Declawing?

Lawmakers want to make it illegal to declaw cats. All spurred by animal rights activists claiming the practice is cruel.

Here in New York, Republican State Senator Joseph Griffo introduced a bill to ban declawing.  But he is proposing an unnecessary infringement of rights.  In fact New York veterinarians are against the bill, supporting the idea of medical decisions being made between an owner and their vet.

Activists talk about the pain of surgery, yet encourage neutering.  They claim claws help cats mark their territory.  Male cats also spray to mark territory, and neutering stops that natural behaviour.  Sure there are possible complications to any surgery including neutering.  When I had my appendectomy there was a long list of slim chances.  But most cats including my own do fine after declawing and are happy and well-adjusted indoor cats.

I want my cats to feel at home everywhere within my home.  I don’t want off limit rooms like some. But I also have to prevent destructive behaviours, whether spraying on clawing.  There are thousands of cats wanting homes and I can create a wonderful home for them.  They are wonderful companions.  I don’t agree with PETA that pet keeping is selfish.  I also feel hesitant at donating money to other animal groups like Humane Society for fear that it will be used against me.

I take very good care of my cats.  I have 3 litter boxes.  In fact there are more kitty toilets than human toilets in my house.  I groom them.  I feed them a variety of health foods.  I grew up with cats.  I also know how destructive, even if unintentional, claws can be.  And talk about torture, my cats growing up hated the constant clippings.

So let us make our focus on creating loving homes, not creating hindrances.  Let us focus our activism on stopping actual cruelty, not trying to labelling loving owners as cruel.