Spay/neuter is the best way of reducing the pet overpopulation issue in the US. Millions of adoptable cats and dogs are euthanized yearly because there are not enough homes for all the pets born every year. Your pet will also directly benefit from several health and behavioral effects including:
Females
- She’ll no longer go into heat or have an unwanted litter.
- No risk of pyometra (potentially fatal infection of the uterus.)
- Lowered risk of mammary tumors (breast cancer.)
- She’ll live longer!
Males
- He’ll be less likely to mark his territory and mount other pets or you.
- He’ll be less likely to roam from home to find a mate (and incur injury in the process.)
- No risk of testicular cancer.
- Neutering can reduce aggression/behavioral issues in some dogs.
- He’ll live longer!
“But…”
Spaying/Neutering will make my pet fat.
No, spaying/neutering will not make your pet overweight. Weight gain is caused by too much food and inactivity.
My pet’s personality will change.
Only annoying mating-related behaviors will change after your pet’s spay/neuter. These include roaming, marking, mounting, and in some cases aggression. Their basic activity level and personality will remain the same. Spaying/neutering will not make your pet less protective or able to hunt.
He’ll feel less like a man.
Dogs and cats do not have sexual identities and do not experience emotional distress due to neutering . No need to feel guilty, he’ll be better off without them and he won’t miss them when they’re gone.
My pet stays indoors/I only have one, so they don’t need to be fixed.
Aside from the fact that accidents happen (50% of pets are from accidental litters), the health and behavior benefits for spaying/neutering mean your pet will live a longer and healthier life!
We always find good homes for all the puppies/kittens.
You may have been lucky enough to find homes for yours, but there are not enough homes for all the puppies and kittens born each year in the US. The person who adopted your puppy or kitten could have saved an animal at a local shelter instead. The only way to end euthanasia is to end overbreeding. If you love raising puppies and kittens consider fostering through your local shelter instead. Check out our Foster Program.
It’s better for a female to have one litter before she is spayed.
Just the opposite. Females spayed before their first heat are less likely to develop mammary cancer later in life. No need to have a litter or even wait for her first heat cycle.
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