There was no single moment when declawing stopped everywhere. Instead, bans have rolled out over decades, country by country and state by state. Most of Western Europe prohibited the practice in the late 1980s and early 2000s, while the United States has only recently begun passing laws against it. In much of the U.S., declawing is still technically legal, though the veterinary industry has shifted sharply against it.
What Declawing Actually Involves
Declawing isn’t a nail trim or even a nail removal. The surgery, called onychectomy, amputates the last bone of each toe. Think of it as removing your fingertip at the last knuckle. Veterinarians use a blade, a guillotine-style clipper, or a laser to cut through the joint. A Canadian survey of veterinarians found that over 93% who performed the procedure removed the entire last bone down to the joint.
This distinction matters because it explains why the procedure causes lasting problems. A 2025 study published in Scientific Reports found that bone fragments from the amputated toe were still visible on X-rays in 53 to 63 percent of declawed cats, and those fragments were linked to chronic back pain. Other long-term complications include persistent lameness, pain when the paw is touched, abnormal nail regrowth, aggression, and litter box avoidance, with reported rates ranging from about 2% to 33% depending on the complication. The study also found evidence of long-term nerve sensitization, essentially a form of chronic pain that persists well after healing.
Europe Banned It First
The earliest broad prohibition came from the European Convention for the Protection of Pet Animals, a treaty opened for signatures in 1987. Article 10 specifically prohibits surgical operations for non-medical purposes, including declawing and defanging. Countries that ratified the convention adopted this as law, which is why declawing has been effectively illegal across much of continental Europe for decades.
The United Kingdom formalized its ban through the Animal Welfare Act of 2006, which classifies declawing as a prohibited mutilation. Australia, Brazil, and Israel have similar prohibitions. Most of Canada’s provinces also banned or severely restricted the practice during the 2010s.
U.S. State Bans Are Recent
New York became the first U.S. state to outlaw elective declawing when Governor Andrew Cuomo signed Senate Bill S5532B on July 22, 2019. The law took effect immediately. Maryland followed with a ban that took effect on October 1, 2022. A handful of other states and cities have since introduced or passed similar legislation, but as of now, declawing remains legal in the vast majority of U.S. states.
Before any state acted, several cities moved on their own. Los Angeles, San Francisco, Denver, and a cluster of other California cities banned declawing in the late 2000s and 2010s, creating a patchwork of local rules that helped build momentum for state-level action.
How the Veterinary Industry Changed Its Stance
Even where declawing is still legal, the veterinary profession has moved firmly against it. The American Animal Hospital Association first adopted a position opposing elective declawing in 2003, then strengthened that language through revisions in 2009, 2015, and most recently June 2021. Its current stance: it “strongly opposes” the procedure and says veterinarians have an obligation to educate owners about alternatives.
The American Veterinary Medical Association took a more cautious path. In January 2020, the AVMA updated its policy to formally discourage declawing as an elective procedure while still deferring to individual veterinarians’ professional judgment. The revised policy calls declawing “a surgical amputation” that is “acutely painful” and “may result in chronic pain, maladaptive behavior, disability, and significant mutilation.” That language represents a significant shift from earlier versions that treated the procedure as more routine.
Major corporate veterinary chains have also pulled back. The combination of changing professional standards, public pressure, and accumulating research on long-term harm has made declawing increasingly rare in corporate practice settings, even in states without formal bans.
Why It Took So Long in the U.S.
Declawing was once considered a standard service at American veterinary clinics. For decades, it was presented to cat owners as a reasonable solution to scratching damage, sometimes performed alongside spaying or neutering as part of a routine visit. The AVMA’s earlier, more permissive position reflected this norm, and many veterinarians saw it as preferable to the alternative of an owner surrendering a cat to a shelter.
The shift happened as research caught up with the surgery’s consequences. Studies showing chronic pain, nerve damage, and behavioral problems gave animal welfare advocates concrete evidence to push for legislation. Public awareness campaigns helped too. Once cat owners understood that declawing meant bone amputation rather than nail removal, support for bans grew quickly.
Scratching posts, nail caps, regular nail trimming, and double-sided tape on furniture are now the standard recommendations. The AVMA’s current policy specifically requires veterinarians to counsel owners about these alternatives before even discussing surgery, a requirement that would have seemed unusual 20 years ago.