"smithandwest"
writes

...the vet may not be able to do that without the owner's consent. It
sounds like the
owner may be at fault here,

I spoke to the husband/owner, who gave his permission. The rescue rep insisted
she would set it up. I don't have the owner's phone number or I'd bypass the
useless group and get to the bottom of the issue.

Maybe right now is not the time to get a cat if you will be undergoing
surgery, unless there is someone else there to help care for them.

I actually had one surgery several weeks ago and will have another in a month.
I am able to take care of a cat without dramatic health problems. I have been
offered cats with IBS, blindness, etc. If I had the room, I'd adopt more...but
I have limited room, funds, (and capability). I also want a cat who is,
hopefully, going to get along with other cats. Once she is here, she is home.
That's it.

I would think a
possibly unhealthy kitty would be a risk for you.

I would NOT adopt an unhealthy cat..couldn't possibly accept a threat to my
current cat's health. That's why I was so aggressive about talking w/the
current vet. Since it appears to be impossible - although the current owner
said OK - logically, there must be something to hide.

sometimes to get a cat into rescue safely, or any animal, we
have to "play the game" and sometimes that means keeping the owner anonymous
or being nice to them when we really want to strangle them!

I definitely agree there. The "owner(s)" in this case changed. It's either the
wife, the mother-in-law...the mother....other family member. It changed
constantly. Also, the wife had emailed the rescue group 2x...she made it clear
that she was going to dump the declawed cat to the street or a kill shelter. I
was told that the wife was a current or former vet tech. I didn't believe that
for one second. It could be possible that a vet tech (who is essentially an
animal nurse) could be such as cruel a**. Anything is possible, I guess.

Everyone has their views. My view and our rescue's view is to never declaw
because it totally removes the cat's natural defenses and therefore they do
not feel safe. Declawed cats don't stand a chance if they slip outside

I am against declaw unless a person has tried every conceivable alternative,
including trimming, softpaws, and behavior training. I don't believe a cat
should be allowed to roam outside in any case..unless, of course, the cat is at
least 20 miles away from any danger. I live on the 5th floor in an apartment
house. My cat(s) had regularly tried to race into the hall when I opened the
door. Often, I picked one up (and closed the door on the other) so this
couldn't happen. People who live in houses have to be even more careful when
opening the door to the outside. Cats & kids?...well, the parents have to
develop a routine so cats don't accidently get access to the outdoors.