What is Declawing?
Declawing, also known as onychectomy, is the process of amputating or cutting off a portion or all of the last bone of each digit/toe of the paw while the cat is under anesthesia. This is usually done at the pet owner’s request to prevent cats from using their claws to scratch. Most declawing methods amputate the toe from the first joint (or knuckle) past the nailbed, a method called disarticulation.
Imagine going to a salon and asking to have your nails trimmed, and they take out a large pair of clippers and cut your nail off at the knuckle. This is the horrifying truth about declawing your cat.
The description of declawing would be amputation/mutilation.
Declawing fits the dictionary definition of mutilation to a tee. Words such as deform, disfigure, disjoint, and dismember all apply to this surgery. It doesn’t matter how the procedure is preformed, scapula, guillotine or laser. The end result is the same “EXCORIATING PAIN.” This is the barbaric reality of declawing your cat.
That’s what a cat feels after being declawed.
“Sensory and motor nerves in the cat’s paw are cut, damaged, and destroyed. Recovery from the surgery is a slow and a painful process. The pain from declawing is life-long and normal cat behaviors are forever gone. This procedure keeps our cats from enjoying pain free things such as walking, running, springing, climbing, and stretching. This crippling procedure keeps our cats from a life of fun energetic normal cat behavior.”
Soft Paws — Soft Paws are an excellent alternative to declawing. They are easy to apply at home, and cats and their owners love them. They are completely safe and humane and can be used on cats of all ages. Soft Paws are vinyl nail caps that are glued on to your cat’s existing nails. They look like a cat’s nail, only hollow. They are easy to apply and cats tolerate them extremely well. I have personally used this product and can say, without a doubt, they are very effective… and pretty!!!
There are 28 countries in which declawing cats is either illegal or considered extremely inhumane and only performed under extreme circumstances.
In July of 2019, New York became the first state in America to make declawing illegal.
SAVING ORPHAN SOULS RESCUE WILL NOT ADOPT ANY OF OUR FELINES IF THE POTENTIAL ADOPTER PLANS ON DECLAWING THEIR ANIMAL. THERE ARE NO EXCEPTIONS TO THIS RULE.
Laser Declawing
With laser declawing, a medical-grade CO2 laser is used to amputate the toe at the first joint past the nailbed. Other methods are the scalpel method and the guillotine method. The scalpel method uses a scalpel blade to amputate the toe at that first joint as well. The guillotine method, which has largely fallen out of favor in the veterinary community, uses either sterilized nail trimmers or a bone cutter to amputate the toe at the joint. Unfortunately, especially with the guillotine method, disarticulation is not always achieved, and bone fragments can be left behind.
Laser declawing is considered by some in the veterinary community to be the most humane method for declawing. Reasons cited for this are that the toes undergo less trauma with laser, nerve endings are “sealed” off leading to less pain, and less bleeding occurs.
Several scientific studies showed that cats did experience less pain initially (i.e. within 1-2 days of the procedure) with laser declaw compared to other procedures; however, all methods of declaw were proven painful. Pain levels were the same six days into recovery regardless of procedure type in one study.
Another study comparing pain from scalpel declaw vs. laser declaw showed very little difference in how quickly cats were able to recover, reporting that pain was severe enough to cause trouble walking for roughly one week with both types of declaw.
This study, as well as a similar study, did find that cats declawed with a scalpel tended to show more signs of pain overall than those who were declawed with a laser. As with the previous mentioned research, both studies demonstrated that pain was still present regardless of method used.
The take home point from these studies is that while laser declaw might be less painful than other procedures, it is still painful.
Laser declaw is more costly than traditional methods. While the old-school method usually costs about $100 (give or take depending on your location and whether your cat is already under sedation for another procedure), the laser method usually starts around $250 and can go up to $400. There may be other exam fees or costs with either procedure, so it’s best to ask your vet first.
Consequences of Declawing
Scratching is a normal, instinctual behavior in cats. Many reasons exist for scratching, including keeping the claws healthy, communication, and stress relief.
Because declawing is painful and removing the claws prevents cats from scratching, no matter what method is used, cats can experience short-term and long-term consequences and problems from the declaw procedure.3 Short-term complications include pain, lameness or trouble walking, bleeding, poor appetite, change in personality, infection, sluggishness, and idiopathic cystitis (trouble urinating).
One scientific study showed that regardless of pain medication used, cats were still unable to completely use their legs normally within the first 1-2 weeks.7 Long-term problems include regrowth of one or more claws, lameness/trouble walking, chronic or long-term foot, leg, and/or back pain, self-barbering or pulling out hair, idiopathic cystitis, using the bathroom outside the litterbox, toe deformities (either from the procedure or from flexor tendon contraction), and aggression or increased biting.
Up to 50% of cats (that’s half the cats that get declawed!) that underwent declawing experienced short-term complications in one study.
In another report, claw regrowth was seen in up to 10% of declawed cats and was the culprit behind many (but not all) of the long-term problems that occurred in cats.
Laser declawing has been shown to have a lower rate of claw regrowth as well as certain short-term and long-term issues (e.g. using the bathroom outside the litterbox); however, short-term and long-term problems still happen in many cats, most importantly those associated with pain and missing out on the instinctual fulfillment of scratching.
In other words, regardless of what method is chosen for declaw, risk for lifelong consequences is still high.
Alternatives to Declawing
There are a variety of alternatives to declawing that you should consider before considering a declawing procedure. Encouraging scratching in the right places can help the cat’s wellbeing while keeping you and your furniture protected. Adding multiple tall scratching posts as well as scratching pads, and continually directing the cat to these areas can prevent furniture destruction. Cats like to reach up to scratch as well as stretch out and scratch, so different height levels are important. Sometimes sprinkling a little catnip on the posts/pads can encourage a cat to use them.
Feliway — Have you seen cats rubbing their cheeks on an object? Because cats are territorial, they are compelled to mark their territory. When they are rubbing their faces on things, they are doing just that. Scratching is another way cats mark their territory. Not only does scratching provide a visual marking of the territory (the shredded material) but also, cats have scent glands on the bottom of their paw pads, which deposit a scent discernible only by other cats. Think of it as their “feel good” pheromone. Feliway is a synthetic version of your cat’s facial pheromone. Spraying Feliway on objects you do not want your cat to scratch effectively deposits this feel good pheromone so your cat doesn’t feel the need to scratch the object.
Double-Sided Tape — Products such as Pioneer Pet Sticky Paws on a Roll Cat Deterrent is sticky on both sides. Simply apply it to the objects you would prefer your cat not scratch on, and his natural aversion to stickiness will put an end to the offending behavior. The tape works as an aversion tool, but you still need to provide a place for kitty to scratch — such as a scratching post.
Cat Scratching Posts — Cats will always scratch, it is in their nature. The key is to provide your cat with a post that he/she prefers over your furniture.
Height. The post needs to be tall enough for your cat to stretch and extend in order to get a full and satisfying scratch. The picture to the right shows a good example of a cat getting a “full and satisfying” stretch.
The post must be stable. If it wobbles, your cat won’t like it, and if it topples over your cat won’t want to get near it again.
The best material for cat scratching posts is sisal fabric. Not sisal rope, but sisal fabric. This woven material provides great texture for shredding — which cats love to do when scratching, and it feels good on their paws. When a cat scratches the sisal material, he can drag his claws down this satisfying material over and over in a continuous motion. In contrast, sisal rope creates an interrupted scratch — scratch, bump, scratch, bump, scratch, bump. Not very satisfying.
If scratching seems to go beyond what is normal for a cat, consider discussing the issues with your veterinarian. A check up may determine the problem is a medical issue. If the scratching problem is more of a behavioral issue, your vet may discuss adding environmental enrichment for your cat such as food puzzles and more play time; adding pheromones to the environment (e.g. Feliway® diffusers); or other anti-anxiety measures. Other helpful options to protect furniture are the use of synthetic nail caps (e.g. Soft Paws®) over the cat’s toenails (although these may not alleviate the need to scratch) or trimming the claws regularly
OVERVIEW OF DECLAWING
Medical drawbacks to declawing include pain in the paw, infection, tissue necrosis (tissue death), lameness, and back pain. Removing claws changes the way a cat's foot meets the ground and can cause pain similar to wearing an uncomfortable pair of shoes.
