

I say do it as a last resort. Both of my cats are declawed on their front feet. My mom opened up a quilting business in our house and it was, "no claws, or no cats!" Both of my cats go outside and climb fences and climb trees. We haven't had any problems with predators. They are just the same without their claws as they were with them.