Lately, there has been a lot of talk on social media and within my own workplace about the controversial topic of declawing your pet cat. I, for one, believe this topic shouldn't be viewed as drastic and as terrifying as many people seem to hopelessly view it. Declawing is a safe way to have your cat. It isn't just to protect your furniture or whatever the anti-declawing people shout; it's more about keeping your family and possibly your other pets safe. A cat's claws could easily harm a child or baby if you live with one and if you have more cats or a dog, the nails of your cat can puncture those animals therefore harming them much more than the cat would be harmed by being declawed.

As the daughter of a veterinarian technician of over 25 years and an employee at one of the most intellectual and educational pet store jobs in America and Canada, I have to say that I one-hundred-percent agree with a person choosing to declaw their cat. This does not mean that I am vehemently against people who say they will never declaw a cat, it just means I will declaw my own cats and I support the right to choose to declaw your cat at your own choosing.

I've seen a lot of people see declawing cats as a criminal offense and something so inhumane one would be insane to do so. These people are over-exaggerating so much it's kind of funny to me and my mother, the veterinarian technician. Someone once told me while I was at work in the pet supply store I am employed at and told me that she believes the death penalty should be for animal abusers - I agreed - and then she explained her version of someone abusing their animal is having their front nails surgically removed under supervision and proper medical specialists. What? Why? She was obviously over-the-top uneducated on the subject of declawing felines so I just smiled and nodded and sighed with relief when she left the store.

Here are some facts for those who are like the crazy over-exaggerators above; declawing a cat is done with proper anesthesia and medical care, after the operation there is a 2-3 week healing process that is more or less painless as long as the owners are giving the pain medication to their cat and keeping the bandages secure and clean on their paws until they heal, the process of declawing a cat is done mainly with the front paws unless there is definite reason for all four paws to be declawed, in the end of the procedure and healing process the cat does not miss or care that its claws are now gone as they still go to scratching posts and try to scratch because they still think they have nails. Yes, a cat has an easier chance healing from being declawed at a younger age than being an older feline but that is just because they have a quicker healing process as kittens.

If you still are against declawing after having genuine facts coming from someone with more knowledge about animals and their care than most of the declaw-hating population, I recommend you ask your local vet about declawing cats because they will tell you just what I told you and maybe then you will understand. Declawing is not inhumane at all and those who believe it to be so are probably the same people who don't believe in spaying a cat or neutering a cat and are likely people who try avoiding going to the vet or a pet store by buying their pet flea medicine and food from a grocery store.