Why Spay/Neuter?

Having your pets spayed or neutered, preferably before their first heat cycle, has many benefits for you, your pet, and your community.

Benefits for You

• You’ll avoid female pets’ messy heat cycles.
• You won’t have pets trying to run away in search of a mate.
• You’re less likely to have stray animals howling outside your windows because they can tell an animal is in heat inside.
• You won’t have litters of puppies or kittens to care for.
• You won’t have the veterinary bills that come with a pregnant female and her subsequent litters.

Benefits for Your Pet

• Spayed/neutered pets are usually healthier and happier.
• By reducing the urge to breed, your pets’ desires to roam in search of a mate are reduced – some studies say by up to 90 percent. Roaming cats and dogs are likely to encounter dangerous roads, cars, diseases, and fights with other animals.
• Spaying your female dog or cat eliminates the possibility of ovarian and uterine cancers, pyometra (bacterial infection of the uterus), and greatly reduces the incidence of mammary gland tumors.
• Neutering your male dog or cat prevents testicular tumors – the second most common tumor in male dogs.

Benefits for Your Community

• Millions of unwanted puppies and kittens are born in our country each year, but there are not enough homes for all of these youngsters (in addition to the millions of adult cats and dogs surrendered to animal shelters), which means many get euthanized.
• Spaying/neutering your pets reduces the number of homeless and stray pets in your neighborhood, as well as those entering your local animal shelters.
• The best and simplest solution to the pet overpopulation problem is to spay and neuter your pets.