Israel Bans Declawing … Take Action to Ask Your Representatives the Same: Sample Letter
FROM COALITION TO PROTECT AND RESCUE PETS
CONTACT: CPRPets@aol.com
This cat is lame as a result of declawing. Declawing is amputation, not a manicure.
SCROLL DOWN TO LEARN MORE.
On Monday, the Knesset (Israel’s parliament) banned declawing nationwide except for rare cases of medical necessity. Penalties are stiff: jail time of up to a year or a fine of 75,000 shekels. This humane action will spare cats untold suffering, including lifelong, chronic pain.
The legislation was backed by a wide coalition of political parties, sponsored by Knesset members Eitan Cabel, Yoel Hasson, Dov Khenin and Nitzan Horowitz.
Vodpod videos no longer available.
THE TRUTH ABOUT DECLAWING
Conventional declawing is actually amputation of the last bone of each toe. It’s the same as having your fingers cut off at the last knuckle. Using laser is not more humane; it’s just more expensive.
Tenectomy (tendonectomy) severs the tendons that extend the toes so the claws can’t retract; they’re useless to the cat. The incidence of bleeding, lameness and infection is similar to that of conventional declawing. And because tenectomy leaves cats unable to maintain their claws, they’ll grow into the paw pads causing infection and extreme pain if a human doesn’t continually trim them. The irony is, trimming claws routinely makes declawing and tenectomy unnecessary in the first place!
Veterinary specialists say declawing is among the most excruciating procedures a cat can undergo. “Watching a cat wake up after declawing is horrible. Some throw themselves against the walls of their cages as if trying to escape the pain; others roll up in a ball, as anguished as if they’d been hit by a car,” says Dr. Jennifer Conrad, DVM, founder, The Paw Project. And cats can suffer the rest of their lives from chronic infection, atrophied paw pads that expose the remaining bone, and chronic muscle and joint pain.
Take Action! Tell Congress: It’s high time the United States followed suit. Find your elected officials and send them a letter.
WHOM TO CONTACT
Find your lawmakers and send them all a letter at the same time HERE
SAMPLE LETTER | COURTESY KINSHIP CIRCLE
Dear Representative and Senators,
Please consider enacting a ban on declawing of cats in your represented constituencies. Declawing is illegal or restricted in over 20 countries, including the United Kingdom and Canada. Cities such as San Francisco, West Hollywood, and Norfolk, Virginia, ban declawing — while Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, Berkeley, Malibu, and Santa Monica are evaluating similar legislation. The Humane Society of the U.S. and ASPCA oppose declawing. The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons rejects the operation, describing it as “mutilation.”
Overwhelming evidence shows declawing causes severe behavioral problems that often lead guardians to abandon their animals in overcrowded shelters. Undesirable behavior in 33% of declawed cats begins post-procedure, according to a 2001 study in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medicine Association (JAVMA). National shelter surveys reveal that 70-80% of cats surrendered for offensive behavior are declawed.
Cats with intact claws are surrendered for reasons such as “moving” or “new baby,” whereas declawed felines enter shelters with behavioral issues like biting or not using the litter box, claims shelter director William Lombardi of Gloucester County, New Jersey. For the estimated 70% of declawed cats who are euthanized, the surgery is a death sentence.
Moreover, declawing generates suffering and permanent disability. The invasive procedure amputates not only the claw, but also the entire last “knuckle” of a cat’s toes. Veterinary experts recognize laser or scalpel declawing as among the most painful surgeries routinely performed.
Please make your communities more humane towards our companion animals and make progressive efforts to begin a ban on declawing in the United States.
Thank you very much,
NAME
SEE MORE: COMPANION ANIMALS
the cat says:
you have your nails
i want my claws
to the great nation
of israel
a round of
a-paws♥
Karen Lyons Kalmenson
sweet jesus christ who would ever do such a terrible thing ??? this should be illeagle ! if cats were not meant to have claws then they would have not been born with them. who ever has done or does do this “i’d love to pull all your teeth out and every hair on your being and take all your toe nails out and see how you would feel !!!
LikeLike
the cat says:
you have your nails
i want my claws
to the great nation
of israel
a round of
a-paws♥
LikeLike
Yeah, for the kitties in Israel for they now can protect themselves!
LikeLike
Declawing and debarking make me feel furious!
LikeLike
I can’t stand people that think they love animals but cats need or want to be declawed. It’s disgusting.
I’ve only ever met ONE person that thought it was acceptable to declaw a cat.
It’s high time America modernized and stopped being a ‘follower’ in regards to human and animal welfare.
Cat’s shouldn’t be mutilated for this anymore. Lazy people can learn to trim their cats claws or take them to the vet to get trimmed. Or better yet, give your cat a nice cinder block to file its claws down on. 😉
LikeLike