The Effects of Onychectomy (Declawing) on Antebrachial Myology across the Full Body Size Range of Exotic Species of Felidae
While people are familiar with the practice of declawing domestic cats, “onychectomy”, as it is also known, is also performed on non-domesticated species, including pantherines, to prolong their use for entertainment purposes. Although the surgery (the partial or complete removal of the distal phala...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-07-01
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| Series: | Animals |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/15/2462 |
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| author | Lara L. Martens Sarah Jessica Piersanti Arin Berger Nicole A. Kida Ashley R. Deutsch Kathryn Bertok Lauren Humphries Angela Lassiter Adam Hartstone-Rose |
| author_facet | Lara L. Martens Sarah Jessica Piersanti Arin Berger Nicole A. Kida Ashley R. Deutsch Kathryn Bertok Lauren Humphries Angela Lassiter Adam Hartstone-Rose |
| author_sort | Lara L. Martens |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | While people are familiar with the practice of declawing domestic cats, “onychectomy”, as it is also known, is also performed on non-domesticated species, including pantherines, to prolong their use for entertainment purposes. Although the surgery (the partial or complete removal of the distal phalanx) has clear osteological implications, its myological effects have never been studied. As the mass of an animal increases cubically as a product of its volume, while the areas of its paws only increase as a square, larger felids have higher foot pressures and, therefore, the surgery may have particularly substantial functional effects on larger cats. In this study, we evaluate the forearms of clawed and declawed non-domestic felid specimens that spanned the body size range of the whole family to evaluate the effects of onychectomy on muscle fiber architecture. We found that the deep digital flexors (the muscles most directly affected by onychectomy) of declawed felids are significantly lighter (~73%) and less powerful (46–66%) than those of non-declawed felids, while other muscles do not make up for these reductions. Thus, onychectomy has a substantial effect on the myological capabilities of cats, and because these deficiencies are not compensated for in biomechanically disadvantaged larger felids, it probably has even more functionally devastating consequences for these species. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T00:31:56Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-08a5d5457f06407d8d971c7207a64a6b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2615 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T00:31:56Z |
| publishDate | 2023-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Animals |
| spelling | doaj.art-08a5d5457f06407d8d971c7207a64a6b2023-11-18T22:33:22ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152023-07-011315246210.3390/ani13152462The Effects of Onychectomy (Declawing) on Antebrachial Myology across the Full Body Size Range of Exotic Species of FelidaeLara L. Martens0Sarah Jessica Piersanti1Arin Berger2Nicole A. Kida3Ashley R. Deutsch4Kathryn Bertok5Lauren Humphries6Angela Lassiter7Adam Hartstone-Rose8Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USADepartment of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USADepartment of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USADepartment of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USADepartment of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USACarolina Tiger Rescue, Pittsboro, NC 27312, USACarolina Tiger Rescue, Pittsboro, NC 27312, USACarolina Tiger Rescue, Pittsboro, NC 27312, USADepartment of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USAWhile people are familiar with the practice of declawing domestic cats, “onychectomy”, as it is also known, is also performed on non-domesticated species, including pantherines, to prolong their use for entertainment purposes. Although the surgery (the partial or complete removal of the distal phalanx) has clear osteological implications, its myological effects have never been studied. As the mass of an animal increases cubically as a product of its volume, while the areas of its paws only increase as a square, larger felids have higher foot pressures and, therefore, the surgery may have particularly substantial functional effects on larger cats. In this study, we evaluate the forearms of clawed and declawed non-domestic felid specimens that spanned the body size range of the whole family to evaluate the effects of onychectomy on muscle fiber architecture. We found that the deep digital flexors (the muscles most directly affected by onychectomy) of declawed felids are significantly lighter (~73%) and less powerful (46–66%) than those of non-declawed felids, while other muscles do not make up for these reductions. Thus, onychectomy has a substantial effect on the myological capabilities of cats, and because these deficiencies are not compensated for in biomechanically disadvantaged larger felids, it probably has even more functionally devastating consequences for these species.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/15/2462<i>Panthera</i>tigersexotic catswild catscaptivity |
| spellingShingle | Lara L. Martens Sarah Jessica Piersanti Arin Berger Nicole A. Kida Ashley R. Deutsch Kathryn Bertok Lauren Humphries Angela Lassiter Adam Hartstone-Rose The Effects of Onychectomy (Declawing) on Antebrachial Myology across the Full Body Size Range of Exotic Species of Felidae Animals <i>Panthera</i> tigers exotic cats wild cats captivity |
| title | The Effects of Onychectomy (Declawing) on Antebrachial Myology across the Full Body Size Range of Exotic Species of Felidae |
| title_full | The Effects of Onychectomy (Declawing) on Antebrachial Myology across the Full Body Size Range of Exotic Species of Felidae |
| title_fullStr | The Effects of Onychectomy (Declawing) on Antebrachial Myology across the Full Body Size Range of Exotic Species of Felidae |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Effects of Onychectomy (Declawing) on Antebrachial Myology across the Full Body Size Range of Exotic Species of Felidae |
| title_short | The Effects of Onychectomy (Declawing) on Antebrachial Myology across the Full Body Size Range of Exotic Species of Felidae |
| title_sort | effects of onychectomy declawing on antebrachial myology across the full body size range of exotic species of felidae |
| topic | <i>Panthera</i> tigers exotic cats wild cats captivity |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/15/2462 |
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