I know I felt terrible about doing it to my kitty (please don't blast me)...The only apartment I could find when I left my ex that would even allow pets at all insisted that she be front-declawed, since it was a furnished place. I refused to leave him all the pets, knowing how he would (not) care for them properly...This was my only option at the time, and I will never, ever, ever, let her out of the house...I hope this girl's situation wasn't as bad as mine, but I can empathize with her. I did get the pain meds for Sasha, though (I actually charged it all to my credit card, even though I couldn't really afford it - over 2 years later, I'm still paying for bills incurred during my separation).