Santa Monica Likely to Pass Anti-Declaw Ordinance
I love to share exciting news! Last night an email popped up on my BlackBerry which just made my entire evening a lot brighter. I was so excited about what I read that I had to immediately share it.
On Thursday, September 23, the "Earth Times" reported that in a "5-1 vote, Santa Monica City Council passed a motion on Tuesday, to draft an ordinance that restricts the practice of amputating the toes of animals, also known as 'de-clawing'. " City Council Members, Kevin McKeown and Gleam Davis, presented the motion requesting that should this ordinance pass, that it must be enacted before December 31,2009 in order to be enacted, as an already pending state law exists, SB 762, which will limit the ability for any bans for medical procedures which are considered by animal lovers to be inhumane.
McKeown was passionate in his presentation to fellow Council members. He said, "We are not talking about a pampering manicure for cats. De-clawing is inhumane mutilation and provides no direct therapeutic benefit to animals."
As many cat lovers already know, de-clawing is not the simple removal of the nail. It is the amputation of the last digit of each toe on the paws, which includes the bone in which the nail-bed rests.
Paw Project billboard
Dr. Jennifer Conrad, DVM, founder of the Paw Project, an organization whose mission is to educate the public about the detrimental and permanent damage which declawed cats suffer as a result of the surgery, for which there are no medical benefits, reached out to McKeown and the Council, speaking for these animals that have no voice, stating their case eloquently. The Paw Project has already protected captive wild cats, as a declaw ban now exists, with the USDA forbids its licensees to perform this surgery. West Hollywood, California was the pioneer to ban declawing in its city.
However opposition to the ordinance quickly arose. Mark Nunez, representing the California Veterinary Medical Association (CVMA) an organization that supports the business interests of veterinarians, presented the case that veterinarian's right to practice medicine as they see fit would be affected, and that many more cats would be surrendered to shelters for destroying furniture and carpets. Even though statistics do not bear out this argument, it is one of the main reasons that are used as ammunition to stop de-clawing bans. The CVMA was successful in their suit against West Hollywood in 2004 to overturn its 2003 ordinance, but in 2007, the California Court of Appeals "upheld the right of cities to outlaw procedures that they deem inhumane."
In an obvious political move, the CVMA has pushed for a bill (SB 762) which would effectively prevent any other cities in California from instating these bans which is good news for practicing veterinarians who can continue to profit from performing these surgeries without further restrictions. If Santa Monica passes this pending legislation, the city will indeed be in a race to beat the January 1, 2010 deadline when SB 762 is instituted.
Several Santa Monica veterinarians have testified in support of the pending anti-declaw ordinance. Dr. Armaiti May, a practicing Santa Monica veterinarian said, "De-clawing is a completely unnecessary procedure. It causes pain, complications and behavioral problems like litter box aversion. There are humane alternatives,"
What may surprise you is testimony given by Christienne Metropole a representative of the Santa Monica animal shelter, the Stray Cat Alliance. She reported that the majority of cats surrendered to shelters have already been declawed. But what is even more disturbing is due to unacceptable behavioral problems which often result from declawing, coupled with the hardship of finding new forever loving homes for these cats, many of them are healthy felines who are prematurely and unnecessarily euthanized.
The Santa Monica City Council has directed staff to draft the anti-declaw ordinance and return it for a vote by November.
For more information, please visit www.pawproject.org
Santa Monica City Council staff has been requested to draft the anti-declawing ordinance, which will be voted upon by November.
What are your thoughts about legislations which protect our pets? Do you think the government has a right to make these decisions, or that they are crucial to their welfare? Leave a comment and share.
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Comments (9)
DamlisFamily@aol,com September 24, 2009 3:31 PM
I am not in favor of this it's like telling me what I can do and not do with my animals. I think it it up to pet owners weither to declaw or not declaw a cat. What are they going to do to me if I decide to declaw my cat? Take my cat away? Would love an answer to this question
Vicki September 24, 2009 3:42 PM
I am very muc h in favor of this. It is not a matter of them telling us what we can and can't do with our animals. It is about time someone stood up to protect our animals from people who want to do them harm. With this protection to animals, any vet who ignores this and continues to declaw cats should have their license revoked.
Diana September 24, 2009 4:18 PM
More government. More regulations. More government bean counters. More tax dollars. We simply can't regulate everythig in life, and shouldn't try to.
jmuhj September 24, 2009 5:28 PM
EWWW! Two out of three posters just don't get it, it's obvious. Cats are NOT "OWNED" by us. They are not pieces of property, inanimate objects, or slaves. They are living beings, with intrinsic value independent of human beings' decisions as to their worth; and laws in all fifty states prohibit, and provide punishment under the law for conviction of, cruelty, which declawing clearly is. Anyone who reads the truth about what declawing entails and still supports it should NEVER have cats in their care. And the billboard says it all. Declaw proponents, step right up and get your fingers chopped off at the first joint! THEN, and only then, will I talk about declawing with such people.
In the meantime, declawing IS cruel and absolutely unnecessary mutilation which often causes trauma for the life of the cat. It should be outlawed everywhere, period.
If some members of the public are too ignorant, callous, or stupid to put the welfare of cats above their furniture and other inananimate objects, they should NEVER be trusted with cats -- or any other living beings, for that matter!
Suzi Q September 24, 2009 5:50 PM
I hope they pass a no declaw law in every city and state! Ir's abuse. And to answer your question DamlisFamily@aol,com, if they could prove u had it done after the law went into effect thats ANIMAL ABUSE, and hopefully u'd get a big fat fine or locked up.
Ruth from England September 25, 2009 6:11 AM
Well said jmuhj and Suzi Q ! It shouldn't be about not wanting more laws,it should be about the welfare and protection of cats. There wouldn't have to be new laws if everyone gave a thought to the suffering declawing causes cats.As jmuhj so rightly said , cats are NOT 'OWNED' by us,they ARE living feeling beings and those of us who care about them will go to any lengths to protect their interests. The vets who still declaw, don't adhere to the AVMA policy that declawing should be a last resort,the AVMA don't even try to enforce their policy. Little kittens are mutilated daily as routine. I can't wait for the USA to catch up with us in England where declawing is already banned!! Then, only the people who truly love cats, claws and all,will have the pleasure of having them in their lives.
Declawing is cruel, it disables cats !!! It MUST be stopped somehow !
http://www.petitionthem.com/default.asp?sect=detail&pet=4312
Everycat September 25, 2009 6:47 AM
Great article. It just goes to show that America DOES need a law to tell people what they can and can't do with their animals. It's very telling that those against the Santa Monica ban are more concerned about their personal choices being challenged than they are about the welfare of their cats.
I'm in England where declawing is already banned. Even before legislation the governing body of vets the RCVS had already banned the procedure and no vet would ever carry it out unless there was an extreme medical need.
Every vet in America who carries out declaw routinely deserves to lose their licence to practice. It's a pity that the AVMA doesn't police the policy it wrote that says declawing should be a last ditch procedure. Guess the AVMA and the prodeclawers care more about money and their right to mutilate animals.
Barbara September 25, 2009 12:02 PM
It seems that the pain and distress caused to cats by the amputation of their toe ends pales into insignificance compared to people's rights to decide if an animal is mutilated or not. It really isn't hard to understand, if your child is playing around with a valuable ornament you tell it to stop and explain that it isn't right to damage anything deliberately or carelessly, if it doesn't stop the behaviour you take that ornament away because the child didn't stop when you told it to and you can't trust it not to damage the ornament.
Now then, it is proven that declawing is inhumane and cat owners have been provided with proof, reason and facts, if they choose to ignore that proof then, just as with the child, the option of declawing has to be taken away because people can't be trusted to voluntarily cease mutilating cats.
I was literally over the moon at the result of the meeting on Tuesday evening and I sincerely hope with all my heart that this ban is pushed through and that it creates a precedent for good sense and humanity to triumph.
Skylark September 25, 2009 7:33 PM
To add to what Barbara has said, if your child damages or breaks something valuable, take away the object and teach him not to do that again. If the child just finds another valuable object of yours to damage or destroy, will you then amputate the childs fingers so he is permanently unable to destroy any of your precious things?
How about if you just teach the child not to destroy your valuables? How about teaching the cat not to destroy your furniture?
I know that changing a cat's behavior isn't easy, but what in life worth having is easy? If your furniture is more important and valuable than your cat, then please don't take a cat home with you...he deserves better than you.
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