“Can We Talk?”- The truth about spaying and neutering your pets.
April 2021

 

Spring is here and it’s that time of year when pet populations explode.  Animal shelters across the country are inundated with litters of puppies and kittens, all needing to find “furever” homes.  The ever growing need for animal shelters can easily decrease if everyone who owns a pet, has them spayed or neutered.  An overwhelming 6.5 million animals enter animal shelters nation wide every year!

Just as overwhelming is the fact that 25% of those animals wind up being euthanized, largely because of a lack of space in shelters as well as a lack of available forever homes.  The simple act of spaying and neutering your pets can help make in dent in these numbers.

 

Health Benefits

 

• Your female pet will live a longer, healthier life. Spaying helps prevent uterine infections and breast tumors, which are malignant or cancerous in about 50 percent of dogs and 90 percent of cats. Spaying your pet before her first heat offers the best protection from these diseases.

• Neutering your male companion prevents testicular cancer and some prostate problems.

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Behavioral Benefits

 

• Your spayed female pet won't go into heat. While cycles can vary, female felines usually go into heat four to five days every three weeks during breeding season. In an effort to advertise for mates, they'll yowl and urinate more frequently—sometimes all over the house!

 

• Your male dog will be less likely to roam away from home. An intact male will do just about anything to find a mate, including finding creative ways escape from the house. Once he's free to roam, he risks injury in traffic and fights with other male animals.

 

• Your neutered male may be better behaved. Unneutered dogs and cats are more likely to mark their territory by spraying strong-smelling urine all over the house. Your dog might be less likely to mount other dogs, people and inanimate objects after he’s neutered. Some aggression problems may be avoided by early neutering.

 

 

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