Declawing, otherwise known as "onychectomy", is a medically unnecessary amputation. It involves severing the cat's appendage from the first knuckle down, removing the bone entirely since the claw grows from the bone. It is perpetuated by some veterinarians as a painless method to save the cat guardian's furniture from being scratched. Declawing leads to a lifetime of pain, medical complications, behavioral issues and often enough the subsequent abandonment of cats.  

Declawing is completely unethical. This is why it has been banned in over 40 countries. To date, declawing is banned in 9 cities in the United States (Berkeley, Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Santa Monica, Burbank, Culver City, West Hollywood, and Denver) and 2 provinces in Canada (Nova Scotia and British Columbia). Various forms of legislation are currently seeking to ban declawing in multiple states in the US.