Denver is the first municipality in the country outside of California to ban cats declawings. Since 2003, eight cities in that state have prohibited the act.
Declawing consists of amputating not just the claws, but the whole phalanx (up to the joint), including bones, ligaments, and tendons!
Even though most mammals walk on the soles of the paws or feet, cats are digitigrade, meaning they walk on their toes. Cats back, shoulder, paw and leg joints, muscles, tendons, ligaments and nerves are naturally designed to support and distribute the cat’s weight across its toes as they walk, run and climb.
Cats use their claws for balance, for exercising, and for stretching the muscles in their legs, back, shoulders, and paws. The toes help the foot meet the ground at a precise angle to keep the leg, shoulder and back muscles and joints in proper alignment.
Many people might think that declawing their cats is a harmless “quick fix” for unwanted scratching. They don’t know that declawing can make make a cat less likely to use the litter box, more likely to bite and it can also can cause lasting physical problems for the cat. Declawing is a very extreme and painful procedure. Declawing a cat is comparable to amputating human fingers at the first knuckle.