June 1, 2021 – Fear Free® announced a new policy ending elective declawing procedures for cats in all of its Fear Free® Certified hospitals.
Since 2016, Fear Free has provided education to more than 100,000 veterinary and pet professionals. The certification programs offered by Fear Free focus on emotional wellbeing, enrichment, and the reduction of fear, anxiety, and stress in pets. Both individuals and veterinary practices can become Fear Free Certified.
“Given the negative impact declawing has on our feline companions, many of which are linked to a decline in emotional wellbeing, it is only appropriate that Fear Free and its certified practices commit to eliminating feline declawing as an elective procedure,” Fear Free founder and CEO Dr. Marty Becker said. “We’re giving cats a voice.”
Fear Free has partnered with Dr. Jennifer Conrad, the founder and director of The Paw Project, to end the practice of feline declawing by Fear Free Certified Practices and introduce paw repair surgeries as a meaningful alternative.
“I am honored to work with Dr. Becker and Fear Free as we focus on ending partial digital amputation—euphemistically called declawing—and as we add new guidelines on ensuring the wellbeing of cats in veterinary medicine,” Dr. Conrad said.
The Fear Free® website states, “Most recently, Banfield, VCA, and BluePearl veterinary hospitals, a chain of close to 2,000 clinics owned by Mars Inc., will no longer declaw cats as elective surgery. The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) and the American Association for Feline Practitioners (AAFP), under the guidance of the Paw Project, have updated their policy statements, and New York became the first state to ban declawing.”