I guess I will jump in here as the one person who has a cat with behavioral issues related to the declaw surgery. I know I have posted on the other declaw threads, but I thought I would just post my experience here as well, for those who haven't seen.
I admit, I am one of those people that really didn't know anything at all about the declaw surgery. It just seemed like the thing to do if you had a cat. Take it to get fixed and declawed. Being young at the time, this was my observation.
Later, after doing much research and speaking to people about it, I fully came to understand what it was all about and was mortified. I had no idea that bone was actually snipped off! I certainly wouldn't want any of my body parts cut off simply for convenience.
My husband had his cat Scooter declawed, and now Scooter has a behavioral problem, which is unfortunately one of those rare instances that stem from having the procedure done. Granted, it doesn't seem to happen as often, but it still happens. He's skittish, bites and eliminates outside of the litterbox. I also get the distinct impression that his feet still hurt quite alot, as he gets really ticked off if you get near them. Most declawed cats that end up in shelters are a classic case like Scooter, and it's usually because of elimination outside of the litterbox. We, however, decided to deal with it because it was his choice to get his cat declawed. This all happened before we were married. After I did research about the procedure, it really cleared up Scooter's behavior, but that doesn't make it any better. We've tried everything to treat Scooter, and finally the only thing we can do is put him in his playpen when we can't watch him. I feel so bad that he has to be locked away in his playpen whenever we're not home, but if we don't do that, our carpet would be full of cat pee, and we just can't have that. You should have seen Aaron's apartment before we were married and moved into our own place!

My cat Marius, is not declawed. I refused to do it when Aaron and I were married and I will never have it done to any of my future cats (unless per chance they come to me that way). Since his cat is declawed, though, I didn't want my Marius to accidently hurt him while playing or have some sort of "advantage" over him, which is why I opted for the soft paws nail caps. My cat is really good about his scratching habits, actually...so it wasn't even an issue. I just think that if you take time to train the cat to scratch appropriately, then that is always the best choice. But, there are alternatives to consider before mutilation.

I am not attacking anyone's point of view. This is just my experience. I am one of those unfortunate few that has a cat that suffers behavioral problems due to surgery.

I know for a fact that each of us on Pet Talk with is blessed to share their lives with their cats, love them very much...clawed or not! So, go hug your kitties and tell them that you love them! Don't forget those scritchies and treats!