Council Doesn’t Pounce on Feline Declawing Ban

By Olin Ericksen
Staff Writer

July 29 -- Despite impassioned pleas from nearly two dozen pet owners, local veterinarians and support from a state Assembly member, the Santa Monica City Council fell one vote shy Tuesday of following West Hollywood to become the nation’s second city to prohibit the declawing of cats by local veterinarians.

Deadlocked three to three on how to craft the ordinance -- which some feared could trigger lawsuits against the city -- Council members put the issue off until they receive further information on the legality and enforcement of such a ban.

Supporters of the proposed ban stayed past midnight to cite studies and provide council members with sometimes graphic testimony about the surgical procedure -- described as the removal of a portion of a cat’s toes -- but failed to sway a needed fourth vote to approve the measure.

“I believe this an issue of their [veterinarians'] profession, because we certainly can’t talk to any cats about it,” said Council member Robert Holbrook, a pharmacist. “I’m just not going to get involved in this any further.”

Holbrook cited letters written against such a ban by the California Board of Veterinary Medicine and the California Association of Veterinarians.

Both groups argued that if declawing was not an option for pet owners, the owners may be more likely to abandon problem felines.

Not so, countered Jennifer Conrad, a Santa Monica veterinarian and co-founder of The Paw Project.

Conrad’s group -- primarily involved in animal rights issues regarding larger, wild cats -- received national attention after helping to enact the West Hollywood de-clawing ban last year.

West Hollywood has yet to receive any legal challenge against the ban, according to lawyers for the city.

Conrad maintains that declawing a cat is the equivalent of “removing the tip of your finger at your knuckle” for a human. She said the procedure leaves lasting pain in cats’ paws, eventually leading the pets to avoid using a litter box, which is even more likely to lead to a cat's being abandoned.

The Paw Project has also received the backing of West Hollywood Assemblyman Paul Koretz, who has introduced a similar bill in the state legislature.

Koretz's aide, Nicole Crena, asked the council to “set an example for the rest of the state.”

Although moved by the testimony, which was in some cases tearful, both Mayor Richard Bloom and Council member Ken Genser said they needed more time to study the issue.

“I don’t feel that we are equipped with the information that we need to make a decision on this,” said Bloom. “We have to have a complete and full understanding of those two positions.”

Across the dais, Council member Mike Feinstein disagreed.

“For those who want to preserve this barbaric treatment, I found their arguments wholly unconvincing,” Feinstein said.

Mayor Pro Tem Kevin McKeown agreed. “I wasn’t elected to the veterinary board, but I was elected to this city council and will vote against cruelty to animals here,” McKeown said. “I think the fact that none of the (opposition) came down here in person to tell us it was okay to cut off a cat’s toes tells you something.”

Council member Herb Katz, describing himself as a devoted pet owner, said he was supportive of the declawing ban as well.

Council member Pam O’Connor was absent from the meeting.