I feel that America is chipping away at declawing. It is happening bit by bit. It is a slow process. It’s bound to be slow because it took years for this objectionable operation to become part of the culture of America. But it fits in very uncomfortably in American society as a very substantial section of cat owners and others object to it and find it unethical and immoral, not to mention entirely unnecessary.
There are two states deciding whether to ban declawing across the entire state: New Jersey and New York. New York were first to debate the idea. New Jersey state Assembly recently voted by a large majority of 43-10 to make declawing the criminal offence of animal cruelty, which is exactly what it is.
The New Jersey bill (draft law) now moves to the Senate. The great man sponsoring the bill is Troy Singleton (D-Burlington).
“Many countries worldwide acknowledge the inhumane nature of declawing, which causes extreme pain to cats. It’s time for New Jersey to join them.”
Excellent words. Don’t be fooled by the veterinarians who want to keep mutilating cats to boost profits. And don’t be fooled by the counter arguments that banning declawing will mean more unwanted cats. There may be an initial jolt but in the medium to long term all New Jersey cat owners will come to realise that a cat with claws is entirely acceptable.
Another New Jersey Assemblyman has proposed another animal welfare bill: the creation of a registry of convicted animal abusers which will be available to the public online. An excellent deterrent to the nasty people amongst us who want to harm animals. And of course such a registry will help protect animals going forward.
“Someone who has been convicted of abusing an animal has no business working with animals. It’s like putting a fox in charge of the henhouse,”
You have to applaud New Jersey.
