We Must Educate People that Declawing is Animal Abuse! The bill to ban declawing in NY will be back on the table in January so it will be a huge fight to pass this important cat protection bill.
The NYSVMS told their vet members in an email in the summer of 2016 after they defeated this declawing bill, “NYSVMS will ALWAYS aggressively defend the licensed veterinarian’s right to make medical treatment decisions that are in the best interest of their patients.” [button href=”https://citythekitty.org/nysvms-aggressively-defended-right-torture-maim-animals/” newwindow=”yes”] NYSVMS Aggressively Defend Comments[/button]
NEWSFLASH. DECLAWING IS NEVER IN THE BEST INTERESTS OF A CAT. But obviously if declawing was banned then it would hurt the pocketbooks of pro-declaw vets.
This is a screenshot from the July/August NYSVMS Connections Newsletter.
Let’s thank the NYSVMS for reminding us in the image of the cat on their newsletter, that we must use our VOICES and be ADVOCATES to EDUCATE the public and CAT OWNERS that DECLAWING is ANIMAL AB– USE and that we must protect all cats from LICENSED VETs who are doing this mutilating and inhumane procedure!
Here is the President’s message to all her vets in this 2016 JULY AUG newsletter. [button href=”http://www.nysvms.org/?page=kc” color=”red” newwindow=”yes”] NYSVMS Publications July Aug newsletter[/button] 
Here are the President of the NYSVMS, Dr Sue Wylegala’s words to her NY vets with some examples from me on how she lead, educated, advocated, and protected her vets.
“The 2016 legislative session ended June 18. NYSVMS fulfilled our mission statement to
LEAD, [button href=”https://citythekitty.org/nysvms-veterinarians-gastronomical-ecstasy-foie-gras-tour-2016/” color=”red” newwindow=”yes”] NYSVMS LEAD A TOUR & TASTING TO THE FOIE GRAS TORTURE FARM[/button] [button href=”https://citythekitty.org/unethical-vets/” newwindow=”yes”] NYSVMS PRES SAYS THE BILL TO BAN DECLAWING IS, “detrimental to animals and their owners.”[/button]
EDUCATE – (First time cat owner asks this NYSVMS board member’s veterinary group practice if declawing is ok to do to a cat and they say, “Absolutely, we do many… 100’s of declaws and I’ve been here 15 yrs and we use laser and it’s much more better, there no bleeding and it’s terrific. I’ve had my own cats declawed and not to worry.”
ADVOCATE- (When a first time cat owner asks for a neuter and declaw this NYSVMS President’s veterinary staff says in an email, “We like to combine the surgeries (declaw and neuter for a kitten) because it is one stress on the body, and he’s only getting anesthesia once.”
PROTECT THE PROFESSION OF VETERINARY MEDICINE- (First time cat owner asks about a declaw at this NYSVMS President’s practice and they ask, “just the front you are looking for, or all four?” Cat owner says, all four, and employee says, “If you are looking at all four declaw, that would be $388 plus pain meds you would go home with, we do recommend blood work and ekg prior to having an anesthetic. The blood work is $86 and the EKG is $57. Everything included, with the traditional way, it is $705 or $795 for laser.”
Dr Susan Wylegala, Pres of the NYSVMS, goes on to say in her NYSVMS newsletter, “I have never been prouder of this organization and our members. Irrespective of the issue, our mission is to educate legislators that NYSVMS is the premier organization to provide advice on issues affecting veterinary medicine and animal health. [button href=”https://citythekitty.org/the-propaganda-that-the-nysvms-is-spreading-about-declawing/” color=”red” newwindow=”yes”] Declawing propaganda that the NYSVMS put out for the NY Legislators[/button]
HERE ARE MORE WORDS IN THE JULY/AUG NYSVMS CONNECTIONS NEWSLETTER ABOUT THE BILL IN NY THAT WOULD HAVE BANNED DECLAWING IF PASSED BUT WAS DEFEATED BY THE NYSVMS.
MORE WORDS FROM THE NYSVMS ABOUT HOW THEY DEFEATED OUT CAT PROTECTION BILL THIS YEAR.
Declawing of Cats July Aug Connections
NYSVMS worked throughout the 2016 session to combat legislation that would prohibit the declawing of cats in nearly all circumstances.
Assemblywoman Rosenthal (A.1297-A) and Senator Griffo (S.5084-A) sponsored legislation that would prohibit the declawing of cats (onychectomy) in all circumstances, except when “necessary for a therapeutic purpose” such as the diagnosis of a disease in the cat. NYSVMS believes declawing is a serious medical procedure and the choice to perform one is a decision which should be left to the sound discretion of fully trained, licensed, and state supervised professionals operating within appropriate standards of practice. In addition, NYSVMS believes that declawing should be considered only after a complete education about the procedure and full briefings on alternatives, where the claws present a health risk to an owner, or where serious attempts to stop a cat’s destructive behavior have failed. However, declawing is often an alternative for owners that may otherwise leave their pet at a shelter, which can lead to euthanasia.
NYSVMS issued a Memorandum in Opposition to the legislation, and actively advocated against the bill throughout the 2016 legislative session. The legislation did not pass in either House of the Legislature.
Maybe you can respectfully inspire this President of the NYSVMS to honor her oath and lead her profession down a humane path like her colleagues in the United Kingdom and other countries where they consider declawing to be mutilation and they don’t perform it. [email protected]
[button href=”https://citythekitty.org/does-the-nysvms-president-walk-the-talk/” color=”red” newwindow=”yes”] NYSVMS President and board members practices and how they address declawing[/button]
These are some of the hundreds of declawed cats in New York that are in shelters and rescues near this 2016 NYSVMS President’s veterinary practice, Cheektowaga Animal hospital and near the 2015 NYSVMS President’s practice Apple Country Veterinary Hospital. 
Here are screenshots from the NYSVMS newsletter with the 2015 Pres of NYVMS, Dean Snyder, of Apple Country Veterinary Hospital bragging how they stopped the declawing bill in 2015. I was quite appalled at his words. Snyder’s Apple Country Veterinary Hospital front desk staff tells first time cat owners, who called earlier this year for a price for declaws and who were concerned if declawing is bad for their cat, to not worry. His people tell you that he uses a “healing laser” after he amputates the cat toes, they get a lot of cats coming through there for declaws, that he does a lot of declaws and even his own cats, and they are all fine, and his declaw/neuter price is $468. His front desk person doesn’t mention one thing about humane alternatives. Just google his name and declawing and you will see all the news stories where he says things like, “we have the finesse to do the procedure, and within two days (the cat) is happy, their owner is happy.” 
