07/17/2025
In a significant win for animal welfare, Rhode Island has become the fifth U.S. state to prohibit cat declawing!šCats there can no longer be subjected to these procedures for cosmetic reasons or their guardiansā convenience. Other states include New York, Maryland, Virginia, and Massachusetts. Cities and counties across the U.S. also ban declawing, as well at least 38 countries, including almost all of western Europe.
Fortunately, there has been growing awareness of the risks and cruelty of declawing, which is animal abuse and must be prohibited altogether. Declawing is not a harmless grooming procedure ā itās a surgery that involves amputating part of a catās toe bones or severing the tendons that control their paws. This forces cats to walk on the backs of their feet rather than their toes, making them more susceptible to back pain and impairing their balance, mobility, and ability to climb or jump.
Declawed cats may even develop anxiety or aggression as a result of the chronic stress they experience, and they are left defenselessā all to accommodate their humans who supposedly care about them but actually love their furniture more.
Catsā claws are integral to their natural behaviors, including stretching and playing, and for that reason, many veterinarians will not perform onychectomies. There are simpler and safer alternatives to discourage cats from scratching furniture or people, most notably providing them with a scratching post or other appropriate scratching material.
If your vet still declaws, we urge you to find another veterinarian.š
Way to go Rhode Island!
You can help educate others with information from https://pawproject.org/