Story published April 11, 2022.
We received a screenshot of this public post that a cat owner posted on her facebook page.
Many people gave her recommendations of vet practices in her area for a declaw.
Our researchers looked into how these Ohio vet clinics addressed declawing by asking for the price of a spay/neuter/declaw, which vet was skilled at the procedure, and if declawing is ok for a cat long term.
We have withheld the names of employees for fear that they might suffer a backlash for their honest answers.
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Metz Petz Veterinary Clinic in Shawnee, OH.
The employee said that their two doctors do the declaws regularly, around one a week and pretty often, a declaw is around $200-$300, and when asked if a cat is ok long term they said, “yep, they do pretty well.”
They said they use a laser and it’s better. The owner of Metz Petz is Dr Melissa Metz and Dr Nathan Metz and the employee said that Dr Nathan does the declaws regularly. A two paw declaw is $330- $407.
Baker Animal Hospital, Cridersville, OH
A neuter/declaw is $230. The employee said that they only do two paw declaws unless an owner has a bleeding disorder and you can discuss the 4 paw option with a doctor. They said that Dr Adam Ferguson and Dr Fred Ryan do their declaws and they do around one a week. When asked if the cats are ok from a declaw they said that they almost never have any issues from a declaw and the only time is if an owner releases their cat right away in the house and their paws might get swollen. They said to do your research to make sure if a declaw is something that you want to do but they do declawing there quite frequently. When asked if a declaw is ok long term for a cat, they said that their doctors perform the declaw procedure and their doctors are ok with performing them.
Woodside Veterinary Hospital, Marysville, OH
Employee was asked for a cost for a neuter/declaw and she asked, “Just the front?”
A neuter/declaw is around $482 or $587, depending on if you want a laser declaw and a 4 paw declaw.
They said Dr Levan does their declaws and does probably more than one a week.
When asked if Dr Levan does the declaws regularly, the employee laughed and said, “Yes, we are the only ones who do them around here right now. The other vets aren’t doing them.”
Our researcher asked why aren’t the other vets doing them. The employee laughed and said, “They just don’t feel like it’s very humane.”
Researcher asked if a declaw is humane. The employee said, “It is, we do it by laser. Take them off that way.” They said the laser cauterizes while it cuts so there is less swelling and less bleeding.
They said that there are some they do on two paws and some on four paws. Researcher asked if a declaw is ok for a cat long term and they said, “Oh yea, absolutely.” They said the only thing is to not let them outside.
Oates Veterinary Clinic, Kenton, OH
The employee said they only do front declaws. A 2 paw declaw is $212 for under 12 lbs. They have two doctors, Dr Bill Decker and Dr Monica Dyer who do their declaws. Employee said that they use a laser and do declaws on a regular basis and they do more than one a week. Researcher asked if the cats are ok long term from a declaw and the employee said yes and there are no issues.
Diamond M Veterinary Clinic, Kenton, OH
A neuter/declaw is $234 and they only do the two paw declaw. They said Dr Ernie Kerns and Dr Melissa Curry do their declaws and they do them regularly. They said they don’t use a laser and cut the toes off up to the first joint in their paws. When asked if the cats are ok long term from a declaw the employee said that a doctor or technician will go over the different things to look for. They said it can be pretty painful for a cat. The surgery is cutting off to the first knuckle. They said they have 5 doctors and only two are willing to do the surgery so that kind of tells you. They said the other three doctors don’t believe in taking off the nails like that. They said a lot of practices don’t do declaws at all.
Auglaize Animal Hospital, Wapakoneta, OH
The employee said that Dr Madison (Maddy) Sandusky is the owner and she does their declaws on a regular basis and uses a laser. When asked if the cats are ok long term the employee said yes. A two paw declaw is $165.
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Midwest Animal Clinic. (They changed the name to Serendipity Clinic.)
The owner is Dr Jackie Insko and she does the declaws. The employee said that they do multiple declaws a week, and there are at least a couple declaws a week.
A 2 paw declaw is $110. A 4 paw declaw is $185. They said that she only does all four declaw if the cat is really hurting the owner with its claws or it’s the only way a cat can keep its home.
When asked if a declaw is ok for a cat long term the employee said that Dr Jackie Santoro does their declaws and she doesn’t have any issues and she front declawed her own cats and none of them have had any issues.
The employee said that Dr Jackie wraps their paws after the declaw and leaves that on for a few days and you need to use paper cat litter and they mentioned Purina’s Yesterdays News.
Facebook posts from 2018 from Midwest Animal Clinic.
