But I do also believe that the question of “Death v.s. a good home if the owner will only consider a cat that is declawed and is in every other respect a good owner ” to be a worthwhile question. And I don’t believe every cat so declawed suffers miserably. MANY years ago when declawing really wasn’t questioned, I had my cat declawed, and she lived to be 20, and (beyond her post-surgical recovery) was a happy cat who never showed any problem behaviors or pain associated with the procedure.

Yes - I believe that in general, training trumps surgery. But I also don’t like seeing dead cats. It’s just not that “black and white” to me.

I don’t consider this a “flame war”. I consider it an honest and open examination of the question “How do we best save as many cats’ lives as we can?”

C’mon, kiddo, let’s not start the week with a flame war, OK?

“There is never a good reason to declaw.”

Well. Not quite true. How about chronic nailbed infections that are not responding to aggressive treatment and threaten to compromise a cat’s overall health as the toxins begin to wear on the body’s organ systems?

However, jill, no one can guarantee that their cat will never get out, and a declawed cat is completely defenseless against even relatively small predators, and can’t so easily escape out of the reach of the less agile of them, the way a cat with its claws can.

It’s a very bad idea to declaw a cat. It is not a humane thing to do. There are times when the alternatives are worse, it may sometimes be a necessary thing, but it’s still not a good thing.

597.6. (a) (1) No person may perform, or otherwise procure or arrange for the performance of, surgical claw removal, declawing, onychectomy, or tendonectomy on any cat that is a member of an exotic or native wild cat species, and shall not otherwise alter such a cat’s toes, claws, or paws to prevent the normal function of the cat’s toes, claws, or paws.
(2) This subdivision does not apply to a procedure performed solely for a therapeutic purpose.
(b) Any person who violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for a period
not to exceed one year, by a fine of ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or by both that imprisonment and fine.
(c) For purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meanings:
(1) “Declawing” and “onychectomy” mean any surgical procedure in which a portion of the animal’s paw is amputated in order to remove
the animal’s claws.
(2) “Tendonectomy” means a procedure in which the tendons to an animal’s limbs, paws, or toes are cut or modified so that the claws
cannot be extended.
(3) “Exotic or native wild cat species” include all members of the taxonomic family Felidae, except domestic cats (Felis catus or Felis domesticus) or hybrids of wild and domestic cats that are greater than three generations removed from an exotic or native cat. “Exotic or native wild cat species” include, but are not limited to, lions,
tigers, cougars, leopards, lynxes, bobcats, caracals, ocelots, margays, servals, cheetahs, snow leopards, clouded leopards, jungle cats, leopard cats, and jaguars, or any hybrid thereof.
(4) “Therapeutic purpose” means for the purpose of addressing an existing or recurring infection, disease, injury, or abnormal
condition in the claw that jeopardizes the cat’s health, where addressing the infection, disease, injury, or abnormal condition is a
medical necessity.

Then check the box next to Penal Code and in the search bar type in 597.6