Pet owners take note: California has banned declawing cats.
Following a 25-year debate over local laws, state bills and legal battles between the state’s leading veterinarian organization and animal welfare groups who say declawing is cruel, painful and unnecessary, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill Thursday that prohibits all veterinarians in California from removing the claws of cats unless it is medically necessary.
Scratching people or furniture doesn’t qualify.
“After years of pushing to make this a reality, I’m proud to see California create a more compassionate society for our feline friends by moving away from this inhumane practice,” said Assemblyman Alex Lee, D-Milpitas, the author of the bill, AB 867, and the owner of two cats.
The law, which takes effect on Jan. 1, is expected to have far-reaching consequences affecting millions of people. Roughly 35% of American households own cats, and about one-in-five cats are declawed nationally, studies show. There are 7.4 million pet cats in California, according to the California Veterinary Medical Association.
The organization opposed the bill, saying it went too far.
“We believe it’s a slippery slope to have the legislature weighing in on the appropriateness of lawful surgeries,” said Christina DeCaro, a lobbyist for the association during a state Senate hearing in June.
In the end the bill passed by a wide margin with support from Republicans and Democrats. The vote last month was 36-0 in the state Senate and 74-0 in the Assembly.
Animal welfare groups supported the bill. They noted that the practice involves not just trimming claws but amputating cats’ toes above the third knuckle. They also citied studies showing that it can be painful and lead to behavioral changes like refusal to use litter boxes and increased biting.
More than 30 countries have banned the declawing, including many in Europe. Several states also have banned it. New York was the first in 2019, followed by Maryland in 2022, Massachusetts in 2025, Virginia in 2024, and Rhode Island this year.
Several California cities, including Los Angeles, Berkeley, and San Francisco, banned declawing until 2009 when former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill supported by medical organizations, including veterinary groups, that blocked cities from passing local ordinances limiting certain medical procedures.
Supporters of Thursday’s new law noted that there are alternatives for cats that scratch furniture or people regularly.
They include scratching posts, trimming cats’ claws by the owners, a vet or groomer, and products that put tiny caps on claws. One popular product called Soft Paws, which costs $19.95, provides a 4- to 6-month supply of small vinyl caps that pet owners fill with adhesive and attach to cat claws, reducing their sharpness.
Jim Jenseold, assistant director of the Paw Project, a non-profit group in Santa Monica that sponsored the bill, said after Los Angeles banned declawing in 2009, there was a 43% decrease in the number of cats dropped off at animal shelters during the next five years compared to the five-year-period before the law.
“There’s an increasing body of evidence that it causes physical harm to cats and behavioral problems like biting and litter box avoidance,” he said, “which are the things that often cause cats to end up in shelters, where they can be killed.”
When cats are declawed, their paws hurt when they dig in litter boxes, so they avoid them, said Dr. Jennifer Conrad, a vet who founded the Paw Project, during the June Senate hearing.
Dr. Grant Miller, a veterinarian with the California Veterinary Medical Association, conceded during the June hearing that leading veterinary schools in California, like UC Davis, have not taught declawing for years and the practice is in decline. He said sometimes elderly cat owners who have chemotherapy or compromised immune systems request declawing over fears they may be infected by a scratch.
“The vets who have performed the procedure do not report that the animals are maimed for life or that they are permanently in pain,” he said. “These animals seem to go on to lead natural lives.”
It costs roughly $500 to $1,000 to declaw a cat.
After West Hollywood became the first city in California to ban declawing in 2003, the CVMA sued and won in superior court to overturn the ban. But in June 2007, the California Court of Appeal overturned the lower court ruling, reinstating the law.
Newsom has signed numerous other animal welfare bills during his two terms as governor. They include three bills this week to more tightly regulate puppy mills; a ban in 2019 on the sale and manufacture of new fur products; a prohibition on the use of elephants and bears in circus acts; and a ban on the sport hunting or trapping of bobcats.
