Is it animal cruelty? ...and help!

Is it cruel?

Yes	76.5%	[ 26 ]
No	11.8%	[ 4 ]
Idk	11.8%	[ 4 ]
Total Votes:			[ 34 ]

[Henrika]

Blueyedancer

It's cruel because not only does the surgery remove ligaments in their paws, and not only will it be a painful & unnecessary surgery, your cat needs its claws for traction - to run and jump safely it needs it's claws to be able to control it's speed.

All you need to to do prevent furniture scratching is make sure you are trimming his claws once every two weeks. (This is important for nail health anyway.) Make sure that your cat has a tall scratching post, it needs to be at least tall enough so he can completely stretch out to scratch it. You can also get some emery boards and toys to keep him occupied. If cat's are scratching furniture, it's out of boredom, because their claws are too long, and then they form a habit. To break the habit once you have provided an outlet for scratching, you can put a product called sticky paws on the couches where your cat scratches to deter him.

I should also add, that the pain in their paws after a surgery will often lead them to associate the pain with their litter box, so your cat may start peeing all over the house. Trust me - cat's peeing on stuff is so much worse and harder to stop than scratching is.

[Adiopose]

Yeah, it cuts off a part of their toe.
BUT.
My cats are both declawed in the front, and they are both adopted. I think they're happier without their front claws than they would be if they were dead.
No front claws was the condition we would keep them under, at least they didn't get put down.

[x-kazzy]

Can I rip out your finger + nail?

[Blueyedancer]

I do have to agree. espeically at his age i think its animal cruetly. If anything i would do those pet smart put on claws.. i dont remember what their called.

don't worry everyone. I am not going to declaw my kitty. I understand the importance but he's a house cat so he'd be safe. Thank you all for your input and infromation!!!

[LORD ZATAN]

I say it's cruel because if the cat ever had to defend its self it's 1 defense would be gone.

[Sash0]

I think it's cruel
cats use claws to climb to get higher etc. climb fences trees and to defend themselves etc. if they get in a cat or dog fight etc.
Just buy your cat a scratching post or something discipline orders give a treat when good but nothing cruel

[kitten tea]

I'm singing
My blues

I have three cats, and one of them is declawed. The other two aren't, but my dad wants to declaw one of them because she scratches on the furniture as well. We have a spray that we use on the couch, and it seems to work. I am going to try the tape next.

If nothing else works, you might have to get him declawed. You could also try just clipping his nails down, and that seemed to work with me; that is until they grew back.

Good luck. <3

[Light Kazeko]

I work at the vet and see cats get de clawed all the time, yes it is cruel, and and on top of that if you do it at an older age some cats personalities change and they become crazy because it was so traumatizing to them. try just trimming their nails, thats what i do with my cat, you just have to keep up on it.

[RottenTouch]

Don't do it, buy a scratch mat and a water bottle, train the cat not to scratch

[rainbowlady1]

They also make clear plastic furniture guards you can apply to those areas that the cat is used to scratching, and save the corners of your couch or whatever is being scratched smile . Unfortunately, that only works on furniture and walls xd it doesn't help with all the clothes that get claw pulls in the fabric ... but, that is just a necessary hazard / "labor of love" when you have a wonderful kitty companion smile xd .