Story published on April 25, 2024.

On March 19, 2024 Assembly member Wendy Carrillo introduced the anti-declawing bill AB 2954 in CA. https://legiscan.com/CA/text/AB2954/id/2962679

(On April 8, 2024, Assembly member Carrillo unexpectedly pulled the bill from being heard in the committee. We sent emails and called Carrillo’s office and her Legislative Director Natalee Vicencia sent an email saying she is happy to answer any questions about this but we never heard back from her.)

On March 27, 2024 the California Veterinary Medical Association (CVMA) sent an email titled “CVMA Board of Governors Takes 2024 Legislation Positions”  to all their members saying AB 2954 is one of their top priority bills and they oppose it.

We wanted to see how their leader’s practices address declawing so our researchers looked in to this with a short phone call and the info on their websites.

We also wanted to find out if declawing is rarely performed in California as the CVMA claims.

We found that declawing is not a very common procedure, however many of the vet clinics that are still performing it are still making easy and good money from this animal cruelty.

In March of 2024 we were also informed about a vet clinic in Los Angeles that is still regularly declawing cats. (Declawing was made illegal in Los Angeles in 2009.)

We have withheld the names of employees for fear that they might suffer a backlash for their honest answers.

CVMA’s Board of Governor’s vet clinics.

President. Dr Michael Karle. Mid-Vally Veterinary Hospital. Orland, CA.

https://mid-valleyvet.com/our-veterinary-team/

The employee said that don’t declaw cats and said they can trim the cat’s nails but not remove them.

Researcher asked if any vet clinics in the area declaw cats and the employee said they would ask if they know of any clinic that performs declaws and put the researcher on hold. One of their veterinarians, Dr Parris, came on the phone line and said that they don’t declaw cats.

Researcher asked why don’t they declaw.  Dr Parris said, “It has actually been deemed inhumane” and said that she believes that it is illegal in the state of California. She said that declawing involves taking part of the cat’s finger bone off, it’s pretty invasive, and it’s been shown to cause a lot of harm to cats long term so they no longer perform declawing.

Researcher asked if there are other things you can do to stop scratching issues and the veterinarian recommended things like behavioral management, making a lot of scratching posts available, Soft Paws so that the cat can’t hurt you or hurt the furniture, and frequent nail trims to keep the nails blunted.

 

Treasurer. Ron Kelpe, DVM  VCA Santa Margarita Animal Care Center.

The employee said that they do not perform declaws. (VCA banned declawing in all their vet clinics in 2020.)

 

District I Governor (San Diego County) Jodie Woods

Cardiff Animal Hospital. Encinitas, CA.

They don’t perform declaws. Researcher asked why they don’t declaw and the employee said that they don’t know why. Researcher asked if declawing is bad for a cat and they employee said most likely.

 https://cardiffanimalhospital.com/meet-our-team/

 

District II Governors (Orange & Los Angeles Counties)

 Misty Hirschbein, DVM  North Valley Veterinary Clinic, Lancaster, CA.

They don’t declaw cats.

Researcher asked why they don’t and the employee said that they don’t believe in declawing cats unless it’s emergency based, like if the cat was hurt. Researcher asked if there are other ways to address scratching issues and the employee said to trim the cat’s nails.

https://www.northvalleyveterinaryclinic.com/our-staff

Inez Del Pino, DVM Chief of staff at Banfield. 

Banfield banned declawing in all their clinics in 2020. https://www.banfield.com/Services/Declaw-policy

 

District III Governor (Riverside, San Bernardino, Imperial, & Kern Counties)

Dr Kelly Byam. Abel Pet Clinic. Elk Grove, CA

They don’t declaw cats and said they don’t know of any clinics that perform declaws anymore.

Researcher asked why they don’t declaw cats and the employee said they don’t have any doctors who would feel comfortable doing declaws.

Researcher asked if declawing is bad for a cat and the employee said that if the cat is an inside/outside cat then their claws could be helpful to climb trees and it could cause severe arthritis in the future. The researcher asked if there are other things that could be done to address scratching issues and the employee said they can do nail trims to make the nails not so sharp.

https://abelpetclinic.com/veterinarian-elk-grove-ca/

 

District IV Governor
(Monterey, San Benito, Santa Cruz, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, & Ventura Counties)

Dr. Patrick Connolly. Newbury Park Veterinary Clinic. Newbury Park, CA.

https://newburyparkvet.com/team/patrick-connolly-dvm/

The employee said that declawing is not a service they normally offer to most people but in certain circumstances they can do them but the doctor would have to discuss it with you the reasons or discuss what’s going on. The employee said you need to get a $76 exam to discuss it with the doctor.

The employee put the researcher on hold and asked Dr. Kenneth Coscarelli, the owner of the practice, if they perform declaws. The employee said Dr Coscarelli said that it depends on the different doctors but that he would do a declaw if it was a medical problem like if the cat was “getting nasty or scratching and causing infections.”

The employee said Dr Coscarelli said sometimes a declaw might not be a solution because if it is in response to a behavior the cat is doing, then it could swap scratching to biting.

Researcher asked which vets do their declaws and the employee said that the other doctors will also perform the declaws but they have their own opinions on when it would be ok to do it.

The employee said if the cat was causing a problem, their doctors try to work with a cat owner to provide a solution other than a declaw first.

The employee repeated the issue that a declaw might trade one problem for another (with the biting issue).

 

District V Governor.
(Alpine, Amador, Calaveras, Fresno, Inyo, Kings, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, Mono, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Tulare, & Tuolumne Counties)

Dr. Adam Lauppe. Valley Animal Hospital. Merced, CA.

The employee said that they do not declaw cats.

Researcher asked why don’t they declaw cats and the employee said it is due to the complexity and possible outcomes of the surgery they don’t do them and it could cause pain in their paws or other mishaps after the surgery.

 https://valleyanimalmerced.com/

 

District VI Governor (El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento, & Yolo Counties)

Dr. Brent Wooden. Old Towne Animal Hospital. Fair Oaks, CA.

The employee said they don’t perform declaws anymore. Researcher asked why don’t they declaw cats and the employee said that it’s not something their doctors don’t want to practice. Researcher asked if declaws are bad for cats and the employee said yes and it’s not recommended. Researcher asked, “It’s not humane?” The employee said, “Exactly.”

Researcher asked if there are other options and the employee mentioned nail caps.

 

District VII Governor
(Butte, Colusa, Del Norte, Glenn, Humboldt, Lake, Lassen, Marin, Mendocino, Modoc, Nevada, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Sonoma, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, & Yuba Counties Counties)

Dr. Kevin Terra. Cottonwood Veterinary Clinic. Cottonwood, CA

The employee said that they don’t generally declaw cats and said they only have one doctor who will do them, Dr Kevin Terra, and he is very selective about it.

Researcher asked what are the circumstances when Dr Terra would do a declaw and the employee said if the owner has thin skin and he typically does it for elderly people, if they have other declawed cats, people that keep their cats indoors, and said he has a whole criteria that you have to satisfy and it’s a case by case basis. Researcher asked if people have declawed cats is it recommended to declaw them too and the employee said, “Yea, things like that.”

Researchers asked if they have other recommendations for people with scratching issues and the employee said, “Pretty much nobody around here does it (declaw) most doctors refuse to.” The employee said all the VCA’s have stopped declawing and it’s pretty difficult to find anyone to do it. Researchers asked if they have other recommendations for alternatives to declawing. They recommended the claw caps or little boots.”

 

 

District VIII Governor (Alameda, Contra Costa, Napa & Solano Counties)

Dr Peter Mangold.  Alamo Animal Hospital. Alamo, CA. (Dr Mangold is associated with Alamo hospital on this website. https://www.petmedicus.com/vet/CA/Alamo/Alamo_Animal_Hospital-Dr._Peter-Mangold )

The employee said that they do not declaw cats.

Researcher asked why don’t they declaw cats and the employee said, “We just don’t believe in it.” They said it’s cutting off their knuckles and it can cause issues so it’s something they don’t perform.

Researchers asked if they have other recommendations for alternatives to declawing. They said nail trims or Soft Paw caps to cover their nails.

 

Random veterinary clinics in California.

 

Care Animal Hospital. Temecula, CA.  AAHA Accredited Animal Hospital.

Their website says, “Care Animal Hospital was the first veterinary practice in the Inland Empire to be AAHA certified.”

Here’s a facebook post from 2022 claiming that behavioral issues after a declaw are “almost non-existent” which is not true.

 

Researcher asked for the cost of a neuter/declaw. The employee said that a 2 paw declaw/neuter is $1209 and a 4 paw declaw is $1575. They said that their vet, Dr Alcorn, has been doing declaws for over 40 years.

Researcher asked if they do declaws regularly and the employee said yes and said that he’s pretty much one of the only doctors that still perform declaws in the area.

Researcher asked if the cats are ok long term after a declaw and the employee said yes as long as the cat is an inside cat.

They said that you can make an appointment for the exam and surgeries on the same day.

The declawing info on their website on April 25, 2024 says that declawing is a “safe and painless procedure.”

It says, “we only work with one method: blade declawing. With this method, the blade will directly cut through the cat’s nail joints, removing just the nail and no other surrounding tissue. ” “This is the best and most ethical medical technique to declaw your cat. Therefore, it is the only method we provide at Care Animal Hospital. Any other techniques are highly discouraged, after all, they compromise your cat’s health and well-being.”

The info on their website says that Laser declawing and “amputation declawing” methods are discouraged.

Here’s the link to all the declaw information. https://www.careah.com/feline-declaw/

They say this, “Amputation Declawing This is the most invasive procedure as it removes surrounding vital pad tissue and bone structure. After this procedure, the cat will have remarkable pain, along with an extended recovery of six weeks or more. This is what makes this method very unfavorable for any cat. As this method could be considered animal cruelty, we highly discourage it here at Care Animal Hospital.”

Here’s the info in Care Animal Hospital’s declawing section. A lot of the info on their page is not true.  https://www.careah.com/feline-declaw/

“Declawing your cat is a common procedure to help prevent household felines from continuously scratching and clawing. This safe and painless procedure can save your home while not providing any issues for your cat. 

Why Declawing Services?

An Onychectomy, or declawing, is a process in which a cat’s claws are surgically removed. We often perform this procedure on cats with conditions such as compromised immune systems and bleeding disorders. Also, it is very common among pet owners who suffer from their cat’s scratching behavior.

It is frequently used to control a misbehaving cat and to reduce the risk of injury from a cat’s scratch. After this procedure, children and other pets will be safe from scratches. This will make daily life more comfortable for you, your family, and your house.

Why Declawing Services?

An Onychectomy, or declawing, is a process in which a cat’s claws are surgically removed. We often perform this procedure on cats with conditions such as compromised immune systems and bleeding disorders. Also, it is very common among pet owners who suffer from their cat’s scratching behavior.

It is frequently used to control a misbehaving cat and to reduce the risk of injury from a cat’s scratch. After this procedure, children and other pets will be safe from scratches. This will make daily life more comfortable for you, your family, and your house.

Why Choose Care Animal Hospital’s Feline Declawing Services?

Our team is formed of ethical, efficient, and experienced veterinarians who are ready to assist you and your cat at any time. We will work together to ensure that your feline friend receives the best possible care and medical attention. Also, we ensure that our methods are the safest for your cat.

We make certain that your pet is not anxious or stressed. Also, in our clinic, we only provide the best care and assistance. We only use the best, most up-to-date technology. This enables us to provide your cat with the best declaw possible.

Likewise, we are always prepared for unexpected situations. We will do everything possible to ensure your pet’s health and well-being. We will provide you with only the best care.

What to Expect From Our Feline Declawing Services

Regarding our feline declawing services, we only work with one method: blade declawing. With this method, the blade will directly cut through the cat’s nail joints, removing just the nail and no other surrounding tissue. Then, the surgical site will be closed with one drop of surgical glue.

This is the best and most ethical medical technique to declaw your cat. Therefore, it is the only method we provide at Care Animal Hospital. Any other techniques are highly discouraged, after all, they compromise your cat’s health and well-being.

Discouraged Declawing Methods

Below are the methods to declaw cats that we do not condone. Learning about these methods can help you understand that our technique (surgical blade dissection) is one of the best procedures, as it is relatively painless.

It’s important to note that almost all of these procedures include cutting off the very last bone on your cat’s paw, which the claw is attached to. Also, they all affect the cat’s ability to live normally and do activities such as climbing, stretching, and defending itself.

After these procedures, the cat will feel pain and discomfort for weeks, and even months. There could be many complications, such as bleeding, nerve damage, and infections.

Laser Declawing

Although this is a highly advertised method, it has been shown that it produces more scarring than the blade technique. Therefore, it can cause more pain, and it could cause their paws to be less flexible. This can prevent them from doing day-to-day activities such as climbing.

Amputation Declawing

This is the most invasive procedure as it removes surrounding vital pad tissue and bone structure. After this procedure, the cat will have remarkable pain, along with an extended recovery of six weeks or more. This is what makes this method very unfavorable for any cat.

As this method could be considered animal cruelty, we highly discourage it here at Care Animal Hospital.

Are Declawing Services a Necessary Procedure?

This heavily depends on the needs of both you and your cat. After all, some felines may benefit from a declawing procedure due to underlying medical conditions. Some cats, for instance, can seriously hurt themselves with their claws, which can result in multiple infections.

Other cats with compromised immune systems shouldn’t take a chance on self-scratching. After all, this could seriously endanger them. If they expose a wound, they run the risk of contracting numerous illnesses, which would quickly worsen their health.

On the other hand, it is not necessary to declaw a cat due to behavioral issues. Therefore, choosing to declaw a cat should be carefully considered and discussed with one of our veterinarians. Before making this choice, you should consider other options to meet the needs of the cat and the household.

Aftercare

After declawing your cat, I will arrange a follow-up appointment to examine the incisions and monitor the cat’s recovery. You will also receive some instructions from them to follow.

Some of them comprehend giving them medication, keeping an eye on them, preventing them from licking their injuries and restricting their activities.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will Declawing Hurt My Cat?

During the recovery period, your cat will be on pain medication and an anti-inflammatory drug to relieve any pain or discomfort.  During the first two weeks at home after surgery, your cat should be confined to a small room with food, water, and a litter box.

You can spend time with them for a visit, but the cat’s activity needs to be reduced.

The idea is to prevent your cat from jumping and running around, which could decrease the ability of your cat’s paws to recover. Your cat will get used to the changes and will be back to normal.

Is It Cruel to Declaw a Cat?

Declawing a cat or agreeing to go through with the procedure, like other procedures that raise ethical concerns for your pet, depends on your and your family’s needs and desires. Declawing properly helps to avoid harmful injuries and unfavorable feelings among family members.

Can Declawing Result in Personality Changes?

For many, there is a concern that feline declawing can lead to personality changes. However, several studies have proven that the correlation does not exist. Behavioral changes from declawing are almost non-existent.

Like most surgeries, be it human or animal, if you choose the right surgeon that uses the right technique with proper aftercare, you will enjoy your special cat friend without concern for human injury or property damage.”

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(The “several studies” link goes to the AVMA.org website but there is nothing there. Many studies have shown that there are behavioral issues after a declaw. )

Link to Care Animal Hospital’s declawing information on April 25, 2024.

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Palmdale Veterinary Hospital.  Palmdale, CA.  AAHA Accredited Animal Hospital.

 

A neuter/declaw is around $1840. The employee said that Dr Lynn McEwan does their declaws and you need to make an exam first.

The employee said that he’s been a doctor for over 40 years after the researcher asked if he does declaws regularly and is skilled at the declaw.

In 2018 Dr Lynn McEwan sent this letter of opposition to the declawing bill to the committee consultant. Dr McEwan said, “Performing the procedure with a CO2 laser is efficient and humane.”

The facts are that declawing with a laser causes the same long term negative issues that the other methods do and is not humane. ( Section 8 has the facts about laser declawing. https://citythekitty.org/declawing-facts-vs-myths-humane-options/)

 

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American Pet Hospital. Modesto, CA.

 

Researcher asked for the cost of a neuter/declaw and the employee asked, “Are you wanting the front two done or all four?”   A two paw declaw is $300 and a 4 paw declaw is $500.

The employee said that Dr Sandu performs their declaws regularly and has been doing declaws for about 30 years.

Researcher asked if the cats are ok long term after a declaw and the employee said yes and you can get blood work done before the surgery.

The laser declaw is $150 extra.

Here’s some of the wording in the declaw section on their website. “Our top priority is providing the highest-quality veterinary care to each pet we treat. Every policy and medical procedure supported by our practice has been put in place with the health and wellness of pets in mind.

Our veterinarians at American Pet Hospital in Modesto perform a surgical onychectomy if they believe that a cat cannot be trained to refrain from using its claws destructively in the home, or poses a danger to family members.

 

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Family Pet Clinic. Anaheim Hills, CA

Researcher asked for the cost of a neuter/declaw and the employee asked, “Are you wanting to do the front paws for the cat or all 4 paws?”

A 2 paw declaw/neuter is $835- $850. A 4 paw declaw/neuter is $1400-$1420.

The employee said that Dr Lee does their declaws regularly. The employee said that they recently did 2 or 3 declaws a couple weeks ago, the cats heal “pretty good”, and that they don’t have any issues from the declaw.

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Costa Mesa Animal Hospital. Costa Mesa, CA

The employee said that a neuter/declaw is around $1300.

Researcher asked if they do declaws regularly and the employee said, “We do it a lot.”

The employee said that Dr Donnelly and Dr Paladin perform their declaws. They said that it’s a “pretty easy” procedure, the cats stay two nights and three days, and they are back to normal after 2 weeks.

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Governor Animal Clinic. San Diego, CA.

They say this on their website. “Fear-Free Visits. Our goal at Governor Animal Clinic is to create a positive experience for your pet whenever you visit. Our staff is working towards Fear Free certification, which promotes providing a calm, low stress environment while working with our patients. We believe that this approach encourages better healthcare by recognizing the importance of your pet’s emotional needs in addition to his or her physical needs.”

Fear Free banned declawing in their Fear Free Practices in 2021 and their Fear Free accredited vets cannot declaw cats.

The employee said that they perform declaws however they are not taking new clients.

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Shadowridge Veterinary Hospital. Vista, CA  AAHA Accredited Animal Hospital.

The employee said that a neuter/declaw/exam is $773.14. They said that Dr Jenny Schiebert, their owner, does their declaws and they don’t get them often. Researcher asked if the cats are ok long term after a declaw and the employee said that it’s removing the end digit of the toe, with the piece of bone, so the cat can’t be outside again. The employee said that a lot of people don’t do declaws anymore unless the cat is extremely destructive.

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Cottage Pet Hospital. Anaheim Hills, CA.  It says on their website they are a CVMA member.

Researcher asked for the cost of a neuter/declaw and the employee asked, “Were you wanting the front two paws or the all four paws?”

The employee said a two paw declaw starts at $1750 and a 4 paw declaw starts at $2750.

The employee said that Dr Sahai does their declaws every once in awhile. They said that they don’t see any issues with the cats after the declaws.

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Atwater Merced Veterinary Center. Atwater, CA routine website.

The employee said that a declaw/neuter is $596. They said that Dr Betty Lawson is their only vet who does declaws and he uses a laser. The employee said that the laser method is less painful than the old way.

Researcher asked if she does declaws regularly and the employee said, “Yes, she does.” Researcher asked if the cats are ok long term and the employee said yes, as long as they are inside cats. They only recommend doing declaws if the cat will be an inside cat and only the two paw declaws. They said that they don’t get declaws as much as they used to.

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Antony Animal Hospital. Hesperia, CA

The employee said that they only declaw if there’s a medical issue for the owner like bleeding issues.

The employee said that a two paw declaw is $350, with a neuter it’s $565, and that you are only allowed to do two paws in California. Researcher asked why only two paws and the employee said that if the cat escapes the house it wouldn’t be able to defend itself and would die.

The employee said that Dr Amy Zakhary has done lots of declaws but they don’t do them regularly anymore because they only do them for medical reasons.

Researcher asked if the cats are ok after the declaw and the employee said yes.

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Aborn Pet Hospital. Fremont, CA.

The employee said that their declaws are case by case basis and you have to make an exam with Dr Mann who will decide if he will declaw the cat.

The employee said that he will do them if there’s a medical necessity for the health and safety of the owner.

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Nile Point Veterinary Hospital.  Bakersfield, CA. AAHA Accredited Animal Hospital.

The employee said that a 4 paw declaw is $918.46. They said that their owner, Dr. Norman Lohr performs their declaws. Researcher asked if he does declaws regularly and the employee said, “He does, it’s definitely been awhile since we’ve done one.”

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Lompoc Veterinary Clinic. Lompoc, CA  AAHA Accredited Animal Hospital

The employee said that they only do declaws if it’s medically necessary for the cat, if there’s something going on in the environment where it’s necessary like if the cat is doing a lot of destruction to household objects.   You have to get an exam with their vet to decide if they will do the declaw.

https://www.lompocvetclinic.com/services

Central Valley Veterinary Clinic. Chowchilla, CA

The employee said that they do not declaw cats. Researcher asked them why they don’t declaw cats and the employee said, “Doctor doesn’t find it humane.”  Researcher asked what they recommend to deal with scratching issues and the employee said Soft Paws.

They have declawing listed on their website. https://www.centralvalleyvetclinic.com/services/cats