sons of bitches
this is mostly a reminder to myself that victories do not always remain victories, and good news does not always stay good news. the family that i thought i had successfully talked out of declawing their kitten a few weeks ago signed him up for the surgery again, and i had to prep him for it on wednesday night. they obviously didn't even try to trim his claws, because those damn things were hooks and when he freaked out at the sound of the clippers (had to shave a patch on his side to apply a fentanyl patch), he stabbed a couple of those hooks into my right hand. he's normally an awesome, awesome boy, like my zeke. completely chill, mellow, flops like a ragdoll when you hold him, loves and trusts everyone (just not evil machines that make loud noises). i hope he'll be alright. i hate seeing the cats after their surgery, with their legs bandaged to their elbows. they almost always rip them off shortly after they wake up, exposing their poor bloody paws. the one thing that i can say about my hospital is that our doctors are very, very cognizant of how painful the whole thing is, and prescribe regular dosing of pain killers as they recover. i truly believe that if owners knew what the surgery involved, watched it performed, and had to deal with their cats recovering (we keep them at the hospital for observation for the first 5 days after sx), that 95% of them would never do it again, no matter how bad off their couch might be.
from www.declawing.com:
"Written by Veterinarian, Dr. Christianne Schelling
If you are considering declawing your cat, please read this. It will only take a moment, and it will give you valuable information to help you in your decision.
First, you should know that declawing is pretty much an American thing, it's something people do for their own convenience without realizing what actually happens to their beloved cat. In England declawing is termed "inhumane" and "unnecessary mutilation." I agree. In many European countries it is illegal. I applaud their attitude.
Before you make the decision to declaw your cat, there are some important facts you should know. Declawing is not like a manicure. It is serious surgery. Your cat's claw is not a toenail. It is actually closely adhered to the bone. So closely adhered that to remove the claw, the last bone of your the cat's claw has to be removed. Declawing is actually an amputation of the last joint of your cat's "toes". When you envision that, it becomes clear why declawing is not a humane act. It is a painful surgery, with a painful recovery period. And remember that during the time of recuperation from the surgery your cat would still have to use its feet to walk, jump, and scratch in its litter box regardless of the pain it is experiencing. Wheelchairs and bedpans are not an option for a cat.
No cat lover would doubt that cats--whose senses are much keener than ours--suffer pain. They may, however, hide it better. Not only are they proud, they instinctively know that they are at risk when in a weakened position, and by nature will attempt to hide it. But make no mistake. This is not a surgery to be taken lightly.
Your cat's body is perfectly designed to give it the grace, agility and beauty that is unique to felines. Its claws are an important part of this design. Amputating the important part of their anatomy that contains the claws drastically alters the conformation of their feet. The cat is also deprived of its primary means of defense, leaving it prey to predators if it ever escapes to the outdoors.
I have also had people tell me that their cat's personality changed after being declawed. Although, the medical community does not recognize this as potential side effect."
it is very strange to be in a position where i know better than most veterinarians, but all it takes is a short tour of duty in a shelter and you will understand the real risks inherent in declawing your cat. some of these are mentioned as "myths" by animal hospitals or on websites, but after five years at a major humane society that takes in an average of 12-14,000 animals annually, i know these things to be true.
1. declawed cats are indeed more likely to be fearful. is this such a big leap? a cat's claws are its primary means of defense, and without them, they are much more vulnerable.
2. declawed cats tend not to handle stress as well as their clawed counterparts.
3. declawed cats are more prone to serious biting. cats will often warn you that they are done with being handled or are annoyed with something you're doing by placing their claws lightly on you. no claws? teeth come second, and a cat bite is almost always much more serious than a cat scratch. mothers will declaw their cats to save their children from scratches, and end up putting them at greater risk. if you already have a cat that likes to play bite or sometimes bites aggressively, the last thing you want to do is declaw it! it is almost certain to get worse.
4. in reference to #2, when stressed, declawed cats sometimes resort to house soiling.
5. the biggest freak of the cat world? your average all four declawed shelter cat.
now to be fair, there are scores of cats that go through the surgery with flying colors and come out the other end with stable personalities and adapt easily to new situations. i have one. marvin is 8 years old, front declawed, and has been through 4 homes with me. i adopted him at 5 years old and he is an easy going, confident cat that has adjusted well to every new animal i've brought home and every new environment he's been placed in. i am in no way suggesting that every cat that is declawed will become a fearful biting house soiling freak, but i just want to communicate to people that these are real possibilities. i have met hundreds of declawed kitties, both in the shelter and in people's homes, and have talked to hundreds of owners of declawed cats. i can't tell you how many times i have heard versions of this story: "well, they were fine for years and all of a sudden they just started peeing and crapping all over the house!" "was there any significant change that happened in your life around the time they started that behavior?" "...why yes, um, we moved into a new house/brought home a puppy/had a baby/etc/etc/etc" or "after he was declawed, he did start hiding whenever people came over," and on and on.
okay, fuck it. this is my journal and i don't have to be fucking fair and balanced. i am not an adoption counselor right now. the surgery is fucking painful. it is painful for days and days afterwards. it is by definition mutilation and should not be fucking legal in this country. if you find your furniture more important than your cat, YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE A FUCKING CAT. the surgery is unnecessary as it provides no medical benefit to the cat, and cruelly deforms its paws. it is the equivalent of someone coming along, knocking you out, and amputating the first joint of all your fingers and all your toes. might that fucking bother you?
we once had a big fat cat at lollypop that we called "large marge." she was over 20 lbs of talkative gray tiger lovin'. she was one of those super cranky yet somehow still very lovable cats. she'd enjoy her pets and when she'd had enough, she'd bite you (not hard). she was a presence to be sure. she was almost put on the euthanasia list two or three times because of her occasional cranky biting, but the staff always rallied on her behalf and she'd be saved. after many weeks of hopeful waiting, she was finally adopted. we rejoiced! a week later, she was returned. i initially started the admission, but had to turn it over to another counselor almost immediately. the family had taken marge home, and when she didn't get along well with the other animals, they decided that declawing all four of her paws was the solution. 20 lbs of cat on four tiny mutilated paws? she was in so much pain, she was in a screaming frenzy and tried to attack anyone who got near her. we had no choice but to put her down. i cried so hard my chest ached. i don't know what fucking vet thought it ethical to declaw an 6 year old 20 pound cat, but i hope they go to hell. they should have been the ones to have to euthanize her, and her adoptive family should have had to watch. this is why shelter work is so murderous on the soul. you have to clean up the messes of so many others.
and i'll get off my soap box now.
as you can see, the surgery involves all the complexity and delicacy of chopping off the toes with a guillotine nail trimmer. nice huh?
from www.declawing.com:
"Written by Veterinarian, Dr. Christianne Schelling
If you are considering declawing your cat, please read this. It will only take a moment, and it will give you valuable information to help you in your decision.
First, you should know that declawing is pretty much an American thing, it's something people do for their own convenience without realizing what actually happens to their beloved cat. In England declawing is termed "inhumane" and "unnecessary mutilation." I agree. In many European countries it is illegal. I applaud their attitude.
Before you make the decision to declaw your cat, there are some important facts you should know. Declawing is not like a manicure. It is serious surgery. Your cat's claw is not a toenail. It is actually closely adhered to the bone. So closely adhered that to remove the claw, the last bone of your the cat's claw has to be removed. Declawing is actually an amputation of the last joint of your cat's "toes". When you envision that, it becomes clear why declawing is not a humane act. It is a painful surgery, with a painful recovery period. And remember that during the time of recuperation from the surgery your cat would still have to use its feet to walk, jump, and scratch in its litter box regardless of the pain it is experiencing. Wheelchairs and bedpans are not an option for a cat.
No cat lover would doubt that cats--whose senses are much keener than ours--suffer pain. They may, however, hide it better. Not only are they proud, they instinctively know that they are at risk when in a weakened position, and by nature will attempt to hide it. But make no mistake. This is not a surgery to be taken lightly.
Your cat's body is perfectly designed to give it the grace, agility and beauty that is unique to felines. Its claws are an important part of this design. Amputating the important part of their anatomy that contains the claws drastically alters the conformation of their feet. The cat is also deprived of its primary means of defense, leaving it prey to predators if it ever escapes to the outdoors.
I have also had people tell me that their cat's personality changed after being declawed. Although, the medical community does not recognize this as potential side effect."
it is very strange to be in a position where i know better than most veterinarians, but all it takes is a short tour of duty in a shelter and you will understand the real risks inherent in declawing your cat. some of these are mentioned as "myths" by animal hospitals or on websites, but after five years at a major humane society that takes in an average of 12-14,000 animals annually, i know these things to be true.
1. declawed cats are indeed more likely to be fearful. is this such a big leap? a cat's claws are its primary means of defense, and without them, they are much more vulnerable.
2. declawed cats tend not to handle stress as well as their clawed counterparts.
3. declawed cats are more prone to serious biting. cats will often warn you that they are done with being handled or are annoyed with something you're doing by placing their claws lightly on you. no claws? teeth come second, and a cat bite is almost always much more serious than a cat scratch. mothers will declaw their cats to save their children from scratches, and end up putting them at greater risk. if you already have a cat that likes to play bite or sometimes bites aggressively, the last thing you want to do is declaw it! it is almost certain to get worse.
4. in reference to #2, when stressed, declawed cats sometimes resort to house soiling.
5. the biggest freak of the cat world? your average all four declawed shelter cat.
now to be fair, there are scores of cats that go through the surgery with flying colors and come out the other end with stable personalities and adapt easily to new situations. i have one. marvin is 8 years old, front declawed, and has been through 4 homes with me. i adopted him at 5 years old and he is an easy going, confident cat that has adjusted well to every new animal i've brought home and every new environment he's been placed in. i am in no way suggesting that every cat that is declawed will become a fearful biting house soiling freak, but i just want to communicate to people that these are real possibilities. i have met hundreds of declawed kitties, both in the shelter and in people's homes, and have talked to hundreds of owners of declawed cats. i can't tell you how many times i have heard versions of this story: "well, they were fine for years and all of a sudden they just started peeing and crapping all over the house!" "was there any significant change that happened in your life around the time they started that behavior?" "...why yes, um, we moved into a new house/brought home a puppy/had a baby/etc/etc/etc" or "after he was declawed, he did start hiding whenever people came over," and on and on.
okay, fuck it. this is my journal and i don't have to be fucking fair and balanced. i am not an adoption counselor right now. the surgery is fucking painful. it is painful for days and days afterwards. it is by definition mutilation and should not be fucking legal in this country. if you find your furniture more important than your cat, YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE A FUCKING CAT. the surgery is unnecessary as it provides no medical benefit to the cat, and cruelly deforms its paws. it is the equivalent of someone coming along, knocking you out, and amputating the first joint of all your fingers and all your toes. might that fucking bother you?
we once had a big fat cat at lollypop that we called "large marge." she was over 20 lbs of talkative gray tiger lovin'. she was one of those super cranky yet somehow still very lovable cats. she'd enjoy her pets and when she'd had enough, she'd bite you (not hard). she was a presence to be sure. she was almost put on the euthanasia list two or three times because of her occasional cranky biting, but the staff always rallied on her behalf and she'd be saved. after many weeks of hopeful waiting, she was finally adopted. we rejoiced! a week later, she was returned. i initially started the admission, but had to turn it over to another counselor almost immediately. the family had taken marge home, and when she didn't get along well with the other animals, they decided that declawing all four of her paws was the solution. 20 lbs of cat on four tiny mutilated paws? she was in so much pain, she was in a screaming frenzy and tried to attack anyone who got near her. we had no choice but to put her down. i cried so hard my chest ached. i don't know what fucking vet thought it ethical to declaw an 6 year old 20 pound cat, but i hope they go to hell. they should have been the ones to have to euthanize her, and her adoptive family should have had to watch. this is why shelter work is so murderous on the soul. you have to clean up the messes of so many others.
and i'll get off my soap box now.
as you can see, the surgery involves all the complexity and delicacy of chopping off the toes with a guillotine nail trimmer. nice huh?