Top 10 Reasons to Spay/Neuter Your Pet
1. Your female pet will live a longer, healthier life.
Spaying helps prevent uterine infections and breast cancer, which is fatal 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.
2. Neutering provides major health benefits for your male. Besides preventing unwanted litters, neutering your male companion prevents testicular and other cancers, especially if done before six months of age.
3. Your spayed female won't go into heat.
While cycles can vary, female cats usually go into heat four or five days every three weeks during breeding season, and will continue to go into heat until bred. In an effort to advertise for mates, they'll yowl and urinate more frequently. Female dogs, which go into heat on average every six months, will bleed which can be messy.
4. Your male won't want to roam away from home.
An intact male will do just about anything to find a mate! That includes digging his way under (or climbing over) fences. Once he's free to roam, he risks injury in traffic and fights with other males. Males can roam up to several miles.
5. Your neutered male will be much better behaved.
Neutered cats and dogs focus their attention on their human families. On the other hand, unneutered dogs and cats may mark their territory by spraying strong-smelling urine all over the house. Many aggression problems can be avoided by early neutering. Intact animals are 2.6 times more likely to bite.
6. Spaying or neutering will NOT make your pet fat.
Don't use that old excuse! Lack of exercise and over feeding will cause your pet to pack on the extra pounds - not neutering. Your pet will remain fit and trim as long as you continue to provide exercise and monitor food intake.
7. It is highly cost-effective.
The cost of your pet's spay/neuter surgery is a lot less than the cost of having and caring for a litter. If your female has complications giving birth, a vet visit or emergency surgery will cost more than a routine spay. It also beats the cost of treatment when your unneutered male escapes and gets into fights with another male competing for a female in heat.
8. Spaying and neutering your pet is good for the community.
Stray animals pose a real problem in many parts of the country. They can prey on wildlife, cause car accidents, damage the local fauna and frighten children. Spaying and neutering packs a powerful punch in reducing the number of animals on the street, and reduces the costs of catching and caring for stray and unwanted animals.
9. Your pet doesn't need to have a litter for your children to learn about the miracle of birth.
Letting your pet produce offspring you have no intention of keeping is not a good lesson for your children - especially when so many unwanted animals end up in shelters.
10. Spaying and neutering helps fight pet overpopulation.
Every year, millions of cats and dogs of all ages and breeds are euthanized or suffer as strays. These high numbers are the result of unplanned litters that could have been prevented by spaying or neutering.
(*Adapted from the ASPCA website 2013. http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/spayneuter/spay-neuter-top-ten.aspx)
Low Cost Spay/Neuter Resources
The following organizations can help with traps and/or the cost of surgery:
Pawprints Thrift Store: 530-895-1791
Helps provide financial assistance to pet owners who need help with the cost of having their pet spayed or neutered. Can help with trapping feral cats for spay/neuter. Click on link or call for more information.
Butte Humane Society: 530-343-7917
Clinic provides low-cost spay/neuter and vaccinations. Click on link or call for more information.
PAWS of Oroville: 530-534-0900
Clinic provides low-cost spay-neuter and vaccinations. Call for more information.
Spaying helps prevent uterine infections and breast cancer, which is fatal 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.
2. Neutering provides major health benefits for your male. Besides preventing unwanted litters, neutering your male companion prevents testicular and other cancers, especially if done before six months of age.
3. Your spayed female won't go into heat.
While cycles can vary, female cats usually go into heat four or five days every three weeks during breeding season, and will continue to go into heat until bred. In an effort to advertise for mates, they'll yowl and urinate more frequently. Female dogs, which go into heat on average every six months, will bleed which can be messy.
4. Your male won't want to roam away from home.
An intact male will do just about anything to find a mate! That includes digging his way under (or climbing over) fences. Once he's free to roam, he risks injury in traffic and fights with other males. Males can roam up to several miles.
5. Your neutered male will be much better behaved.
Neutered cats and dogs focus their attention on their human families. On the other hand, unneutered dogs and cats may mark their territory by spraying strong-smelling urine all over the house. Many aggression problems can be avoided by early neutering. Intact animals are 2.6 times more likely to bite.
6. Spaying or neutering will NOT make your pet fat.
Don't use that old excuse! Lack of exercise and over feeding will cause your pet to pack on the extra pounds - not neutering. Your pet will remain fit and trim as long as you continue to provide exercise and monitor food intake.
7. It is highly cost-effective.
The cost of your pet's spay/neuter surgery is a lot less than the cost of having and caring for a litter. If your female has complications giving birth, a vet visit or emergency surgery will cost more than a routine spay. It also beats the cost of treatment when your unneutered male escapes and gets into fights with another male competing for a female in heat.
8. Spaying and neutering your pet is good for the community.
Stray animals pose a real problem in many parts of the country. They can prey on wildlife, cause car accidents, damage the local fauna and frighten children. Spaying and neutering packs a powerful punch in reducing the number of animals on the street, and reduces the costs of catching and caring for stray and unwanted animals.
9. Your pet doesn't need to have a litter for your children to learn about the miracle of birth.
Letting your pet produce offspring you have no intention of keeping is not a good lesson for your children - especially when so many unwanted animals end up in shelters.
10. Spaying and neutering helps fight pet overpopulation.
Every year, millions of cats and dogs of all ages and breeds are euthanized or suffer as strays. These high numbers are the result of unplanned litters that could have been prevented by spaying or neutering.
(*Adapted from the ASPCA website 2013. http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/spayneuter/spay-neuter-top-ten.aspx)
Low Cost Spay/Neuter Resources
The following organizations can help with traps and/or the cost of surgery:
Pawprints Thrift Store: 530-895-1791
Helps provide financial assistance to pet owners who need help with the cost of having their pet spayed or neutered. Can help with trapping feral cats for spay/neuter. Click on link or call for more information.
Butte Humane Society: 530-343-7917
Clinic provides low-cost spay/neuter and vaccinations. Click on link or call for more information.
PAWS of Oroville: 530-534-0900
Clinic provides low-cost spay-neuter and vaccinations. Call for more information.
