In many countries declawing cats is illegal, and seen as inhumane. I will spare you the details of what it can do to our feline friends. This is not an article to shock and upset, rather it is meant to inform and offer some alternative solutions. If you wish to know all the details, there are many other articles out there on the Internet.
One thing that is important to know, however, is that declawing is not a manicure. It involves the amputation of the last joint of your cat's "toes". When you think of it like that, I think it will become clear why it is not considered a humane thing in so many countries.
As humans, we tend to be proud of our houses and our furniture. The way our place looks is often a manner of expressing ourselves, as well as comfort. Obviously, not many of us welcome our furry friends using our chairs as scratchposts and our curtains as jolly good climbing fun.
So what then?
I am lucky. I live in a tiny village surrounded by hills, and my cats can safely come and go as they please. Of course this means that I receive the occasional "gift" of whatever they thoughtfully decide to drag into my home, but it also means that they tend to get their climbing and scratching out of their systems and treat my furniture pretty much the same way as I - to sit on and sleep on.
For many cats and cat owners this is not an option. In the big city, or when living in any other environment with busy roads and more risks of illnesses, cats tend to live indoors. A good alternative for indoor cats is to teach them to use scratching posts. These come in many shapes and sizes and tend to be very effective. A roughly textured welcome mat in front of the door can do wonders as well.
Other options involve lightweight vinyl caps that can be glued to the cat's front paws. They come in different colours and last about four to six weeks on average. Alternatively, your veterinarian can teach you how to safely and painlessly clip your cat's nails. These options are only recommended for indoor cats, because outside your home your cat will need full use of their claws to match their outdoors adventures.
These are just some of the alternatives to declawing that are available.
If your concern is about how your cat will behave around your children, it is best to read up on as much information as possible before adding a feline to your family. Luckily, the vast majority of cats get along great with people of all ages, and you can teach your child how to safely handle their new friend.
If you are very afraid about your home and furniture, and you do not feel anything else but declawing will be adequate, it might be that a cat is not the best companion for you. Although most cats are actually quite careful with their environment, accidents can happen. And what you see as your prized new leather sofa might be seen as a wonderful new toy to play with, that you must have bought just to entertain your cat! They are not human, after all.
But that does not give us an excuse to be inhumane...
This article has been submitted in affiliation with http://www.PetLovers.Com/ which is a site for Pet Forums.
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