I would have said neutering is more commonly done to prevent your cats having lots of kittens? All my parents cats were neutered mainly because they didn't want them suddenly bringing several smaller versions into the world and since there are a lot of problems with people dumping unwanted animals after realising how much trouble they are, I'd say that neutering is a solution with more pros than cons.
Declawing - I probably wouldn't get it done. I've been around cats all my life and never been scratched more than a handful of times. Hell, I think having animals that can give a bit of a warning scratch might be a good thing for kids when learning to respect other creatures. I do like the idea of a kitty with soft little paws that can't hurt you, but... that doesn't seem like a good enough reason for me to get it done, just because it'd be quite nice
and since there are a lot of problems with people dumping unwanted animals after realising how much trouble they are, I'd say that neutering is a solution with more pros than cons.
