4 Reasons to Spay or Neuter Your Pet

February is Spay/Neuter Awareness Month and the last day of the month is considered World Spay Day. Every year millions of dogs and cats, puppies, and kittens go into animal shelters, and sadly, a lot of them die in those shelters. If more companion animals were spayed or neutered, the number of litters of puppies and kittens would decrease, and therefore, so, too, would the numbers of animals killed in shelters each year.
 
That is one reason to spay and neuter pets. There are several others.
 

1. Healthier Pets. According to a story written a few years ago in USA Today, the states with the healthiest pets also had the largest number of animals that were spayed/neutered. The two top states for both, healthy pets and altered pets, were Colorado and Montana. Experts at the ASPCA (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) note that fixing a dog or cat helps to prevent uterine infections and breast tumors, which are malignant or cancerous in about 50 percent of female dogs and 90 percent of female cats and also prevents testicular cancer and some prostate problems in male dogs and cats.
2. Curbs Behavioral Issues. Female companion animals are known to urinate more often in the house and walk around howling and yowling when in heat, and males are known to leave the house and roam the neighborhood – spaying and neutering take care of these issues.
3. Protects Pets from Accidental Death. When pets roam, they can engage in fights with other animals, be bitten by wildlife like skunks which may carry rabies, or be hit by cars. According to the SpayUSA organization, up to 85% of dogs hit by cars are unaltered, and intact male cats that live outside may, on average, live less than two years.
4. Saves Community Taxpayer Dollars. According to the American Veterinary Medical Association, “the capture, impoundment and eventual destruction of unwanted animals costs taxpayers and private humanitarian agencies over a billion dollars each year.”

 
Although a spay surgery can be expensive, especially for a large or extra-large female dog, there are opportunities to find low-cost spay-neuter clinics. The ASPCA provides a database of such low-cost clinics. Visit their webpage at http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/general-pet-care/low-cost-spayneuter-programs to find a clinic/program near you. The Humane Society of the United States can also assist you finding low-cost programs and clinics; visit that group’s website to learn more: http://www.humanesociety.org/issues/pet_overpopulation/tips/afford_spay_neuter.html?credit=web_id88387650.
 
If you live in Wyoming, as I do, you can visit the SpayWyoming page, a state-wide program of the Dog and Cat Shelter in Sheridan, Wyoming and an affiliate of SpayUSA. You might also visit the Care Credit website, a health-care credit card covering dental, chiropractic, veterinary, and other medical fields; the company often gives patients (or in this case the “pet parents” of patients) six to 12 months to pay off the account before charging interest (it’s a program my husband and I use for our veterinary bills).
 
The outlay for a spay or neuter might be spendy at first, especially if your area doesn’t have a low-cost spay/neuter program. However, the benefits of the surgery are many, including a healthier pet and not dealing with behavioral issues. But, a strong reason to spay and neuter is saving lives, not having to wonder how to find homes for litters of puppies and kittens and facing the reality that, if taken to an animal shelter, those animals may not get new homes, but instead, may die.

Please do your part as a responsible pet parent: spay/neuter your companion animal!

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