Monthly Archives: May 2015

The Benefits of Spaying and Neutering Your Pets

Pets enrich the lives of people everywhere, adding joy and companionship to their owners’ lives. While many people strive to give their pets the highest level of care available, they often concentrate on feeding good foods, regular grooming, and taking pets to obedience class. Unfortunately, while veterinary care is a priority for pet owners, the importance of spaying and neutering your pet can be lost on many pet owners. There are many reasons why you should spay and neuter your pets for their health, and your sanity as an owner.

The most obvious benefits of neutering your pets include the decrease in pet overpopulation. This is an especially significant issue for cats, which are less likely to be adopted from shelters and harm the environment when left to roam freely. Because the number of stray and unwanted animals in communities decreases when pets are spayed or neutered, fewer animals are left in shelters or euthanized.

When you neuter or spay your cat or dog, you are sure to save money in long-term vet bills. Intact male cats and dogs are more likely to wander away from home, and are at a higher risk for testicular cancer than male pets who have been neutered before six months of age. When you neuter or spay your cat, his or her life span is increased by three to five years, while fixed dogs see a life span increase of one to three years. Many owners are concerned about the cost of having their pets fixed, but there are many dog and cat spay and neuter clinics that offer affordable surgery for low-income pet owners.

Spayed and neutered pets contribute to a more peaceful household. Spayed and neutered pets tend to be friendlier, more focused, and easier to train than their intact counterparts. Fixed pets also exhibit fewer aggressive behaviors, as well as refrain from unwanted actions like wailing and spraying.

Whether you are a cat person or a dog person, it is your responsibility as a pet owner to keep your companions happy and healthy, so be sure to have your pets spayed and neutered as early as possible to help them live a long and happy life.

Three Surprising Numbers and Statistics You Didn’t Know About Pet Overpopulation

Millions of Americans count companion animals as a member of their families. The ASPCA estimates that Americans own approximately 70 to 80 million dogs and 74 to 96 million cats.

And while there’s no denying the companionship and unconditional love you can get by owning a dog or cat, it’s also important to make sure you’re providing the best level of care to your companion animal.

Every pet owner has a responsibility to make sure his or her pet is spayed or neutered — a surgical procedure involving the removal of a pet’s reproductive organs so they can’t have puppies or kittens. One of the biggest reasons why you should spay and neuter your pets? It cuts down on the problem of pet overpopulation.

Pet overpopulation is one of the most overlooked issues plaguing the U.S. today — and it’s just one of the many reasons why you should spay and neuter your pets. Here are three numbers and statistics that show just how pervasive the problem of pet overpopulation has become:

10%

Did you know that only 10% of the stray animals that enter animal shelters are spayed or neutered? In contrast, 83% of pet dogs and 91% of pet cats are spayed or neutered on average. To help keep the number of animals in shelters down, the percentage of pets that are spayed and neutered should be closer to 100%.

70 million

It’s nearly impossible to measure the exact number of stray cats and dogs living in the U.S. Estimates for just the number of stray cats ranges around 70 million — and this doesn’t even count the number of stray dogs. The saddest part? A huge portion of these strays and unwanted animals came as a result of unplanned litters that could have easily been prevented through spay and neuter procedures.

2.7 million

Every year, approximately 2.7 million adoptable cats and dogs living in animal shelters are euthanized. This figure shows perhaps the biggest reason why you should spay and neuter your pets — it lowers the number of unwanted animals who ultimately end up suffering and being put down in shelters each year. Many dog and cat spay and neuter clinics offer reduced fees for the spay and neuter procedure, so there’s no reason not to have your pet spayed or neutered.