Welcome to a little nook of my brain! As a veterinary and biomedical science major who intends on becoming a small animal veterinarian, animals are a huge part of my life, and I wouldn’t want it any other way. I don’t think we realize how much animals – both domesticated and non-domesticated – impact our lives regardless of whether or not we own a pet; therefore, this blog will discuss various issues related to animal welfare, veterinary medicine, and pet ownership.
With that, my first post will be covering the animal overpopulation crisis and the spay/neuter debate. In order to better understand the abundance of homeless animals, here are a few statistics:
- An estimated 70,000 dogs and cats are born each day in the United States (World Animal Foundation)
- Approximately 3,100,000 cats and 3,200,000 dogs enter U.S. animal shelters each year (ASPCA)
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Overpopulation has burdened shelters and caused overcrowding. This often leads to euthanasia in order to reduce the number of animals in the shelter. Euthanasia is a weighty topic in itself (that I will not be covering this week) because the procedure is intended to be used on animals with declining health and little hope of recovering; instead, it is utilized by overwhelmed shelters that cannot sustain all of the animals and must decrease numbers regardless of an animal’s health.
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There are many reasons why animal homelessness continues to run rampant in the country, and each reason can be traced back to human actions. Most reasons can be summed up in two categories: irresponsible pet ownership and careless breeding.
- The thrill of getting a new pet is a wonderful feeling, but some let this feeling take over without carefully considering what it means to own the pet. Eventually, they figure out that they are not financially ready, the animal has too many needs, their home and/or family is not a good fit, and the list goes on. I understand that there are extenuating circumstances, but the majority of these situations can be avoided.
- Puppies (and kittens) are not cheap, so there is no mystery as to why people have exploited the breeding business by breeding animals without regarding the parents’ and offspring’s wellbeing as well as the homes and owners these animals are going to. Irresponsible breeders are able to make a fortune by selling animals that are predisposed to certain health issues or are already sick with certain diseases. This leads to unprepared owners that are forced to surrender their new pet to the shelter (or just abandon them).
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The most common prevention for overpopulation is spaying and neutering; however, it is considered a controversial procedure for some pet owners and veterinarians. Spays/neuters have been pushed for decades now as the solution to overpopulation because they prevent unwanted breeding and have the potential to avoid or decrease the chances of an animal obtaining certain infections and cancers. Data has shown that sterilized animals have a higher life expectancy than intact animals. In addition, the myth that the procedure will result in a calmer dog is enough motivation for some to take action.
The other side of the argument focuses on newer information that has found spays/neuters to do more harm than good. There is concern that doing the procedure – especially on young animals – heightens the chances of certain orthopedic issues and cancers. It is also argued that the procedure shouldn’t be necessary if owners are responsible (that’s a big if).
Due to the overpopulation crisis, many shelters around the country are required to spay/neuter their animals before adoption, and some breeders have required their customers to agree to spay/neuter their new furry family members. The studies that support anti-spaying/neutering are not completely sound; therefore, I don’t believe we should abandon the procedure so soon.
In an ideal world, everyone would treat their animals as though they are a family member. Unfortunately, this will never be the case. Fortunately, efforts to raise awareness for homeless animals continue, and adoption is encouraged more than ever because there are so many animals waiting to find someone to love and, most importantly, to love them back.
This is such an interesting topic. My family (unfortunately) does not own a pet, but one of our closest family friends fosters dogs. So, whenever we go over to her house, we get to meet a new foster dog. It is one of my favorite things to do. And we go over almost every weekend. I never knew about the debate around spaying and neutering and the harm it could do to pets. However, I do have to agree that we should not eliminate spaying and neutering altogether. There is not much research it seems, and it seems dependent on how responsible the owners are. From what you say, many are not responsible at all. But, it is an interesting topic. I wonder if we will ever get rid of spaying and neutering in the future. Great read! Cannot wait for more!
Great blog! As someone who grew up with a dog their entire life, I am a huge dog person, and everything you said is so true. Especially the part about getting a new dog, and although it is thrilling, you need to be able to take care of it, as it is a commitment. I also hope that one day every family will treat their pets like a family member, but right now, something we can do is encourage others to do so, and make sure we do so ourselves!
First of all, your blog has the cutest name.
This topic weighs heavy on my heart. My family is firm believers of the “adopt, don’t shop movement.” We got my dog when he was four years old because the shelter deemed him as “too old to be adopted.” I could not imagine that past 11 years without him. It breaks my heart when people are not responsible with their pets when they do not get them spayed/neutered.
This is an important topic that you are discussing and I am glad you are continuing to raise support for this issue.
This is such an interesting topic! I adopted my cat many years ago at the local shelter, and I distinctly remember that they were required (by law I think) to neuter him before I was allowed to take him home- even though he was only about 8 weeks old! I don’t know much about animal physiology, so I’m not sure if it is more harmful to wait to do the procedure, more harmful to do it early in the animal’s life, or if it doesn’t matter at all! I haven’t read much into the anti-neuter/spay debates, but personally I think that it is important for pet owners to make sure that their pets are neutered/spayed if they either can’t watch over them 24/7, don’t intent on taking care of more puppies/kittens/etc., or both. Personally, if my cat was an un-spayed female and came back one day pregnant with a litter of kittens, I would probably have to send the kittens to the local shelter- which would only increase the overpopulation problem! I am excited to read about such an engaging civic issue for the rest of the semester!