A bill looking to make it illegal for anybody, besides a veterinarian, to declaw cats in California is waiting for Governor Gavin Newsom’s signature.
AB 867 was written by Bay Area Assemblymember Alex Lee.
‘Cat declawing is basically when people amputate the first digits of their fingers. So you might think declawing is just trimming their nails or cutting back their nails,” Lee told KNX News’ Emily Valdez.
He explained how it’s like removing the first knuckle of a finger. There are also other methods to prevent your cat from scratching up furniture
“You can always trim the nails of cats. And if you don't want to do that and you're worried about scratches or furniture, etc. you can always do soft pads, which are kind of like little rubber tips on their claws too, and won't be as painful,” Lee explained.
California is behind Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, and Washington, DC when it comes to cat declawing laws.
Want to get caught up on what's happening in SoCal every weekday afternoon? Click to follow The L.A. Local wherever you get podcasts.
Declawing is already illegal in parts of Los Angeles County, including Beverly Hills, the city of L.A., West Hollywood, Culver City, Burbank, and Santa Monica.
Follow KNX News 97.1 FM