Should New Jersey Ban Cat Declawing?

New York has become the first state to ban the declawing of cats.

Governor Andrew Cuomo signed a law to make New York the first state to ban the declawing of cats.

Cat declawing is already illegal in some cities like Denver, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, but NY will be the first to make it a state-wide rule.

Most veterinarians and animal advocates have been against declawing, and have tried to make the public more aware of the pain it inflicts on a cat. The perception had been that it was akin to removing a nail, while the reality is that it's closer to amputating a finger at the first knuckle.

I've never had a cat of my own - my sister had one when I was younger, and my wife had one when we moved in together. My sister's cat was declawed, but my wife's was not. After reading up about what actually goes into declawing, I made the decision that if we ever got another, it wouldn't be declawed. I'd rather spend some money on scratching posts than harm a cat.