San Francisco Board of Supervisors votes to ban cat de-clawing

November 3, 4:00 PMSF Cat Rescue ExaminerBarbara Kohn

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By a vote of 9 to 2, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted today on a proposed ban on de-clawing cats in the City unless for therapeutic reasons. Supervisors Michela Alioto-Pier and Sean Elsbernd were the dissenting votes on first reading. A final vote will be taken next week.

Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi authored the legislation. People who violate the ban could face up to six months in jail or a fine of up to $1,000.

Speaking before the vote was taken, Supervisor Bevan Dufty said, "This is important legislation to recognize that the de-clawing of cats is unnecessary, cruel and creates more problems than it solves."

He also noted that San Francisco doesn’t discuss cats as much as it should in comparison to the time spent on dog legislation, and that this should change considering that there are three cats in San Francisco shelters for every dog.

Dufty added he hoped that San Francisco can build to expand trap, neuter, return (TNR) programs that help to control feral stray cat populations in areas that need it and to assure that San Francisco does everything possible within its legislative framework to control cat overpopulation.

Other California Cities Moving Toward De-claw Bans

On January 1, 2010, California SB 762 goes into effect restricting any California city or county from passing laws that prohibit licensed healthcare professionals from practicing their licensed specialty. The law covers veterinarians and cat de-clawing surgery. Because of this looming deadline, many other cities around the state are moving toward bans on cat de-clawing:

o On Monday, the Los Angeles City Council Public Safety Committee voted to seek a law banning declawing.

o Last week, the Santa Monica City Council voted in favor of a ban on cat de-clawing. The proposed measure will have a second reading – expected to be on November 10 – before a final vote is taken.

o The Beverly Hills City Council is slated to consider an ordinance prohibiting de-clawing at its next meeting this Thursday

o Malibu has a discussion of a de-claw ordinance on its City Council meeting agenda for November 9.