Declawing a cat is not illegal in Minnesota. No state statute prohibits the procedure, no Minnesota city has banned it, and a licensed veterinarian can legally perform it anywhere in the state for either medical or elective reasons. The only related restriction on the books protects renters: a landlord cannot require you to declaw your cat as a condition of housing.
No State Law Bans the Procedure
Minnesota statutes contain no prohibition on cat declawing. Three states have passed outright bans; Minnesota is not one of them.
The most recent attempt to change that was House File 1857, sponsored by Rep. Andy Smith, with a Senate companion in SF 1935. The bills would have added a new section to Minnesota’s animal cruelty chapter (chapter 343) banning elective declawing statewide, with a narrow exception for procedures done solely for a therapeutic purpose.1Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota HF 1857 Introduction – 94th Legislature The House version failed on a party-line vote in the Agriculture Finance and Policy Committee and never reached the floor.2Minnesota House of Representatives. Agriculture Committee Scratches Bill That Would Ban Cat Declawing
Related language survived in an omnibus bill. The version that passed directs the Board of Veterinary Medicine to develop formal recommendations on declawing and deliver them to select legislative committee chairs by the start of the 2026 session. Until then, and unless a future bill passes, declawing remains unrestricted at the state level.
No Minnesota City Has Banned It Either
Despite what some online sources suggest, no Minnesota municipality has an ordinance prohibiting cat declawing. Minneapolis and St. Paul have no such ban. The decision sits entirely with the cat owner and the veterinarian, with no local penalties and no patchwork of city rules to work around.
Your Landlord Cannot Require You to Declaw
Minnesota does have one important related protection. Under Section 504B.114, a landlord who allows pets cannot require tenants to declaw or devocalize an animal as a condition of living in the rental.3Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 504B.114 – Pet Declawing and Devocalization Prohibited The law reaches three specific landlord practices:
- Advertising a rental in a way designed to discourage applicants whose pets still have their claws.
- Refusing to rent to someone, or refusing to negotiate a lease, because the person won’t declaw their animal.
- Including a declawing or devocalization requirement in a lease. Any such provision is void and unenforceable.
Landlords who violate the statute face civil penalties of up to $1,000 per advertisement or per animal, in addition to other remedies available under law.3Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 504B.114 – Pet Declawing and Devocalization Prohibited If a landlord tells you to declaw your cat or face eviction, that demand carries no legal force in Minnesota.
Finding a Vet Willing to Do It Is Getting Harder
Legal availability and practical availability are not the same thing. A survey of 783 veterinary professionals conducted by the Minnesota Veterinary Medical Association found that only 30% of small-animal veterinarians in the state still offer elective declawing, and those who do typically perform it under strict conditions. Most Minnesota veterinarians have stopped performing elective declaws in the past decade, and recent veterinary school graduates are the least likely group to offer the procedure.4Minnesota Legislative Reference Library. Statement Regarding Minnesota SF No. 1935
The American Veterinary Medical Association’s national policy says declawing should be considered only after attempts have been made to prevent destructive scratching through other means. If you ask for the procedure, expect many clinics to decline or to steer you toward nail trimming, nail caps, or behavioral training first.
What a Future Minnesota Ban Would Likely Cover
HF 1857 is likely to be reintroduced, especially after the Board of Veterinary Medicine delivers its recommendations ahead of the 2026 session. The failed bill offers the clearest preview of what a Minnesota ban would look like.
Under the proposal, no one could perform surgical claw removal, declawing, or a tendonectomy on a cat, and no one could alter a cat’s paws in any way that prevents or impairs normal claw function. The definition reached onychectomy and any surgical procedure that amputates or modifies part of a cat’s paw to remove the claws. Trimming dead claw husks and applying non-permanent nail caps would stay legal.1Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota HF 1857 Introduction – 94th Legislature
The one exception was procedures performed solely for a therapeutic purpose, defined narrowly as treatment for an existing or recurring infection, disease, injury, or abnormal condition in the claws, nail bed, or toe bone that jeopardizes the cat’s health. Owner convenience, cosmetic preference, and furniture concerns would not qualify. Violations would be civil, not criminal, enforced by the county attorney or attorney general.1Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota HF 1857 Introduction – 94th Legislature
For now, though, declawing is legal everywhere in Minnesota. The only enforceable restriction protects renters from being pressured into it by a landlord.