By Carol Whaley, Director of Humane Programming
Inspired by the recent passage of the Prohibition of Declaw in the City of Pittsburgh, a small but determined group of advocates is working to bring about the same compassionate change to Mt. Lebanon.
In early spring, six individuals, comprised of current and former Mt. Lebanon residents, formed the Mt. Lebanon Stop Declaw Committee and began engaging the members of the Mt. Lebanon Commission to gauge interest in an ordinance to prohibit the nontherapeutic declaw of cats.
Focused on education and information sharing, the committee has moved forward with a community education campaign that involved registered voters in Mt. Lebanon who are in support of an ordinance to prohibit declawing. Their goal is 4,100 signatures. “It’s a lofty goal,” said committee member Pete Schocker. “But we have to be advocates for the cats in our community and stop procedures that are not necessary.”
Declaw is not necessary for the health and well-being of a cat. According to Banfield Pet Hospitals, which stopped performing declaw in 2020, current evidence does not support the use of elective declawing surgery as an alternative to relinquishment, abandonment or euthanasia.
For those who prefer to see and hear the evidence directly, Animal Friends’ board member and Mt. Lebanon resident Gina Carlos invites them to visit the shelter. “I welcome Mt. Lebanon residents and commissioners to visit Animal Friends and hear from our veterinarians who are experts in the area of animal welfare and animal behavior management. You will get a better understanding about why this ordinance is so important.
A few have asked the committee about the value in passing this ordinance in Mt. Lebanon where there are currently no veterinary clinics. “I believe that Mt. Lebanon has an opportunity to be seen as a leader in our region for progressive and compassionate companion animal welfare,” said Faith Bjalobok, committee member and Fellow Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics.
For two committee members, Sally Lamond and Chuck McDermott, this is the culmination of a decades-long effort to end declaw in our region. “We didn’t realize what a declaw surgery actually entailed until we saw a surgery performed in 1994. Through our volunteer work in various shelters since then, we saw many declawed cats being relinquished to shelters for behavior problems stemming from the declaw. Sadly, too many of those cats were euthanized as unadoptable.”
If you are a resident of Mt. Lebanon and a registered voter, we invite you to sign the petition by contacting Sally Lamond at sallyjlamond@gmail.com.
More advocacy and education on the declaw issue is continuing throughout Allegheny County as we hear from individuals interested in exploring the opportunities of a similar ordinance in their own community. If you are interested in more information for your community, visit ThinkingOutsideTheCage.org/Advocate.