Ontario is moving to end the use of certain cosmetic procedures on companion animals. New restrictions will prohibit veterinarians from declawing cats, cropping dogs’ ears, and devocalizing dogs unless the procedures are deemed medically necessary.

The regulatory change reflects growing concerns from animal welfare advocates and veterinary professionals that these procedures can cause pain, alter normal behaviours, and provide no therapeutic benefit when performed solely for appearance or convenience.

Ontario Regulation 152/26, made under the Provincial Animal Welfare Services Act (PAWS), 2019, designates the three procedures as prescribed procedures. The regulation will come into force on January 1, 2027.

The move follows years of advocacy from animal welfare organizations, including calls to recognize the impact of elective cosmetic procedures on companion animal health and well-being. Ontario is the last Canadian province to ban these cosmetic procedures,

Under the new rules, the procedures will remain permitted when a veterinarian determines they are medically necessary to treat an injury or disease. The medical rationale must be documented in the animal’s records.

The procedures covered by the regulation are:

• Declawing (onychectomy) performed on cats
• Devocalization performed on dogs
• Ear cropping performed on dogs

The Canadian Veterinary Medical Association (CVMA) has long opposed non-medical cosmetic procedures. The CVMA views the alteration of an animal’s anatomy solely for cosmetic or competitive purposes as medically unnecessary and ethically unacceptable. It says these procedures carry the risk of unnecessary pain with the potential for chronic pain and other negative welfare outcomes.