I know I have brought up the topic of declawing before, but I thought I would revisit it. Declawing cats seems to be very prevalent where I live and possibly where some of you live too. I know very few family members and friends that have cats with claws.
It has been ingrained in my head since I was a child that cats "need" to be declawed because they will tear up the furniture, scratch people, etc. My first indoor cat that I had as a child was declawed, and I continued to have my cats (three in all) declawed as an adult.
I did some research and decided not to have my most current cat, who is now two years old, declawed as a kitten. He is my first cat ever with claws, and I admit that it makes me nervous. This is new territory to me, and I wonder if I will regret it someday in the future. He is a sweet cat, and I only get scratched when he is being too playful. He also uses his scratching post diligently. I still wonder about all of the "what ifs" though. What if he tears something up, what if he scratches a visiting child, what if he harms my other cat, etc.
I don't ever plan to have him declawed. Even if I wanted to (and I don't), my vet only does the procedure on kittens. Two years ago though, I really had to struggle with the decision and whether or not I wanted to do it before my "window of time" (as the vet called it) was up.
As I was gathering my things and leaving the vet's office last week, I overheard part of the conversation that the vet was having in the next room with another client who was having her cat neutered. It was the same conversation that she had with me two years ago. "Are you going to have him declawed while he's here?" The client was not sure. "If you do, it would be best to do it now at the same time he is neutered. I can't do it when he's older." She then went on to say that kittens recover quickly and that he would never miss his claws, etc. I left and never knew what that lady decided. That conversation probably happens in a lot of vet clinics these days.
Sorry about the rambling post. Hearing that conversation just made me think about my decision two years ago and about all of the people that make that decision for their cats everyday.
It has been ingrained in my head since I was a child that cats "need" to be declawed because they will tear up the furniture, scratch people, etc. My first indoor cat that I had as a child was declawed, and I continued to have my cats (three in all) declawed as an adult.
I did some research and decided not to have my most current cat, who is now two years old, declawed as a kitten. He is my first cat ever with claws, and I admit that it makes me nervous. This is new territory to me, and I wonder if I will regret it someday in the future. He is a sweet cat, and I only get scratched when he is being too playful. He also uses his scratching post diligently. I still wonder about all of the "what ifs" though. What if he tears something up, what if he scratches a visiting child, what if he harms my other cat, etc.
I don't ever plan to have him declawed. Even if I wanted to (and I don't), my vet only does the procedure on kittens. Two years ago though, I really had to struggle with the decision and whether or not I wanted to do it before my "window of time" (as the vet called it) was up.
As I was gathering my things and leaving the vet's office last week, I overheard part of the conversation that the vet was having in the next room with another client who was having her cat neutered. It was the same conversation that she had with me two years ago. "Are you going to have him declawed while he's here?" The client was not sure. "If you do, it would be best to do it now at the same time he is neutered. I can't do it when he's older." She then went on to say that kittens recover quickly and that he would never miss his claws, etc. I left and never knew what that lady decided. That conversation probably happens in a lot of vet clinics these days.
Sorry about the rambling post. Hearing that conversation just made me think about my decision two years ago and about all of the people that make that decision for their cats everyday.