AAHA Is Slowly Coming Around: No-Declaw Hospital Wins Top Honor. Now It’s Time to Ban Declawing in 2025!

On August 12, 2025, AAHA announced their 4 finalists for AAHA’s 2025 Practice of the Year.
3 of them declaw cats. One of them even advertises their laser declawing on their website and minimizes the long term suffering and risks to the cat’s health and well being. https://www.bluespringsanimalhospital.com/hospital/surgery
What Every AAHA Con 2025 Attendee Should Know & Why AAHA’s Idea of Excellence Includes Cat Cruelty

More than 4,500 practices representing 50,000 veterinary team members pay thousands of dollars to the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA.org), a company that allows a barbaric, antiquated, and inhumane amputation procedure (declawing) so they can be branded as hospitals that deliver quality medicine, embody the “gold standard” of excellence, and raise the bar for the veterinary profession.
This deceives pet owners into believing accreditation guarantees excellence.
Why Does AAHA.org Lie About Declawing, Put Profits Over The Welfare of Cats, And Allow Declawing In Their Animal Hospitals?

The American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) updated their declawing position statement in June 2021.
They say they strongly oppose declawing, explaining that declawing is no longer a reasonable or supported procedure… But then they say if veterinarians are going to declaw, they should use pain meds before, during, and after.
A Legacy of Cruelty: Reimann Family’s Veterinary Company, NVA, Allows Declawing Despite Calling It Inhumane.

In 2019, a spokesman for the billionaire Reimann family—whose ancestors profited under the Nazi regime—said, “The whole truth must be put on the table.”
Here’s a truth still hidden: The Reimanns built part of their immense fortune on human suffering, and today, they allow cat suffering to continue.
Through their firm JAB Holding Co., they own NVA, the largest U.S. network of vet hospitals—over 1,400 clinics—many of which still perform declawing, a cruel amputation procedure their own Medical Board has called “inhumane.”
The cruelty didn’t stop with history. It just changed form.
‘Monumental Moment’ or Hollow Hype? AAHA Fails to Ban Declawing, Trails Behind Industry Leaders

LAKEWOOD, Colo., July 25, 2025 — The American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) introduced “groundbreaking new Standards of Accreditation” calling them a “historic milestone” in elevating veterinary care in their press release. Yet, AAHA’s new standards merely “discourages” nontherapeutic declawing, ear cropping, and devocalization, allowing their accredited hospitals to continue these practices without penalty. AAHA’s Director […]
The Rebuttal of the AVMA’s Declawing Position. Is This The Data The ASPCA Is Using To NOT Want Declawing Banned?

The Point by Point Rebuttal to the AVMA’s Declawing Position Statement by Dr Jean Hofve Who is An Expert in this Issue.
No Mercy for Cats: AAHA’s Failure to Stop Allowing Declawing Shows Money Matters More Than Cat Welfare

Cat mutilation and torture masquerading as the best in veterinary medicine: Many of AAHA’s Standard of Excellence Accredited Animal Hospitals declaw cats. AAHA allows their accredited animal hospitals to declaw cats for profit, advertise their declawing services, and lie about it to their clients and to the public. They also allow their veterinarians to submit […]
AAHA’s Declaw Communications Toolkit To Help Their Declawing Hospitals

Remember, declawing is a $900,000 – $1,200,000,000/year business. That’s a lot of clams.
So here’s the hypocrisy in a nutshell.
AAHA has strict guidelines for compliance.
AAHA has a strong anti-declaw position.
Get ready for the big BUT…
But, they openly tell their 3500 members who pay $1070 for membership, that they don’t have to follow the AAHA declaw position. (They aren’t however, ever lax on the dentals.)
PetVet Care Centers Says They Believe In Ethical Medical Practice & Minimizing Unnecessary Pain and Suffering in Their Patients But They Allow Declawing

The majority of PetVet Care Centers perform declawing. In fact, most of them also offer 4 paw declaws.
It’s 2025. Why is AAHA.org Still Allowing Declawing In Their Accredited Animal Hospitals?

UPDATED FEB. 2025. Story published on April 30, 2024. Why is AAHA.org still putting profits over the welfare of cats by allowing declawing in their hospitals? Please sign our petition to AAHA.org. We are almost at 50,000 signatures. AAHA Petition Are the leaders of AAHA.org confused? If you know any of them, please ask them […]