Please consider declawing carefully

Buttercup is a declawed cat. She now has litterbox issues. Not serious, but enough that she ended up in rescue. We've discovered that she prefers to urinate on a fabric surface (like bedding) and will do so in a box if it's lined with bedding rather than litter. Is the related to her declawing? We can't say, but we do know this: Declawing can cause litterbox aversion. Cats that have been declawed spend the first few weeks walking on their painful paws. Every trip to the litterbox must be a new experience in pain. Imagine running your sore, swollen fingers through a pile of gravel! Perhaps the memory of that experience lingers to the point that any trip to the litter brings it back in painful detail.

The Frederick County (MD) animal shelter is considering changing their adoption policy to allow future adopters to declaw the cats and kittens they adopt. Most rescue groups and many shelters prohibit the procedure as part of their legally binding adoption contracts. Please take a moment to sign this petition and let them know that changing their policy is unacceptable and cuts to the heart of the phrase "animal welfare."

http://www.petitiononline.com/mc6984/petition.html

If you live in Frederick County, MD, please call your county representative and let them know you do not support this change in shelter policy. You have a voice. Use it to protect those who can't speak for themselves!