Yeah, I think declawing should definitely be made illegal - same with tail-docking and ear-cropping in dogs. For cosmetic reasons, obviously - extreme circumstances sometimes require exceptions, of course.

But yeah, I'd never go around surgically altering a dog, regardless of breed standard. If people like a dog (or cat) with specific alterations, they should look in shelters or breed rescues and they might find one to adopt that has already had that done to them.

i've never liked the de-clawing of cats either.

you cant have kittypets become warriors if you de-claw them T.T

I remember reading a topic on Warriors Wish where someone was arguing that anyone who declawed cats was an evil person who deserved to rot in Hell. I'm not exaggerating, either. While I don't agree with cat declawing I wouldn't go that far (my parents declawed our younger cat, I'm not calling them evil). Someone else pointed out that they didn't agree either but it was necessary for their parents to declaw their cats - namely, the poster was very young at the time, they lived in a trailer and the cats would continually scratch the young poster. Someone said "Get scratching posts." to which the poster replied "We did. They didn't help." The person who'd suggested it had absolutely no sympathy.

I disagree with cat declawing but I think that in instances like the above it might sometimes be a better option and I hate it when people refuse to listen to that and call people who declaw cats "evil people who deserve to rot in Hell".

I agree with Lakey - I remember we had this one cat, named Cricket, who was ridiculously hyper and always attacked our feet. Eventually we had to get rid of her (either we sent her back to the animal shelter or we got a friend to take her, I can't remember which - probably the former but I hope it was the latter) and now that I think of it, de-clawing might have helped. Although I think she also bit, so maybe not.

Anyway, a better example might be my aunt's dog. He's a pit bull, so a lot of veterinarians refused to dock his tail, but my aunt had to get it docked because he wagged it around so much he would hit it against things it would bleed. But he wouldn't stop, he would just keep doing it and blood would get spattered on the walls and stuff O_o So she had to get his tail docked for his own good, lol.

I think nowadays they also have little plastic covers you can put over a cat's claws. I don't know how well they work, though.

I think it should be only done if it is the only way to save the animals life and not for looks

Thanks for all the responses, guys.

I agree about tails & ears – that’s the way breeds come – leave them alone. When I was a kid our schnauzer, Dusty had clipped ears (they did it all the time then – not so much now - & they are SO much cuter with flopped ears) & they were really a bit too small for him. It’s a mean thing to do.

I think many people who de-claw are simply misinformed. People think it’s like removing a fingernail instead of removing a finger at the 1st joint & pulling out the tendon. EE-YOW!

I learned from Cat Daddy today that it can completely change the weight distribution of cats (they walk on their toes & de-clawing them causes them to walk flat-footed. I never knew that. That can cause physical problems later in life. Then he said that cats de-clawed b/c they scratch children often resort to biting instead when they can’t claw, so it doesn’t necessarily solve the problem.

There are a number of well-reviewed “natural” remedies that can help enormously to calm a hyper animal. There are also nail caps. All this stuff should be tried 1st. Yeah, I’m a campaigner on this subject, but I’d never do something to “punish” someone who did it; I’d just be very sad.

Minou: Whoa – that’s a dog with some real issues! I understand the nail caps work well – plus you can get them in all sorts of cool colors.

But if you don't declaw a cat they'll rip up your stuff? Like, over half the furniture in my house would be screwed if we hadn't declawed my cat (I'm not saying I value mere furniture over my cat, but still). I honestly never thought of it as a bad thing.

I mean, okay, I can understand not declawing them if they're going to be an outdoor cat, but if they're an indoor cat and the owner wants to declaw them, I don't see the problem?

I do disagree with altering an animal's looks surgically, though; What is even the point of that? But declawing can be really practical, at least from my experience, which is basically nothing so I guess I'll shut up and do some research on the subject or something sorry for my complete ignorance etc etc.

Like wait does it actually hurt them?? O_____O
Wow actually, yeah, this is something I never even considered before.

Oh ew I figured it was more than removing a fingernail (not that that's a particularly good thing, either o_O) but I didn't know it was like that. That's kind of gross. That's interesting about the weight distribution thing - I hadn't thought of that but I'm not surprised. Reminds me of something I read a while ago about how running barefoot makes you less prone to injuries because you run more naturally, whereas with shoes on you place your foot down heel-first, which it isn't really built to do.

Well, if I ever get a cat that has clawing issues, I'll definitely go for the nail caps then, lol.

And yeah, my aunt's dog is crazy, but he's the jolliest dog you'd ever meet. He gets super excited though, and he's just so funny! The squirrels in the backyard get him really worked up - they throw apricots at him. Sometimes it seems like he tries to act tough but I was there when he almost ran across the street because of a chihuahua behind a fence, haha.

I dont agree with cat declawing... it doesn't exactly seem the right thing to do in my eyes. Claws are an important feature of cats... I'd imagine they'd feel threatened by a lot of small things without them. I mean, cats can bite, but scratching is their thing. Kinda like thumbs for humans in a way... cats use them in many daily activities. A cat just isn't the same cat it was before with it's claws removed. There are just so many less things that a cat can do without his/her nails.

I'm not judging though, if claws really need to be removed then I guess its not a big deal to do that. If its an indoor cat. Removing the nails of an outdoor cat is just wrong.

And before cutting straight to nail-removal, try the caps and the scratching posts. My mom uses a spray of some sort to stop Sunny from clawing at our furniture but she does it anyways -.-

I'm taking my cat with me when I move out, and because of where I'm going to be living she'll have to become an indoor cat, which will be very difficult for her. I was worried about her clawing up stuff, but I really didn't want to declaw her because I do think it's very inhumane. Then I found the claw caps and I was like "Awww yeah, I can keep her from clawing up my stuff AND she can be a diva B)" lol she's such a diva, she doesn't even wear a collar, she wears a charm bracelet around her neck XD but she lost most of the charms so I need to get her a new one

Also, this comment box thing is driving me nuts >.< I can't add something in the middle of what I already wrote without it deleting everything as I type. Grrrr

I am against declawing and tail docking, unless of course it is necessary.

My mom was a vet's assistant who saw many cats undergo the process. She has told me about it and we do not stand for it.
Her cat was declawed by her previous owners because she was an indoor cat, and the people figured she would stay that way and be safe. One day, their indoor-outdoor dog attacked her and she only had her teeth to defend herself. She has also slipped outside a few times. (Thank goodness, she has never been in a fight after the dog)
Poor girl...

Cats who, like Gloom (my mom's cat) sometimes find their way outside should not have their claws removed. Anything can happen in this scary world.

Pit Bulls are popular where I live, but people have their ears clipped and tails docked to make them appear menacing - which is wrong. Many of their owners are your stereotypical gangsters who try to look more intimidating than anyone else, and feel their look is topped off by a scary dog.