By Esther
I am not posting here to educate against declawing–there are plenty of informative posts here already. What I’m doing is posting my ideas–and asking for suggestions–for getting involved outside of the internet. Here are some thoughts. More ideas welcome.
1) Wear anti-declaw t-shirts, tote bags, pins, etc.
2) Dress up your cat with anti-declaw bumper stickers, car magnets, etc.
3) Stick an anti-declaw yard sign in your front yard.
4) Write to your local newspaper and ask them to print reasons not to declaw.
5) Hand out anti-declaw business cards, informational pamphlets, etc.
6) Write! Online and on paper.
7) Make a video explaining why declawing is harmful.
8) Make anti-declaw posters and put on public bulletin boards, etc.
9) If possible, support vets who do not declaw. If for this reason you switch vets or turn one down, let them know the reason.
10) Write to your local politicians and ask them to consider a ban on declawing.
11) To anyone involved in cat rescue: Adopt out only to people who will not declaw, and educate as many people as you can.
12) Be nice to people. Even though we’d really like to attack anyone who would even think of declawing (especially if we’ve tried and failed at educating them), that will only make enemies and is unlikely to convince people to change their minds.
13) But do be firm in your stand. Don’t let anyone tell you that you’re wrong, that you’re wasting your time, that you’re not making a difference, or anything else to slow you down.
14) Be creative. Think up different ways to get the word out.
15) Don’t give up! You’re doing an important service helping cats and people. We need all the help we can get. Every person counts. At times it will seem slow, but keep on. We’ve come a long way already. Let’s go the rest of the way!
I have as form letter for anyone in the US to send their local legislatures, if the site owner would please get back with me I can email the file and you can post it. Thank you.
Hi Esther, you can get my email address from this page:
https://pictures-of-cats.org/maps-misc.html
Thanks for commenting.
Keep up the good work Esther 🙂
Here is the letter.
Dear Editor:
This is a subject that is not addressed as it should be. It is about the common but harmful practice of declawing cats. The following is a list of reasons why this brutal practice needs to be stopped.
“Declawing” is not an accurate name. It is an amputation of the cat’s toes up to the last joint. Declawing is extremely painful. Cats have been known to show pain for months after surgery, sometimes for life.
Knowing they cannot defend themselves, declawed cats are more likely to bite than cats with claws, according to many feline behaviorists. Many declawed cats will not use the litter box.
If they ever get outside, declawed cats are much less likely to survive than cats that have claws. Declawing does not keep cats from being abandoned and surrendered to shelters. Many declawed cats are sitting in shelters.
Declawing is illegal in many countries, and a few towns in the United States. An increasing number of veterinarians refuse to declaw cats, seeing the damage it does.
Cats can easily be trained to use scratching posts instead of the furniture. Their nails can be trimmed and if need be, Soft Paws (vinyl caps that are glued onto the cat’s nails) can be used until Kitty is trustworthy.
Cats also should not be declawed to prevent them from scratching someone. Cats can and should be trained to keep their claws to themselves. Declawed cats are more likely to bite, and cat bites are said to be more likely to get infected than scratches.
Sincerely,
Esther Williams (Temple, GA)
Finally got a newspaper to publish a letter. I’ll be interested to see if anyone responds…
Hi Esther. Well done. I’d like to see the letter. Can you scan it and upload it? That may be too tricky to do. You can upload pictures to comments.
Nice to hear from you again. I’d love to think of something really clever and imaginative to try and rekindle the interest in the anti-declaw movement.
It is difficult. As long as vets do it, I don’t see change coming in a hurry. Vets have got to be stopped.
When I think about declawing it is almost unbelievable that it happens in North America. It is so obviously out of step with decent behavior and shows a dark side to American culture as far as I am concerned.