Learn
More!
For specific pet behavior questions, contact:
Diane Anderson, Animal Behaviorist/Orlando Facility
Diane@OrlandoPets.org.
Why
Spay or Neuter?
This
low-cost surgery offers you and your pet many, many advantages.
PEACE
OF MIND
Did you know that a spayed or neutered (sterilized) animal is better
behaved?
Males
- Neutered cats and dogs focus their attention on their human families,
whereas unsterilized, unsupervised males roam in search of a mate, risking
injury in traffic and in fights with other males. They mark territory
by spraying strong-smelling urine on surfaces. Indoors, male dogs may
embarrass you by mounting furniture and human legs when stimulated.
Don't confuse aggressiveness with protectiveness; a neutered dog protects
his home and family just as well as an unneutered dog, and many aggression
problems can be avoided by early neutering.
Females
- While their cycles vary greatly, most female cats exhibit the following
signs when in heat. For four or five days, every three weeks, they yowl
and urinate more frequently-sometimes all over the house- advertising
for mates. Often, they attract unneutered males who spray urine around
the females' home. Female dogs also attract males from great distances.
Female dogs generally have a bloody discharge for about a week, and
can conceive for another week or so.
GOOD
MEDICINE
Did you know that a spayed or neutered animal will live a longer,
healthier life?
Spaying
a female (removing the ovaries and uterus) or neutering a male (removing
the testicles) are veterinary procedures performed under general anesthesia.
Both surgeries usually require minimal hospitalization.
Neutering
a male cat or dog by six months of age prevents testicular cancer, prostate
disease and hernias. Spaying a female cat or dog helps prevent pyometra
(a pus-filled uterus) and breast cancer; having this done before the
first heat offers the best protection from these diseases. Treatment
of pyometra requires hospitalization, intravenous (IV) fluids, antibiotics
and spaying. Breast cancer can be fatal in about 50 percent of female
dogs and 90 percent of female cats. With an older, seriously ill animal,
anesthesia and surgery are complicated and costly.
RESPONSIBLE
CARE
Did you know that you can help prevent the suffering and death of
millions of animals?
Almost
everyone loves puppies and kittens, but some people lose interest when
these animals grow up. As a result, millions of cats and dogs of all
ages and breeds are euthanized annually or suffer as strays. Many of
these were the result of unwanted, unplanned litters that could have
been prevented by spaying or neutering. Rarely surviving for more than
a few years on their own, strays die painfully by starvation, disease,
freezing or being hit by cars.
JUST
THE FACTS, PLEASE
Myth:
A female cat or dog should have a litter before she is spayed.
Fact:
The sooner you spay your female, the better her health will be in the
future. As long as a kitten or puppy weighs more than two pounds and
is two months old, he or she can be neutered or spayed. Many veterinarians
are practicing perfectly safe early sterilization. The likelihood of
developing mammary tumors or uterine infections increases the longer
a female goes unspayed. In fact, a female spayed before sexual maturity
(six to nine months of age) has one-seventh the risk of an intact female
of developing mammary cancer.
Myth:
Spaying or neutering (sterilization) will alter my pet's personality.
Fact:
Any slight changes will be positive. Regardless of the age when spayed
or neutered, your pet will remain a caring, loving and protective companion.
Neutering will reduce the need to breed, and that has a calming effect
on many animals. Both neutered male canines and felines tend to stop
roaming and fighting and lose the desire to mark their territory with
urine.
Myth:
Companion animals will become fat and lazy if they are neutered.
Fact:
Absolutely not! Lack of exercise and overfeeding make pets fat and lazy-
not neutering. Your pet will not gain weight if you provide exercise
and monitor food intake. Neutering is good for your pet, since sterilized
pets tend to live an average of two to three years longer than unsterilized
pets.
Myth:
Sterilization is a dangerous and painful surgery for my pet.
Fact:
Spaying and neutering are the most common surgeries performed on animals.
With a minimal amount of home care, your pet will resume normal behavior
in a couple of days.
Myth:
Children should witness the miracle of birth.
Fact:
Countless books and videos are available to teach your children about
birth in a responsible manner. Letting your pet produce offspring you
have no intention of keeping is teaching your children irresponsibility.
Anyone who has seen an animal euthanized in a shelter for lack of a
home knows the truth behind this dangerous myth.
Thanks
to Petfinder.com and the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty
to Animals for allowing the
SPCA of Central Florida to reprint this article.
