Pittsburgh Considers Making Cat Declawing Illegal

PITTSBURGH, PA — Declawing your cat soon could cost more than a trip to the vet in Pittsburgh. City council is considering making the practice illegal and those caught getting their kitty's claws snipped would be subject to a $500 fine.

Council members Bobby Wilson, Bruce Kraus and Anthony Coghill on Wednesday introduced a change to the city animal ordinance, which would have to be approved by a city council majority before becoming law.

The proposed ordinance change describes onychectomy, the medical term for declawing, as "painful, cruel, dangerous to cats and very seldom medically necessary." The council members compare the procedure to amputation as it involves the removal of not just claws, but also bones, nerves, joint capsules, collateral ligaments, and extensor and flexor tendons up to the joint.

The ordinance notes that declawed cats often develop behavioral problems and end up in overcrowded city animal shelters. Many ultimately have to be euthanized.

The state of New York, St. Louis County in Missouri and the cities of Austin, Denver, Beverly Hills, Berkeley, Culver City, Burbank, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, West Hollywood all have prohibited elective cat declawing.

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