Declawing: Speak up against intimidation

IMPORTANT — SHARE TO SHOW THAT CAT LOVERS ARE SENSIBLE AND RESPECTFUL PEOPLE WHO DENOUNCE INTIMIDATION

An article published online reports on a clinic of the south shore of Montreal which performs cat declawing. This clinic would be intimidated by anti-declawing activists.

I strongly denounce the totally unacceptable behaviour of the people attacking the clinic. Even though my name is mentioned, I was never interviewed for this article. Had I known, I would have REQUIRED that the following be added:

I will never approve of the demonization of people who support declawing. On the contrary, changes in society are achieved through dialogue and the sharing of scientifically supported arguments.

To the bullies who make blame organizations and make people feel guilty for declawing, your actions provoke an aversion to the subject and greatly complicate our efforts. By standing up to the same cause, I see myself associated with you and your hateful activities. In a single day, I lost notorious supporters who I had taken many years to rally and who would have greatly advanced the cause of feline welfare. I therefore reject any unfortunate association between the work I do and the disrespectful words you convey. You do not realize how much harm you are causing to the animals you claim to want to help.

I only hope that the 40 000 followers of the Cat Educator’s Facebook page will answer to my call and share this word to show that in Quebec, the vast majority of cat adopters are respectful, whether they support declawing or not.

Among the 50 or so clinics that I have trained, I haver never met a veterinarian who did not care about the welfare of the cats they treat, even if they practice declawing. Nobody has the right to judge the parties involved in this decision-making process which, let us remember, is legal and personal.

In order to change mentalities and truly help cats, we must ONLY talk about solutions. When they are well informed and made aware, people quickly realize that it is not necessary to declaw cats.

Thus, I encourage patient dialogue and healthy communication in such a debate about animal welfare.

Daniel Filion
President, Cat Educator

Watch our videos about this subject:

Declawing : how to talk about it + informations

Solutions for cats not using the scratching post