Supported by many, the ban has also seen opposition from those who say the decision to declaw should be made by a vet
New York is on its way to becoming the first state in the U.S. to ban cat owners from declawing their pets.
New state legislation is expected to be taken up by the Senate and Assembly on Tuesday, according to the Associated Press.
“New York prides itself on being first,” Linda Rosenthal, the bill’s sponsor in the state Assembly, told the outlet. “This will have a domino effect.”
Cities like Los Angeles and Denver have already put similar laws in place, but New York would be the first state to do so.
The concept of banning declawing has seen support from organizations like PETA and The Humane Society.
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“Declawing is a violent, invasive, painful, and unnecessary mutilation that involves 10 separate amputations – not just of cats’ nails but of their joints as well,” PETA writes on its website. “Declawing is both painful and traumatic, and it was been outlawed in Germany and other parts of Europe as a form of cruelty.”
However, the legislature has also seen opposition from the New York State Veterinary Medical Society (NYSVMS) and the American Veterinary Medical Association, who say the decision should be determined by each individual pet owner and their veterinarian, not by a blanket law.
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“NYSVMS opposes any legislation that would prohibit the procedure in New York State and erode the ability of a licensed veterinarian to practice his or her profession,” the society said in its 2019 legislative agenda. “This position mirrors that of the American Veterinary Medical Association.”
The AVMA, meanwhile, says in its policies that cats should only be declawed if they’re using their claws destructively or if a cat’s clawing presents an “above normal health risk for its owners.”
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The legislation’s text says exceptions to the ban include declawing procedures for “therapeutic purposes,” like an existing or recurring illness, infection, disease, injury or abnormal conditions in the claw that compromise the cat’s health.
Anyone who violates the ban could face fines of up to $1,000, according to the bill.