After the Banfield post about the ban on ear cropping and tail docking, I had some questions on my Facebook page and in the original post comments about two other surgical procedures: debarking dogs and declawing cats.
I phoned Banfield, The Pet Hospital® to ask about their position on these surgeries. I spoke with Kim Van Syoc, Senior Communications Specialist for Banfield. She confirmed that they have banned debarking surgery as well as the tail docking and ear cropping surgeries.
Van Syoc emailed me the official Banfield Declaw (onychectomy) Policy Statement, with permission to repost here:
Banfield doctors do perform a surgical onychectomy if they believe that a cat cannot be trained to refrain from using its claws destructively in the home, or poses a danger to family members. Unfortunately, all cats are not amenable to behavior modification and we believe that this surgical procedure will result in fewer cats being abandoned or euthanized.
We also believe onychectomy should be performed only with the medically appropriate use of anesthetics and analgesics and adherence to careful surgical and post-surgical protocols. In our practice, recovery from surgery is very rapid, with the outcome leading to a stronger bond between Pet and Pet owner, which intimately leads to better overall care.
Speak up
Tell Us What You Think About Declawing Cats
Related Reading:
Banfield Says No More Cosmetic Surgery For Dogs
From Jenna Stregowski, RVT, About.com Guide to Dogs
Photo: Paula the Calico Cat by GenGlo on Flickr
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Comments
I never even had heard of debarking! Hello people! Dogs bark. Heck, I like it when my dogs bark because that tells other people that I have dogs in my house, especially someone who might try to break in.
What about Banfield offering kitten declawing in their Optimum Wellness Plan as “preventative health care” – surely that is not “last resort” as they are claiming in their Policy statement! And watching an animal recover from having its healthy body parts mutilated strengthens the bond between the animal & it’s owner? I say BOYCOTT BANFIELD, truly some of the most unethical, unconscious vets on the planet – their job and oath is to do no harm to animals, if they truly cared about saving cats from being abandoned & euthanized they would refuse to declaw. The 2 leading causes of relinquishment according to the surveys are litterbox avoidance & aggression, the 2 negative behaviors most associated w/declawed cats. Declawing keeps money in their pockets, not cats in their homes! BOYCOTT BANFIELD until they stop committing acts of animal cruelty to cats!
While I am very glad Banfield have stopped cropping dogs ears and docking their tails, in my opinion declawing cats is even more cruel than either of those procedures.Cats actually need the parts declawing removes,for walking, grooming, exercising,self defence etc.
The tried everything else before declawing is just a fallacy, otherwise Banfeld kittens would declaw kittens.Kittens that have never had the chance to learn to use a scratching post,kittens that might never ever scratch when adult.Neuter/declaw as a routine operation is a disgraceful practice !
Until Banfield stop this mutilation of kittens and cats, I hope people will boycott them.
Sorry about the typo in my post above , I meant of course that Banfield would NOT declaw kittens !
I am against debarking, cropping, and docking! Cropping and docking were practiced because it was a fad for their breed’s physical appearance to look a certain way, not beneficial at all. Debarking is just the silliest thing I have ever heard, if you don’t want a dog to bark, then a dog is not for you, or at least find a breed that is not very vocal. Also, dogs are trained a lot easier than cats; there are a lot of other humane methods to keep a dog from barking too much, it just takes time and patience.
I do not believe Banfield is wrong for continuing the practice of declawing cats. That is silly to boycott Banfield when they have so many other good practices, not to mention low cost pet care! I’ve always had good service through them! You think because you stop one place from declawing that it will be diminished completely…not at all. You only attack Banfield because is it a larger chain that is everywhere. People will find other means to declaw, whether it’s through a different vet or doing it themselves (which would be terrible!).
I am in the middle of trying to decide if I should declaw my new kitten, but she’s still young. At the moment, I will try other ideas I found online, which includes getting more scratching posts, clipping her nails, using nail caps, or putting slip covers on my couches. If all else fails later on…declawing will be my last resort (apparently this would not be a “fallacy” then…as said by kattaddora).
Isn’t spaying/neutering a major surgery just like declawing that requires healing? Not only are you getting rid of their sexual organs, this can change a cats hormones and possibly change the way the act. Though, people see fixing your animal as a good practice to keep cats from reproducing so rabidly and leaving them with no homes.