Santa Monica Passes Ordinance Banning Cat Declawing

After the hugely disappointing decision by the Malibu, California City Council on October 12, in which they rejected the passage of its pending ban on declawing cats, it was great news for cat lovers to learn about the successful passage of the declaw ban ordinance passed on Tuesday, October 27, by the City Council of Santa Monica, with an overwhelming vote of 6-1. While there will be a second reading of the pending ordinance, in the Paw Project's announcement of the victorious result they wrote, "Unless something very odd happens, it will become law. All seven Councilmember's spoke out against declawing for owner convenience and against "packaging" declaw surgery with spaying and neutering. We are very grateful to them all for taking the time to consider seriously this issue." Close to 40 people attended in support of the ban. Included were between 5 and 6 local California Veterinary Medical Association (CVMA) member veterinarians and a representative from the HSVMA. More than 20 people attending spoke out in support of the passage of the declaw ordinance. Speaking out against the passage of the ordinance were three non-local CVMA veterinarians along with two other people. Several other City Councils in California still have proposed bans pending to ban the declawing of domestic cats. These cities are Berkeley, Beverly Hills, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Since these ordinances must be passed before December 31, 2009, due to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's veto of a bill which would have allowed cities and towns to pass declaw ordinances at any time, it is essential that people who wish to take action to help prevent this cruel and unnecessary procedure, to act immediately. It only takes a few minutes to register your opinion. Contact representatives of each city in support of the passage of the pending bans. You do not have to be a resident of California to express your feelings and to encourage the City Council to pass their pending ordinances. Public opinion is very effective in swaying undecided members, and every voice counts. Here are the dates of the upcoming hearings: 11/2 - Los Angeles Public Safety committee hearing 11/3 - Beverly Hills 1st City Council hearing Visit The Paw Project Website for further information with the names of representative to contact and other suggestions about how to become involved. http://www.pawproject.com/html/what.asp Thank you for participating in this crucial cause to represent all the cats who cannot speak for themselves.