Why is declawing a legal issue? Let’s start with what declawing is. Except for extreme situations, My Kitty Care considers it a cruel practice, and the desire to protect cats is why it’s become a legal debate. In the USA, New York was the first state to ban declawing with some cities fiollowing suit. In Canada, seven provinces have banned declawing. Hopefully, another state may ban declawing in the near future.
Currently, seven states are considering the ban, but MARYLAND is actually awaiting a vote in the House of Representatives. Senate bill sponsor Cheryl C Kagan expects it to be on the governor’s desk soon, and if it’s signed, Maryland will be the 2nd state to ban declawing. Included in the bill is a fine of $5000 for any vet who performs the procedure.
But nothing is black and white. As abhorrent as My Kitty Care views declawing, absolute outlawing can be problematic. Case in point: elderly woman must move to assisted living but is denied bringing her two older cats due to management worry of damage to furniture,carpets, etc. If the cats are declawed, they can continue to be together, otherwise, the cats will be sent to a shelter and most likely be euthanized (older cats are especially difficult to find homes for). The source of this scenario is from the BBC. My Kitty Care advocates banning declawing, but allowing for severely limited flexibility.
The following countries already banned or view the practice as extremely inhuman and performed only under extreme circumstances:
England
Scotland
Wales
Italy
Austria
Switzerland
Norway
Sweden
Ireland
Denmark
Finland
Slovenia
Brazil
Australia
New Zealand
Serbia
Montenegro
Macedonia
Slovenia
France
Germany
Bosnia
Malta
Netherlands
Northern Ireland
Portugal
Time for the USA to take action. Best of all, create a federal law which would simplify things and most importantly, protect cats.
