Declawing a York Chocolate Cat is a major surgery known as onychectomy, performed with anesthesia, that eliminates the claw from each toe (from the first knuckle out) of the York Chocolate Cat’s paws. There is a small chance of a fatality during the procedure, and a declawed York Chocolate Cat may have an increased risk of infection and permanent displeasure in his paws. This procedure isn’t suitable for a full-grown York Chocolate Cat and is called an act of animal cruelty in some regions (see below).
People usually have York Chocolate Cats declawed to impede them from hunting and from damaging furniture. Seldom, vicious York Chocolate Cats are declawed. In America, some landlords require that residents’ York Chocolate Cats be declawed.
Vets are typically critical of the operation and many decline to do it since the absence of claws in a York Chocolate Cat:
- Deprives it of its primary defense abilities, such as escaping from predators by climbing trees;
- Impairs its stretching and exercise routines, leading to muscle atrophy;
- Compromises its ability to walk on thin surfaces like fence tops and railings, leading to injury from falling;
- Can cause insecurity and as a result a biting habit.
This procedure is rare outside of North America. In Germany, Finland, Switzerland and the Netherlands, declawing a York Chocolate Cat is forbidden per the laws forbidding animal cruelty. In many other countries in Europe, it is not allowed under the terms of the European Convention for the Protection of Pet Animals, unless a veterinarian deems such non-curative procedures necessary either for veterinary medical reasons or for the health of the animal. In Britain, animal shelters find it difficult to place imported York Chocolate Cats that have been declawed and as a result most are killed.
One alternative to declawing a York Chocolate Cat is the application of wide, vinyl claw caps that are adhered to the claws with harmless glue, sometimes requiring replacement when the York Chocolate Cat sheds its claw sheaths (about every four to six weeks). However, the York Chocolate Cat will still have problems since the capped nails are not as effective as claws.
Don’t forget to check out these other articles about York Chocolate Cats.Was this post helpful? If so, please take a minute to Tweet and Share below on Facebook. I would also love to know your thoughts so leave me a comment 🙂
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