New York State proposed legislation is on the table that could ban the “declawing” of house cats, and if passed, the state would become the first to do so.
Advertisement
Several vets along with a spokescat named Rubio came to the state Capitol on Tuesday to lobby for the ban.
The process involves cutting through bone, tendon and nerves to amputate the first segment of a cat’s toes.
Do you think the practice should be banned? It’s also illegal in Los Angeles and some other California cities.
“It was very hard to say that it was OK to turn a potential feline adopter away because that adopter said “we might be declawing this cat” knowing how many cats were being euthanized”, she said.
9NEWS spoke with a local veterinary surgeon about the bill who says his views are pretty in-line with the American Veterinary Medical Association.
But the New York State Veterinary Medical Society opposes the ban. Declawing advocates say declawing can cause health and behavioral problems for the cat and take away its best line of defense, but other vets want to keep the state out of the cat-fight and save the surgery for a well-considered last resort. In a memo attached to the bill, the drafters point out that the declawing of an animal is more than simply removing its claws.
Rosenthal has been unsuccessful in trying to pass the legislation for the past two years, but she said she is continuing her push this legislative session with the bill’s Senate sponsor, Sen.
“Voluntary would be wonderful, but at this moment there are too many vets who are willing to declaw and owners who don’t understand how it will debilitate their cat”, said assembly member Linda Rosenthal. Spokesperson Gina Browning said while the society opposes unnecessary pain inflicted in animals they support finding safe homes for cats.
Be proactive – Use the “Flag as Inappropriate” link at the upper right corner of each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Stay on topic – This helps keep the thread focused on the discussion at hand.
Advertisement
Be Civil – It’s OK to have a difference in opinion but there’s no need to be a jerk.
