I know I can say this until I'm blue in the face, but the people that need to hear this won't. It'll only serve to enrage and sadden those who already know. All I can do is continue to share these stories and hope that it makes a difference.
Declawing causes aggression and litterbox issues. No, every cat won't have either one of those issues. But it happens enough that it's just not worth it! Not to mention the life-long pain and suffering it causes the cats.
1. Aggression
Guy walks in the front door, says, "This cat is aggressive and we're expecting a baby. We can't keep him." He plops the carrier on the ground.
"We can't rehome a cat that is aggressive. He will be euthanized Has he bitten anybody?"
"Yes, my pregnant wife."
"Did the bite break skin?"
"Yes."
"When was the last bite that broke skin?"
"This morning."
"He'll be placed on a ten day rabies quarantine and then euthanized at the end of the quarantine if not reclaimed. I need your ID."
During this conversation, the owner has grown increasingly upset and is now visibly red and tearing up. He says, "I need five minutes." and storms out, leaving the cat in the lobby. Since I already have his information from his Drivers License, I wait to see if he comes back.
A few minutes later, he storms back in, says, "You guys should be ashamed of yourselves." grabs the cat and storms back out.
Because there was a bite involved, I called the ACO on call. He called the owner, who told him that the cat was NOT aggressive and the bite did NOT break skin. He did not want the cat euthanized. He was advised by the ACO to keep the cat on a ten day quarantine at home, since he was up-to-date on rabies and bit a family member.
Less than an hour later, the owner comes back in to surrender the cat, again. He again says that the cat is not aggressive, and was just playing with his wife. Finally, we find out that the cat is declawed. He was adopted as a tiny kitten 4 years ago and is now back as a declawed bite cat.
He is absolutely aggressive. He's likely been in pain for four years. He cannot be safely removed from his carrier. He tries to scratch and bite. Now he gets to sit in a room, surrounded by other cats, for ten days. Then he will be euthanized, long forgotten and abandoned by his owner.
2. Litterbox issues
Lady brings a cat in, says that he's spraying everywhere. I ask if there are other cats, she says yes. I ask how long he's been doing it, and she says he's been doing it for years, and she can't take it anymore. I ask if he's declawed, and she says yes.
Declawing makes a cat's toes more sensitive. In this case, he approaches the litterbox because he knows he's supposed to use it, but then he goes right next to it because the litter hurts his feet. Or he'll find a different spot, maybe some plastic bags, because it seems like a pretty good litterbox substitute.
Well, she says, here's the reason I had him declawed: He was so friendly with people and dogs, and would stretch his arms up to greet anybody he met. I was afraid that he would claw out my dog's eyes because he's so friendly.
....
I can't make this stuff up.
The whole time she's talking, I'm screaming in my head, "CUT HIS NAILS! CUT HIS F*ING NAILS! DON'T MUTILATE YOUR CAT BECAUSE YOU'RE A MORON!"
But of course it's too late. Too late for the cat, anyway. He IS such a friendly boy. Such a nice cat. He's waiting for the vets to look at him and make sure he doesn't have any underlying medical issues causing him not to use the litterbox. But we all know what the issue is.
For the love of cats, STOP DECLAWING.
