Michigan Proposes Bill To Make Declawing Your Cat Illegal

declawing your cat

I am not a person to get up on my soapbox about a lot of things. But one thing I will always defend is how inhumane declawing your cat is. Nowadays, the procedure is not as common. But it is still occurring as owner’s think removing a cat’s claws is the only way to fix their behavioral issues. Love can come with a price tag when it comes to certain cats. Frustrated cat owners often declaw their cats because they want keep them from scratching the furniture. I personally find it cruel and it hurts my heart just to think of the poor cats who are forced to go through this. You can go ahead and hate me for it. But I could never in my life declaw a cat. EVER.

declawing your cat

And for those living in the state of Michigan, declawing your cat might soon be illegal.

If the bill passes, they will join New York state who made this procedure illegal last year. Across Europe, there are numerous bans against declawing your cat already in place.

House Bill No. 5508 aims to “prohibit certain medical procedures for declawing a cat, and to prescribe civil sanctions.”

The bill states that: “An individual shall not perform by any means an onychectomy, a partial or complete phalangectomy, or a tendonectomy procedure, or any other surgical procedure that prevents normal functioning of the claws, on a cat in this state, unless the procedure is necessary for a therapeutic purpose.”

declawing your cat

There is one exception to the bill, which describes that declawing is only permitted for “therapeutic purposes.” It describes this as: “the necessity to address a physical medical condition of a cat, including, but not limited to an existing or recurring illness, infection, disease, injury, or abnormal condition in the claw of a cat that compromises the cat’s health.”

Should the bill be made into law, violators will face a $1,000 fine.

Onychectomy is not necessary. This should not be an issue of preference. A cat’s well-being is at stake. And if for any reason an indoor cat which as been declawed gets outdoors, they are utterly defenseless. Your cat NEEDS their claws. Please, whatever you do, don’t take them.

declawing your cat

If you’d like to read the bill in its entirety, you can do so here.

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