I have two cats and they are not declawed. I choose not to get them declawed because I believe that it is extremely painful for them. I did not want to put them through that. If you want to own a cat, you must remember that nature gave cats sharp claws which also will shred your furniture. Before I go into what you can do to prevent this, let me talk about the declawing process.  Declawing is debilitating surgery that can seriously affect the life of your cat. It can also put her at risk for infections. A cats claw is not like a fingernail but rather like a toe. The claw is attached to bone and muscle tissue. Claws have more than one function. They help your cat with walking, balancing, climbing and even running. Cats cannot get bed rest after surgery. The mutilated paws do not heal for many months. Your cat still needs to get around and it’s very painful for her to function until she is all healed. Keep in mind that cat declawing is illegal and several countrys and looked at as animal cruelty.  I love my cats and yes they did mutilate one of my chairs but a chair is a thing that could be replaced. My cats are more important that my one chair that was ruined. If you have several cat scratching posts in your home, you can train you cat to use them. They also sell a product called soft paws that is an acrylic coating that goes over you cats nails. They will still scratch but will not be as destructive. They do wear out and must be replaced fairly frequently. I try to trim my cats nails frequently as this also helps ease the damage.

If you are worried about your furniture, maybe owning a cat is not for you. I feel that it is better not to own a cat at all then to declaw it.