Archive for January 8th, 2010
Cats are born with claws, as humans are born with fingernails and toe nails. Cats need claws in order to scratch and basically stretch their agile bodies as they pull back from their hold. Scratching is a basic physiological need of cats.
So do cats need to be declawed? If you truly care for the welfare of your cats, think twice on declawing your cats. Declawing is basicly taking out all the front claws of a cat. In a way this procedure is equal to the amputation of all the finger tips of a human being. For cats this surgery is painful and, for someone who is walking on all fours, terribly unnecessary. Recovery from the surgery may only take a few weeks or so, its physical and/or psychological effects could last a cat’s lifetime.
At the end, cats are extremely and highly trainable to use a posts for scratching instead of common household furniture, rugs or curtains. Please consider taking the time to teach them what’s allowed to scratch and what is not. They will be thankful for you not putting them through something totally unnecessary.