The Cat With No Front Claws Who Taught Me About Declawing

Ivory's previous owner surrendered her with a note that read: "Biting and aggressive — not suitable for a home with children."

Ivory was a three-year-old Ragdoll — a breed so famously docile they're named for the way they go limp in human arms. The "aggressive" designation didn't match the cat in front of me, who pressed herself against the kennel door and slow-blinked.

I asked about her history. She had been declawed at eight months old.

I had grown up thinking declawing was a trim. It is not. Declaw surgery removes the last bone of each toe — the equivalent, in human anatomy, of amputating each finger at the top knuckle. When complications occur — bone fragments, nerve regrowth, scar tissue — the result is chronic pain that the cat cannot explain and the owner cannot see.

The most common behavioral consequence of chronic post-declaw pain: biting. Cats with painful paws redirect their primary defense to their remaining option.

I adopted Ivory and made a vet appointment.

The vet took X-rays. Bone spurs in three toes — small fragments from an incomplete procedure, pressing on soft tissue with every step. Ivory's "aggression" was her pain response, which she had been living with for two years unidentified.

Surgery to remove the bone spurs: $800. Recovery: four weeks of bandaged paws and a very patient cat.

Two weeks post-recovery, Ivory jumped onto the couch, walked across my lap, and settled against my side with the bonelessness that Ragdolls are actually known for. She had never done this before, in any home, according to any record we had.

She has never bitten unprovoked since surgery. She has bitten me once, when I accidentally stepped on her tail, which is exactly as reasonable as it sounds.

She is currently on the blanket beside me, doing what Ragdolls do: existing beautifully and taking up space.

The "aggression" note is somewhere in a filing cabinet. It has nothing to do with the cat I know.

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*Cats with behavior changes — especially biting — should have a full veterinary work-up before behavioral conclusions are drawn. Pain is often the first place to look.*