Community | December 10, 2011 | 14 comments

Israel Bans Cat Declawing | Punishment: One Year in Prison, $20,000 Fine

source: http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2011/12/07/israel-bans-cat-declawing-punishment-on...

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EthicalVegan
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Israel Bans Cat Declawing. Punishment: One Year In Prison, $20K

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On November 28th Israel’s legislature unanimously passed a bill that outlaws the declawing of cats, except for certain medical reasons, making it a crime punishable by up to one year in prison and a fine of about $20,000 (or 75,000 shekels).

Declawing is a somewhat misleading term; in the procedure, called an onychectomy, the veterinarian typically removes all or most of the cat’s outer toe joint, bone and all. As declawing opponents have often pointed out, the human equivalent would be the amputation of your fingertips at or just above your third knuckle. Cats also use their toes/nails to walk upon; the Israel bill says the ban will help cats move around more normally, avoid certain medical complications, and defend themselves.

Declawing is not very common outside North America, and is banned in much of Europe, Australia, Turkey, Brazil, and elsewhere. It’s estimated that about 25 percent of American cats are declawed, typically done to protect the owner’s furniture. While the procedure is legal in most places in the U.S., it’s been banned in several cities in California, a state where it’s also illegal to declaw wild or exotic cats.

Scratching is done in part to mark a cat’s territory, and the animal can often be taught to use a scratching post instead of, say, your favorite armchair. Regular nail-clipping can also keep cats’ claws from doing excessive damage. Some studies have shown declawed cats to be more likely to exhibit problematic behaviors, like jumping onto tables or more frequent biting.

One study found that 20 percent of cats underwent complications, like infections, after declawing.

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  1. groups:
    Community,   Random,   Current Tonight,   World News,   5 more
  2. tags:
    Animal Rights,  Animal Protection,  cats,  Mutilation,  4 more
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14 comments // Israel Bans Cat Declawing | Punishment: One Year in Prison, $20,000 Fine

  • good_stuff
  • freehit
    • 0
      freehit  

    • Luckly our house fits the bill of "trailer trash" decorating so the cat does it's thing everywhere except on my legs. When we could afford to have cable T.V. there was an ad for a dremel type sander used to sand down the tips of the nails to avoid the breakage of clipping. We always laughed at it because it showed this cat calmly laying in it's human's arms while getting it's nails sanded down. The comment I made when seeing that was, do the kitty qualudes come with the sander or do you have to buy them seperately?

    • 6 months ago
  • SchmalltzMaven
  • HarukoHaruhara
    • +4
      HarukoHaruhara  

    • Declawing is cruel -- like debarking a dog.

      And it's uncecessary. Cats can be trained not to claw, you can use cat "No!" or you can buy them a bloody scratching post. Declawing is for lazy pet owners who don't want to take the time to train their cat.

    • 6 months ago
  • Wyley_Wombat
    • 0
      Wyley_Wombat  
    • HarukoHaruhara:

      I've always considered it the equivalent of having the tips of your fingers cut off at the nail depth. I would not do that to a cat even though mine has a scratching post and still likes the couch and chairs. I keep the squirt bottle handy.

    • 6 months ago
  • ThirdSection
  • UhOhSpaghettiO
  • OlBlue
  • EmperorThan
  • EthicalVegan
    • +4
      EthicalVegan  
    • EmperorThan:

      .

      I've oftentimes protested and signed petitions and shared news about -- or at least negatively commented upon -- human circumcision, both male AND female.

      Mutilation is mutilation, no matter WHO the animal.

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      So THIS time, I posted an article about the mutilation of domestic cats.

      Check out Facebook if you want to see me spouting off about female and male circumcision. And my son has a whole campaign going against human circumcision, and whose campaign I completely support. Surely I deserve a BIT of credit, then, for caring for ALL the animals, wouldn't you say?

    • 6 months ago
  • UhOhSpaghettiO
  • ThirdSection
  • EmperorThan
  • EthicalVegan
    • +3
      EthicalVegan  

    • .

      These two sentences bear repeating...

      Declawing is a somewhat misleading term; in the procedure, called an onychectomy, the veterinarian typically removes all or most of the cat’s outer toe joint, bone and all. As declawing opponents have often pointed out, the human equivalent would be the amputation of your fingertips at or just above your third knuckle.

      .

    • 6 months ago
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