The hypocrisy of Dr. Joanne Carlson DVM is breathtaking. She is the President of the Illinois State Veterinary Medical Association. She is pushing back on a proposed law that would ban declawing in Illinois. Veterinarians normally do pushback when politicians propose a declawing ban because declawing is a good revenue stream for the vets. Declawing vets ignore its inherent cruelty.
Dr Carlson’s statement
But here is the important part of this article. And it is astonishing. I’ll quote Dr. Carlson verbatim as reported.
While we appreciate good intentions, this bill will jeopardize the lives of some cats and compromise veterinarians’ ability to uphold their medical oath to protect and save animals’ lives.
She is saying that the proposed law will compromise veterinarians’ abilities to uphold their medical oath. And their oath is that they will protect and save animals lives. They will do no harm to animals.
The oath
Here is the oath verbatim:
I will strive to promote animal health and welfare, relieve animal suffering, protect the health of the public and environment, and advance comparative medical knowledge. I will practise my profession conscientiously, with dignity, and in keeping with the principles of veterinary medical ethics.
Declawing shreds the vet’s oath almost every time it is done
And yet, every time a veterinarian declaws a cat for non-therapeutic reasons, they are tearing up their medical oath and throwing it in the waste bin because they are doing harm to cats in a very serious way without any therapeutic benefit to the animal. 99.9% of declawing operations are carried out for the convenience of the owner to stop them scratching furniture and sometimes people.
Living toy
Declawing turns a genuine cat into a living cat toy, which the owner can possess and enjoy. It just happens to be living but it’s been modified a bit like customising a car.
Pain
Declawing causes immense suffering for no health benefit to the cat. It dramatically harms the kitten. It achieves the opposite to that which is sworn in the oath. The bloody opposite and I have chosen the word ‘bloody’ carefully because there is a lot of blood afterwards – all over the walls.
RELATED: Epidemic of Botched Cat Declaw Operations
Shame
I’ll say it again, Dr. Carson is hugely hypocritical because what she’s doing in declawing cats is in breach of her oath. She has the audacity to state that a law banning declawing which will help veterinarians stick to their oath will drive them to breach their oath. Rubbish. American veterinarians who declaw should be ashamed of themselves every day of their lives. They mutilate little kittens. How can they do that?
RELATED: 10 reasons why cat declawing is wrong, unethical and immoral
Who is she?
Carlson’s statement is turning the truth upside down. I’ve never heard such a ridiculous argument in all my life. And I wonder whether Dr. Carlson is the daughter of Delbert G. Carlson who is one of the renowned authors of the well-known veterinary book: Cat Owner’s Home Veterinary Handbook. I don’t know but it’s possible. And if it’s true it is another reason why I’m shocked at the woman’s argument.
More states to ban declawing?
Separately, I’m told by another website, the Seattle Times, that “lawmakers in more than a dozen states have filed legislation this year to outlaw the declawing of cats”.
I couldn’t find anything to back up this statement but it implies that there are more than 12 American states planning to ban cat declawing which you can add to the existing two states, New York and Maryland. Clearly, one of them is Illinois as discussed above but I would like to know more because a dozen states banning declawing would possibly fatally undermine this misguided and obnoxious operation and I could see it being banned in the remaining states not long afterwards.
Compassion??
Dr Joanne Carlson has this on her Linkedin webpage:
My passion for providing the highest standard of veterinary care led me to open my own clinic focused on compassionate care, client education, integrity, and respect.”
Compassion!! Where is the compassion in declawing for non-therapeutic reasons? It is the opposite. Cruel and wicked.
Let’s hope.
I agree there should be animal representation in all Parliaments – also insects and birds, included, especially bees, wasps and butterflies
Absolutely wrong, evil and cruel. Should be made illegal worldwide, with only rare exceptions
Agreed and thanks for commenting, Ruth. You know me. I hate declawing with a passion and have hundreds of articles on the topic. The vet in question is clearly blind to her bias and unprofessionalism. I agree that declawing in the US is dying gradually but it is like pulling teeth from a rhinoceros. It is that hard as the vets just don’t want to give up the revenue stream. Hope you are both well.
Declawing veterinarians are becoming desperate as they know this cruel surgery has to end one day, The Paw Project and all their supporters will never give up until it is illegal and a punishable offence, like it is in many other countries. With so much information on line nowadays and so much proof of the mental and/or physical problems it causes to many cats, cat lovers are getting more and more annoyed that it is still allowed to happen, that this surgery so cruel that it is banned in many countries is still allowed to be advertised and encouraged by declawing vets. It does not keep cats in their homes, many are abandoned when the problems from declawing begin. It does break the oath to harm no animal and we true cat lovers must not rest until it is banned worldwide! .