Letters to dvm360: Clients understand what a declaw entails

I am writing in regard to the letter written by Dr. Jennifer Doll in the February issue: “Low-cost clinics aren't inadequate.” I too have been following some of the news articles concerning nonprofit/low-profit clinics and their relationships to full-service clinics in their area. Why the dvm360 editors allowed a response on this topic to morph into another anti-declawing tirade is beyond me. I also practice in Iowa. I have cats dumped at my clinic that are strays, and-if warranted-they receive medical care, are spayed and neutered, and we find homes for them.

When we discuss declawing with potential owners or adopters, they certainly know that the claws are going to be surgically removed. In what world would a client not realize that? What wording on the invoice is going to change that? In regard to the declawed strays that get beat up on the street: The vast majority of cats with abscesses all have claws, not the other way around. I can't remember the last time I treated a declawed cat with an abscess. I know it happens but not commonly. I also give plenty of services away, some by choice and some not. And you know, my bottom line is the dollar. And I don't feel one bit guilty about that.

David L. Connell, DVM

Guttenberg, Iowa