On Monday, January 23rd, New Jersey moved one step closer to becoming the first state to ban cat declawing after the state Assembly voted to pass the bill, 43-10.
The bill would make declawing illegal, and veterinarians who performed the procedure could face a fine of up to $1,000 or six months in jail. In some rare cases, declawing is done for medical reasons, and veterinarians would not face penalties in those instances.
Declawing is a procedure which is typically performed to stop cats from damaging furniture or scratching people. Declawing is extremely painful for cats, though, and is widely regarded as being a harmful practice.
Now that the Assembly has passed the bill, the bill moves on to the Senate.
