Spaying pets is saving pets
As most people already know, the Humane Society of Imperial County and many of our friends are huge advocates for the spaying and neutering of pets. Day in and day out, we encounter many people in our community who do not spay or neuter their pets and do not do so for several reasons. One reason that we commonly hear is that pet owners do not know what it means or they do not know the benefits that it has to offer to their pet’s health.
The number one reason as to why most pet owners do not spay and neuter is that some people simply do not believe in it. They view spaying and neutering as a negative thing and that it takes away from who the animal is or that it will change their personality.
Some people believe that it will take away their pet’s masculinity or femininity. Although our pets do feel emotions such as joy, sadness, anger, fear, and they do feel physical pain like we do, fortunately they are not able to associate with feelings of gender. In other words, they are not able to understand that they are missing certain “parts” like a human would.
As most veterinary experts would agree, spaying and neutering has many health benefits for our four-legged furkids. There are certain types of conditions and cancers that can completely and easily be avoided simply by having a pet go through such a routine procedure.
For example, with female pets there is a condition called pyometra which is an infection of the uterus. This infection is caused by hormonal changes which occur each time a female pet goes into “heat”. As she ages, and with more and more heat cycles, the chances of the pet developing pyometra increase.
Pyometra is associated with several different symptoms and can only be diagnosed by a veterinarian. If not caught in time and treated properly, this condition may cause the pet to become very ill and experience a lot of unnecessary pain and discomfort.
It may even lead to death. In both male and female pets, there are certain
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cancers that can potentially develop later in life if not spayed or neutered early on.
In females, ovarian cancer, mammary cancer and uterine cancer are commonly seen. In males, testicular cancer and prostate cancer are commonly seen. It is important to keep in mind that there are certain breeds that are more prone to certain health issues later in life.
Although the Humane Society of Imperial County prefers to have adopted pets spayed and neutered between four and six months of age, your family veterinarian has their own preference on when it is most appropriate for your pet to be spayed or neutered.
Aside from eliminating certain health problems, spaying and neutering can also help eliminate some unwanted behavioral issues.
Spaying in female dogs eliminates unwanted “bloody spots” around your home. In female cats it eliminates late night howling. Neutering both male cats and dogs (alongside with proper potty training at an early age) will help to eliminate them from “marking their territory” or unwanted “spraying”. Neutering male dogs at an early age (with proper training and upbringing) can help to eliminate aggression issues later in life. Another added bonus from spaying and neutering pets is that it will help keep pets from wandering from home.
Because they will no longer have the urge to seek out a mate, they have no desire to roam the streets. With Animal Control Officers becoming stricter on enforcing city, county and state laws and ordinances, this could help a lot of people avoid fines and citations.
It also helps keep pets healthy by not accidentally becoming ill or injured while running at large and could save a pet owner from obtaining a large vet bill.
It is not surprising to hear that the Humane Society here in the Imperial Valley is quite often over capacity, short on foster homes, and can have as many as 500 orphaned pets in our care at any given time.
We average 300 to 350 animals coming in on a monthly basis from every corner of the county. Many of these poor animals are unwanted or abandoned and some are even abused or neglected. The No. 1 cause for unwanted pets is the lack of spaying and neutering. We receive calls on a daily basis from local pet owners wanting to surrender their pets because their pets have become pregnant or have had a litter and the owner cannot financially provide for an unwanted litter.
We do the very best that we can in accommodating the citizens and animals of our community, but with literally hundreds of calls coming in on a daily basis it is very difficult to keep up with.
What many of Imperial Valley’s residents do not realize is that there exists a huge pet overpopulation problem in our own backyard that is the result of irresponsible pet ownership. In the United States alone, more than 7 million cats and dogs enter shelters each year.
Of those, nearly 3 million of them are euthanized simply because there isn’t enough room in shelters and there aren’t enough homes for them all.
That is almost 3 million innocent lives that could have been saved had pet owners done something as simple as setting up an appointment. We do realize that it is not always the pet owner’s fault. Some pet owners understand the importance of spaying and neutering their pets, but cannot afford to do so with regular vet prices.
We often hear from our community that people did not know that they have low-cost resources to assist them in spaying and neutering their pets.
The Humane Society of Imperial County offers two low-cost spay and neuter programs which are available to all community members. One program only costs $55 per pet (both cats and dogs) with a California-licensed veterinarian based in Joshua Tree. We transport the community’s pets to and from the shelter typically twice a month in our Harry Weissman PetMobile.
Spaying and neutering for feral cats through our Joshua Tree program is only $10 per cat and includes ear tipping.
We offer an even lower-cost program through a very trustworthy veterinarian in Mexicali that we have been using on a weekly basis for nearly two years. Spaying and neutering through our Mexicali program is $25 per cat and $35 per dog. The staff and volunteers at the Humane Society of Imperial County cannot stress enough how important it is to spay and neuter pets. Not only does it keep them happy and healthy, but it helps end so much needless pain and suffering.
We strongly urge everyone to please take advantage of your resources. For more information on our low-cost spay and neuter programs, to schedule an appointment or for appointment availability, please contact us at (760) 3521911 or at ivhumanesociety@gmail. com as soon as possible! Please spay and neuter. It saves lives. We promise!