The governor of New York state, Andrew Cuomo, signed the bill into law after the state legislature passed the bill banning declawing last month. New York State Veterinary Medical Society fought the bill all the way arguing that they should make the decision to declaw. Sorry but you have proved over and over again that you are incapable of making a decision in accordance with your oath and in the cat’s interest.
Michael Gianaris, the deputy leader of the New York Senate said that the surgery was akin to severing a human finger at the first knuckle and had “lifelong ramifications for cats” including chronic pain. Yes, absolutely, that is exactly what it is and veterinarians across the nation have consistently downplayed the severity of the operation. The name itself, ‘declawing’, is a misdescription. It is not simply the removal of the claw but the bone which holds the claw beyond the first knuckle.
“This is a real triumph cats and the people who love them. This has catapulted New York to a leadership position when it comes to cruelty against felines.” – Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal, D-Manhattan, who pushed for years for a ban on cat declawing in the state. This woman is a heroine in my honest opinion. A statute should be built of her in a prominent position in the city of New York.
This is a momentous occasion in the campaign to stop declawing in America. It is the biggest single moment in that campaign which is proving successful. New York state is the first US state to ban cat declawing. Until now eight cities in California banned declawing.
Since then there was a pause and now we have an entire state of America banning it. In Canada the ban is more widespread and indeed Canadian legislatures in banning declawing over large areas may have encourage New York state to follow.
This news will bring great joy the very many millions of people both in America and abroad who regard cat declawing as highly objectionable and as an unnecessary mutilation of domestic cats for the convenience of their owners.
It is an operation which goes fully and wholly against the oath of all veterinarians in America. May this be the beginning of the end for this aberration in cat welfare in a country where there are more cat lovers and domestic cats than any other.
To make things absolutely clear, the ban relates to cat declawing for non-therapeutic reasons. Clearly veterinarians have the right as have cat owners to decide to declaw when it is strictly for health and welfare reasons in the interests of the cat. However, this is extremely rare and 99.9% of cat declawing in America is carried out for non-therapeutic reasons. This will no longer happen in New York State. I will update this post as and when I can and as soon as possible.
