Declawing Cats – Is it Necessary?
Declawing cats might seem necessary for some people, especially for those who hav expensive furniture and home furnishings and they do not want to see scratches on them. Other people are afraid of their cats scratching them or their children. Some veterinarians even include this in their packages which could make you think it is okay to have your cats declawed.
However, you might be subjecting your cat to unnecessary, even inhumane, pain if you decide to have him declawed. Just imagine this: what would you feel if your fingers were cut off, one by one, from the last knuckles in your hands? Could you function properly afterwards? Some say declawing is to a cat as cutting off the ends of your fingers is to you!
Declawing cats is not like manicure or trimming fingernails like in humans. What you are actually doing is you cut off the last bone from your cat’s claws. Does that sound like a trip to the salon to you?
No matter what kind of procedure you will use for declawing your cats—traditional surgery, laser surgery, or tendonectomy—they are all unnecessary. Do not let your beloved pets experience unnecessary pain and discomfort just because you want scratch-free furniture. Not only they will feel intense pains and it takes time for them to recover. They will not also be able to do what every cat can do. That is, to scratch.
Also, claws protect them from enemies or predators. Without claws, cats are very vulnerable so if your cat goes outdoors at all you must not have him declawed or he will not be able to protect himself against predators. Moreover, your cat may lose its grace, elegance, and agility and could become lame and clumsy because they no longer have the normal and natural designs for their bodies.
Now that you know what really happens when you declaw cats and the effects of it, you can now think of alternatives or other options that will prevent your cat from creating too much damage in your house. What you can do is to train your cat by getting him a scratching post. You can teach him to scratch it instead of scratching your home furnishings. It may take longer time but at least your cat will not suffer from pain they will get when you declaw them.
Moreover, you can trim the front claws of your cat. This is the one which is similar to trimming a person’s fingernails. Be careful when you do this though. You can also use nail caps for each of your cat’s pointy claws. These fit over the tips of the claws covering up the needle sharp points that can damage your furniture. These are replaceable and can last for up to 4 to 6 weeks. But keep in mind that you only trim and put claw caps on cats that are always indoors.
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