Legislation in Ohio proposes ban on declawing cats

In 2014, Jake Wherley’s parents adopted a 9-year-old calico cat named Mackenzie from Paws and Prayers, a foster-based pet rescue in Cuyahoga Falls.

On the surface, Mackenzie behaved like any other cat. But she didn’t have claws. That became an issue when the Wherley family adopted a younger, playful kitten. Mackenzie didn’t know how other cats use their claws to playfully “swat” each other, which left Mackenzie with a few scratches.

“If you’re in a fist fight with someone, and your opponent’s got brass knuckles and you don’t, I don’t think that’s going to work in your favor a whole lot,” said Wherley, who is now the volunteer coordinator for Paws and Prayers.

Declawing cats is currently legal in Ohio. But to protect cat health, Ohio Senators Al Cutrona (R-Canfield) and Hearcel Craig (D-Columbus) introduced Senate Bill 252 on Aug. 3. The legislation would make declawing illegal in most cases. Sen. Casey Weinstein (D-Hudson) is a co-sponsor.

The bill is currently sitting in the Senate’s Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee. It had its first hearing on Oct. 7. No opponents have submitted witness testimony about the bill so far.

In a statement, Craig said he views declawing as an “irreversible amputation” that can cause long-term harm to cats that undergo the procedure.

“As one of the sponsors, I’m concerned about preventing unnecessary suffering to animals while preserving veterinarians’ ability to treat genuine medical problems,” he said.

If the law passes as it stands now, the civil penalties that would be imposed by Ohio’s Director of Agriculture for violating it include a $1,000 fine on a first offense, $1,500 for a second and $2,500 for all offenses after that. 

What does it mean to declaw a cat?

After cats undergo declawing procedures, they can experience both physical and mental changes as they struggle to defend themselves and perform daily tasks, said Tanya Jonda, executive director of One of a Kind Pet Rescue in Akron. 

The process of declawing involves placing the cat under sedation, she said, and surgically removing the last bone in each of the cat’s toes. Jonda views the procedure as inhumane, especially when the surgery is done incorrectly. For example, if veterinarians leave behind bone fragments or nail-forming tissue, the claws can start to regrow incorrectly under the skin within the bed of the flesh.

Although corrective surgeries can be performed in the event of an ingrown claw, this doesn’t guarantee the cat will adapt well after having its claws removed.

“The natural instinct of a cat is to use its claws, so it will use claws to dig in the litter box. It will use claws to climb, whether it’s on furniture or on cat towers,” Jonda said.

For cats, scratching is also a way to alleviate stress, similar to how guinea pigs and hamsters chew on wood blocks, Wherley said.

“Cats use their claws in many, many ways, and I think taking that away from them is a lot more of a hindrance than people might necessarily consider or know,” he said.

Why do cat owners declaw their pets?

The main reason pet owners choose to declaw their cats is because cats may damage things like furniture from scratching, said Chalan Lowry, executive director of the Portage APL. She thinks other pet owners may have their cats declawed because of health concerns.

The proposed bill contains an exemption in cases where a cat’s claw becomes infected, injured or experiences another abnormal claw condition.

“I think that there are occasions where, for example, someone might be diabetic or might have a medical issue with an immune system problem, where they can’t risk a scratch or a bite,” Lowry said.

After declawing procedures, cat owners may notice their cats behaving more aggressively as they learn to cope with no longer having claws.

“They can become angry and lash out because they’re not able to express these natural instincts,” Jonda said.

Other side effects of the operation for the cat include becoming prone to arthritis and long-term pain in their limbs, said Dr. Valerie Shaker, a veterinarian at the Vet Center of Hudson. She is also opposed to declawing.

Although shelters like One of a Kind Pets, Paws and Prayers and the Portage Animal Protective League take in declawed cats, they are unable to provide treatments that will alleviate any general discomfort or difficulties the cats may be experiencing.

Number of declawed cats appears to be on the decline

This legislation comes at a time when local shelters and rescues such as Paws and Prayers, One of a Kind Pets and the Portage APL say they are noticing a decline in declawed cats being surrendered to them. So far, in 2025, only one declawed cat has been taken in by Paws and Prayers, a decrease from the eight cats the rescue received in 2021.

Jonda said declawing was a popular surgery for decades, but it’s becoming more rare.

“I had family members that did that. They were like, ‘Hey, I got a kitten. She gets declawed next week and spayed,’” she said. “It [was] just kind of a normal, natural thing. But thankfully we’ve learned a lot about it, and hopefully it’s going to be a thing of the past.”

When Werley’s parents adopted Mackenzie, it was his first time learning about declawed cats. He thinks many of his peers in Gen Z consider the practice “outdated.”

Craig is optimistic that SB 252 will also result in a drop in the number of cats being surrendered to shelters. After Los Angeles banned the practice in 2009, some reports stated that the number of cats surrendered to shelters dropped 43% over five years — it’s attributed to less aggressive behavior and better litter box use by the animals.

“Overall, experience in other jurisdictions suggests bans reduce the number of cats subjected to declawing without causing increased shelter intake or euthanasia,” he said.

If the bill passes, Shaker thinks it will help pet owners understand the harms of declawing and motivate them to consult their veterinarian for other options, including other ways for cats to safely scratch and use their claws, like placing soft plastic nail caps on their claws, regularly trimming their nails and purchasing scratch pads.

Wherley’s love for Mackenzie led him to educate himself about the declawing process and its alternatives, which he shares with others in hopes of preventing cats from being declawed and, like Mackenzie, becoming vulnerable.

“Mackenzie kind of helped plant that seed and allowed me to sort of do some digging through the years about declawing,” he said. “Having some of that knowledge and firsthand experience of seeing a declawed cat, I think, certainly has helped expand my mind and, hopefully, winning people over on the ‘not-declaw-cat side.’”

This story was originally published by the Kent State NewsLab, a collaborative news outlet publishing journalism by Kent State students.