I received this nice note from a supporter.
Dear City,
When I was younger, my cat scratched the cornea if my eye. At the time, my family didn’t know much about declawing, so we had him declawed. It was either declaw or put up for adoption and I couldn’t bare to lose my kitty.
When I got older, my family adopted another cat. Out of concern for our already declawed cat, we declawed the new kitten.
A few years later, after my first kitty passed, my parents got a new kitten. Our vet, and others, informed my parents about declawing. The weren’t sure what to do because of our already declawed cat.
I stepped up and told my parents that I would make sure to trim their new kitten’s nails. We got him wonderful scratching posts, one for upstairs and one for downstairs. Our older cat not only managed to establish his alpha kitty position, but he plays with the kitten too. They are both safe and happy.
My family became educated on declawing and we made the relationship between the kitties work without having to declaw another cat. After seeing all of the horrible comments you’ve come across, I felt the need to share how people can be educated successfully and that things can change.
I’m very happy with the awareness you are promoting about the horrific process that is declawing. I think it’s important for people to learn what it really means when a cat gets declawed, and to promote new ways to help the people who are concerned about what a cat’s claws could do in their specific lifestyles. Some people are worried about furniture, so there are scratching posts of all varieties and many methods to attract a cat to them instead of a couch. We never needed those for Simba, but we were prepared with catnip spray if he needed to be lured to the posts. People worried about children or other pets have the same options we looked at – the nail covers and proper nail maintenance. I have learned, and so have my parents, how important it is to put your pet’s needs as a higher priority than some people do.
I’m not sure if it’ll make you feel any better, but I want my story to bring you hope that people can learn and can change. I love all that you for for kitties! It’s very happy-making!
Jenn, Lucky, Shadow, and Simba