In 2018, more than 1,700 kittens and nearly 500 puppies came into Animal Welfare League Queensland’s (AWLQ) care across our four Centres in South East Queensland.
Many more don’t make it to shelters, rescue groups or pounds, and are abandoned to live and breed on the street, or around shopping centres and industrial complexes. Uncontrolled breeding and pet over-population contributes significantly to this problem.
When you desex your pet, you’re doing yourself, your pet and the community a big favour.
Your pet’s health and longevity improve, you’re saving yourself large vet bills from all the health complications that could come from an undesexed pet, and you are preventing unwanted litters ending up in pounds or shelters.
There are many reasons why pet owners should desex their pets. As well as helping to stop pet overpopulation, the following are some of the benefits associated with desexing cats and dogs.
Health
- Reduced risk of getting cancer or other diseases of the reproductive organs, such as testicular cancer, prostate cancer/disorders in males, and cystic ovaries, ovarian tumours, acute uterine infections and breast cancer in females, and also other diseases like mammary cancer, perianal tumours and perianal hernia.
- Females can suffer from physical and nutritional exhaustion if continually breeding.
- Pets generally live longer and healthier lives.
Behavioural
- Pets are less prone to wander, fight, and are less likely to get lost or injured.
- Reduces territorial behaviour such as spraying indoors.
- Pets are less likely to suffer from anti-social behaviours and they often become more affectionate.
- Eliminates “heat” cycles in female cats and their efforts to get outside in search of a mate.
- Eliminates male dogs’ urge to “mount” people’s legs.
Cost
- Reduces the cost to the community of having to care for unwanted puppies and kittens in pounds and shelters.
- No additional food or vet bills for the offspring.
- No need to find homes for unwanted or unexpected litters of puppies or kittens.
- Saves cost of expensive surgeries from car accidents or fights, which are less likely to occur if your pet doesn’t roam.
- Dumping puppies and kittens is an ethical cost, as it can cause immense suffering. It is also illegal.
- The price of desexing is more affordable to those in financial need with the assistance of organisations such as NDN.
Cats can become pregnant from four months of age. To prevent accidental or early litters, kittens can be safely desexed from two months of age and one kilogram in weight. It is ideal to desex your pets when they are kittens or puppies as the recovery process is much faster.
July is National Desexing Month and during this time certain veterinary clinics are offering discounted prices, for your nearest participating veterinary clinic visit www.ndn.org.au.
National Desexing Month is an initiative of AWLQ and was created to help put a stop to the huge numbers of stray and surrendered cats and dogs in Australia’s pounds and shelters.
Total word count: 484
For all media enquiries please contact Craig Montgomery at AWLQ on 07 5509 9030/0424 382 727 or email [email protected]
