I agree, but Sherry's vet does so much good for the cats. You have to pick
your battles. I'm sure Sherry has discussed declawing with Dr. Jen. I'm sure
the doctor knows about the downside/problems associated with declawing. She
has made a decision to declaw. It's her sanctuary. It's her decision. And
they've done a lot of good.
I'm of the opinion 'better off dead than declawed'. But most people are not.
And many people think declawing saves lives.
I hope that changes and declawing becomes illegal in the U.S. as it is in
other countries, but for now it is not illegal.
t
Susan Dubose <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
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Excellent, Melissa!
They take them until they figure out that the cat now bites when it feels the
least bit threatened or it pees & poops everywhere EXCEPT the litterbox due to
the pain in it's paws from being multilated.
Those were ALWAYS the reasons people would try & dump them@ the shelter that
I worked @.
Susan J. DuBose >^..^<
www.PetGirlsPetsitting.com
www.Tx.SiameseRescue.org
www.shadowcats.net
"As Cleopatra lay in state,
Faithful Bast at her side did wait,
Purring welcomes of soft applause,
Ever guarding with sharpened claws."
Trajan Tennent
----- Original Message -----
From: Melissa Lind
To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org
Sent: Monday, September 24, 2007 2:06 PM
Subject: RE: OT:declawing your cat is illegal...
I think that this website has some very interesting statistics. Check it
out: http://www.pawproject.com
Go to the FAQ section. Here is an answer I found interesting; I think it (and
other answers on the site) partially negates the theory that cats are better
off declawed if someone will take them. They may take them in, but for how
long? If an owner cant handle a cat with claws, he/she certainly cant handle
a cat with the resulting physical and psychological damage that often occurs.
Furthermore, if a person is educated on the atrocities of declawing, and still
insists upon it, in my opinion, he/she should not be allowed to have pets. I
think the problem is education. I think people would not wish their pets
declawed if they truly knew and understood the alternatives and the
consequences. Read on
Actually, declawed cats may be at a disadvantage. There is evidence that
declawed cats are disproportionately abandoned at shelters, and that declawed
cats may be euthanized more often because of the behavioral and physical
problems that result from declawing. Pet owners typically cite protection of
their furnishings as being foremost among their reasons for having a cat
declawed; however, such owners may not realize that the pain and other
complications from the surgery can cause behavioral problems that are even
worse than the problems for which the cat's toes were amputated. A cat can
still bite a child and may become more prone to do so if it has no claws. A cat
whose paws hurt when scratching in a litter box may avoid the litter box
altogether, a behavior that may not be tolerated by the owner.
Alternatives to declawing exist. Nail caps can be glued painlessly to a cat's
claws to prevent damage due to scratching. A cat can be trained to use
scratching posts to sharpen its claws without damaging furniture. Also, regular
nail trimming, repellent sprays, and double-sided tape applied to furniture
help deter a cat from unwanted scratching.
In a 1996 JAVMA article, Gary Patronek, VMD, PhD, using multivariate
statistical analysis, found that declawed cats were at an increased risk of
relinquishment to animal shelters and that among relinquished cats, 52.4% of
declawed cats were reported to exhibit litter box avoidance, compared to 29.1%
of non-declawed cats.
The risk of cats being relinquished to pounds if the owner cannot declaw the
animal is grossly overestimated by the veterinary profession. In a survey of
owners of cats that had been declawed and their veterinarians, reported by Dr.
Gary Landsberg in Veterinary Forum, September 1994, only 4% of the owners said
they would have relinquished their pet had it not been declawed. In contrast,
the veterinarians in the survey speculated that 50% of the owners would have
relinquished their pets. We could reasonably expect that if cat owners knew the
risks and alternatives to declawing and if veterinarians took a more active
role in offering and assisting with the alternatives (such as nail caps and
nail trimming), the 4% figure would be further reduced. As veterinarian
Nicholas Dodman, board-certified animal behaviorist and Professor at Tufts
University School of Veterinary Medicine, says, "There are very few people of
this ilk (who would euthanize a cat if it could not be
declawed) who could not be reeducated by an enthusiastic and well-informed
veterinarian as to the inhumanity of this approach."
Janet Scarlett, DVM, of Cornell University, in the article, "The Role of
Veterinary Practitioners in Reducing Dog and Cat Relinquishments and
Euthanasias (JAVMA, February 1, 2002), states that client counseling is
"probably the most effective means by which veterinarians can influence the
number of dogs and cats surrendered to animal shelters today." Veterinarians
have an opportunity to intervene because people relinquishing pets are
veterinary clients. An estimated 50-70% of pets in shelters had visited the
veterinarian in the year preceding relinquishment. Yet, Dr. Scarlett reports,
"Only 25% of veterinarians routinely actively identify and treat behavioral
problems." She writes, "Less than a third felt confident of their ability to
treat common behavioral problems. Perhaps even more disturbing, only 11.1% of
veterinarians felt it was the veterinarian's responsibility, rather than the
client's, to initiate discussion about behavioral problems." Dr. Scarlett
admonishes
veterinarians to ask specifically about problem behaviors to uncover problems
that clients are reluctant to mention or that they may not realize can be
modified. Once identified, appropriate interventions can be recommended. It
seems clear that the real solution to the euthanasia concern will be convincing
veterinarians to offer proper education. Treating a behavioral problem such as
scratching with a surgical procedure is expedient, but doesn't deal the root
cause and perpetuates the misconceptions and unreasonable expectations about
pet behavior that too often result in abandonment and death.
