Some animal rights supporters are backing a costs pending prior to the Illinois House that would make it prohibited to declaw cats in the state.
The costs, sponsored by state Rep. Barbara Hernandez, would change the state’s Humane Care for Animals Act and would “provide that a person shall not perform surgical claw removal, declawing or a tendonectomy on any cat or otherwise alter a cat’s toes, claws or paws to prevent or impair the normal function of the cat’s toes, claws or paws, except for a therapeutic purpose.”
Those who breach the restriction would deal with a $500 fine for the very first offense, $1,000 fine for a 2nd offense and $2,500 fine for a 3rd or subsequent offense.
“I have a lot of animal lovers in my district and I think overall in the state of Illinois as well,” Hernandez, an Aurora Democrat, said in discussing why she sponsored the costs. “I also own a cat. This is something that is very close to my heart. If you declaw a cat, it can cause a lot of health issues. It could be a safety concern for them as well. A lot of people decide to declaw their cat because they are tired of them damaging their furniture or cutting their nails is a pain. However, once they declaw the cat, it’s very damaging because it pretty much amputates a cat, which once again, can be very painful for them. It’s unnecessary and if your cat is known to go into the wild and roam around, it won’t be able to defend itself from other animals.”
Hernandez presented the proposition in the Illinois House on Jan. 27, and it’s been sent to the Rules Committee. The strategy got 2 House co-sponsors on Feb. 3.
If passed, Illinois would end up being the 3rd state to authorize such a restriction, according to the not-for-profit group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. New York prohibited cat declawing in 2019 and Maryland did so in 2015. In addition, a number of cities throughout the nation restriction cat declawing, consisting of Madison, Wisconsin, according to PETA.
Catie Cryar, a representative for PETA, supports the costs.
“Imagine that your fingers were cut off at the first knuckle – that’s declawing, an unnecessary and painful mutilation that involves amputating not just cats’ nails but also their joints, resulting in decreased mobility, chronic pain and mental anguish,” Cryar said in a declaration. “Declawing is recognized as cruel and unnecessary in Europe, and it’s been banned in numerous U.S. cities and states – and PETA supports legislation outlawing this cruelty.”
The Schaumburg-based American Veterinary Medical Association dissuades cat declawing. It supports non-surgical options to the treatment.
“The AVMA respects the veterinarian’s right to use professional judgment when deciding how to best protect their individual patients’ health and welfare,” it says in a declaration on its website. “Therefore, it is incumbent upon the veterinarian to counsel the owner about the natural scratching behavior of cats, the alternatives to surgery, as well as the details of the procedure itself and subsequent potential complications. Onychectomy is a surgical amputation and if performed, multi-modal perioperative pain management must be utilized.”
According to Pets Best family pet insurance provider, declawing surgical treatment can vary from $600 to $1,800.
Those wishing to adopt a cat from Anderson Humane in South Elgin should consent to not having actually the cat declawed.
“We do not allow cats to be declawed once they’re adopted,” said Dean Daubert, primary operations officer at Anderson Humane. “This bill aligns with Anderson Humane’s current adoption policies. It used to be very common for cats to be declawed years ago. But as we know more, we do better. Science now tells us it’s very painful and detrimental to the cats, both psychologically and physically, to declaw them.”
Instead, Anderson Humane attempts to inform individuals about the threats of declawing.
“We want people to understand that it is very painful for the cats and that they can develop severe psychological problems, behavioral problems and physical problems from being declawed,” he said.
In addition, the staff at Anderson likewise informs individuals on methods to help avoid a cat from participating in habits such as scratching at furnishings.
“Providing scratching posts as an outlet for a cat to scratch on can really help redirect some of those behaviors for the reasons that they would want to declaw their cat,” Daubert said. “Keeping their nails trimmed and good grooming for your cat also helps with that.”
Animal law lawyer Cherie Travis said individuals now understand that declawing does more damage than good.
“You’re basically trading one habit for a worse habit,” she said. “A cat that has no claws might do a lot of other things. They might urinate in the wrong places and they might act up in other ways.”
She kept in mind of the states and cities that have actually prohibited declawing.
“It’s kind of a recognition that it’s an unnecessary and painful process,” Travis said.
