I think tendonectomys are just as bad! That's where the tendon is cut but the nails left intact, but useless. The nails require constant trimming, and the cat is still in pain. If you think about the act of scratching, it is to scent mark their territory, and also to provide excersize for their limbs. Left without claws, the excersize is virtually useless. Plus declawed cats can get lost. I've rescued a few in very bad shape! Woody was living in woods behind a hospital a half hour away from me. It took 4 trips back & forth to finally trap the very frightened cat. By then his tail had been ripped in half, and the stump that was left was red raw down to the bone! The rest of his tail got amputated a few days later. He didn't need to be neutered as he already was. He was also declawed. He had been out in the woods trying to defend himself for almost a year, and it came close to costing him his life.