New bill up for debate in Michigan House would prohibit declawing cats under most circumstances

LANSING, Mich. (WPBN/WGTU) — Is it a humane protection for cats or is it government overreach?

That's a question in Lansing that supporters and opponents of a proposed House bill are asking each other when it comes to our pets and one procedure that's drawn a lot of attention recently.

Yeah, we have cats. We have plenty of cats in the shelter. We have a ton of cats that are looking for homes,” said Elise Ramsey, the executive director of the Little Traverse Humane Society.

The Little Traverse Bay Humane Society does it's best to find great cats, great homes, and it's a never-ending job.

“We're actually taking about 20 more in today. So, we always have a need for placement with cats,” Ramsey said.

Potential new owners come in, find a cat and fill out an application with pretty basic background information, including one clause about claws.

If somebody says yes, they are going to declaw, we're not going to allow them to adopt that animal until we have a conversation and explain, really the horrors of declawing,” Ramsey said.

Clearly they and growing number of animal organizations don't like the surgery that used to be a lot more common, and they aren't alone.

State Rep. Jimmie Wilson Jr., D-District 32, is so opposed he wrote House Bill 4674, which – in a nutshell – would make declawing a cat illegal in most situations.

“The way that the bill is written, it would allow for medically necessary declaws. So, certainly, we're not saying that any animal has to suffer if it needs a procedure relating to that. We're just saying that the elective surgery of removing … the claws of the animal is inhumane,” Ramsey said.

If it becomes law, Michigan would join only New York and Maryland as states where the procedure is illegal.

Some large veterinarian associations have suggested that the legislation isn't needed and that it should be conversation with vets and a decision made by owners.

None of those associations wanted to go on camera to air their side of the story, but those who work with cats everyday say declawing is not only inhumane, it's unnecessary.

We can't stop that behavior because the behavior is the cat's nature. But we can control it,” Ramsey said.

And for the potential owners who say they just need a cat without claws, Ramsey says there is no need to put another kitten through the surgery because there are already plenty of cats out there without claws and without homes.

There are declawed cats that exist that are looking for homes. So, shelters might already have animals that have been declawed and there are always options if you have a desire to bring a pet into your home There's always a pet that's looking for you to pick it up from the shelter,” Ramsey said.

The legislation was introduced three years ago, but it didn't go anywhere.

This time, there appears to be more support, but it has a long way to go before it could become law.