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About Overpopulation |
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Why is it Important to Spay and Neuter Your Animals?
By neutering or spaying your animal, you help your companion to live a longer, healthier life and to become a better family pet. Spaying and neutering prevents many diseases, including: breast, uterine, and ovarian cancers, tumors, and prostate problems. Male dogs and cats are particularly prone to behavioral problems when they are not altered, due to their high levels of testosterone. Unneutered males can detect a female in heat even miles away. This results in "running away" or wandering the streets, where they could be hit by a vehicle. Neutering decreases roaming by 90%. Unneutered animals are often nervous and irritable, aggressive with other animals, less social with humans, or become lethargic and depressed. Urine marking is a common problem with unneutered pets.
Spaying females will prevent pregnancy
and the stress that pregnancy has on any mother. Although kittens
are cute, it is not fun to put your pet at risk for common pregnancy
complications. Unlike humans, most pets do not
give birth in a hospital with emergency services available.
Your cat could die if undetected complications arise, and if the
problem is detected, she might require surgery or caesarian section.
Unspayed females go through heat and
occasionally experience blood spotting during that period. The long length
of the heat cycle will make this messy and difficult. For dogs,
females go through two heat periods per year, which last about three
weeks each. Female cats are unlikely to spot during heat, but will
go through heat every 2-3 weeks. The hormones and stress of the heat
periods will lead females to be irritable, nervous, and possibly
aggressive or destructive towards people and furniture. False
pregnancies are common as the female ages, which is very stressful
for the animal. False pregnancies leave the female depressed and she
will often go looking for kittens, occasionally stealing them from
another mother. Altering your pet shows that you care about their
health and will only improve the bond you have with your animal.
Living with happy and healthy animals will bring you great joy.
Did you know that
rabbits
should be spayed and neutered? Female rabbits can have a
litter of bunnies every 28 days. Litters can have up to 12 bunnies!
When unfixed male and female rabbits live together, the female will
usually become emaciated and ill from such frequent pregnancies. She
may even abandon her babies if she is too exhausted to care for
them. Unneutered males can be destructive and aggressive, in
addition to urine marking and excess chewing. Modern surgery for
altering a male rabbit is not very invasive and leaves everything
intact. However, male rabbits are not sterile until 4-6 weeks after
they are neutered and hormonal behavior will gradually decrease over
that time period. Unfortunately, many owners breed their rabbits or
don't realize the importance of fixing their rabbits.
Spaying and neutering rabbits prevents
unwanted litters, improves litter box habits, reduces territorial
behavior, and eliminates excessive chewing or aggression. Female rabbits in particular have an
80% chance of developing uterine cancer within 5 years if they are
not spayed. You might double your rabbits' lifespan with one
responsible choice.
DO NOT BREED OR BUY WHILE SHELTER ANIMALS DIE.
This is the battle cry we repeat to ourselves when we are angry at the neglect and abuse we see so often at the shelter. It is our duty to take care of the animals who are harmed by the thoughtless or horrific actions of people who do not take responsibility for their pets. Many people do not want to adopt a shelter animal because they fear the animal will have behavioral problems. Most of our animals do not have behavioral problems, and it is well worth the effort to train those animals who do need extra help. It is much more meaningful to receive the devotion of an animal who needs and wants your love. Often, these animals will form an unusually deep bond with their human because they know that you rescued them. Please help our community reduce its animal population by spaying and neutering your animals. This decision will also help reduce the population of neglected or mistreated animals by freeing up time, space, and money at the local shelters.
History of Animal Overpopulation and Recent Progress
Most of these statistics come from the Humane Society of the United States.
Six to eight million stray or feral pets are brought to animal shelters each year. Three to four million of these are euthanized each year because there are not enough homes for them. The others are adopted or reclaimed by their owners. These sobering statistics do not include the frequent use of private vet-administered euthanasia deaths for pets with no medical problems. Capturing, impounding, and euthanizing feral or stray pets is also expensive. Government animal control agencies and private animal shelters spend millions of dollars each year on these activities, according to the American Veterinary Association. Local and state laws have helped reduce overpopulation by raising licensing fees for unsterile dogs and requiring that all shelter animals be sterilized before adoption. City planners and animal-rights activists have started many programs to reduce animal overpopulation, including education, media campaigns, and free or inexpensive spay/neuter programs. In particular, the communities who have chosen to support free or low-cost spay/neuter surgeries have seen a 30-60% decrease in the number of animals that come to their animal shelters. Prevention programs like these are more humane and less expensive than the alternative.
Current Programs in California
Palo Alto Spay/Neuter Clinic (cheap sterilization for all pets regardless of owner's income)
MORE INFO COMING SOON!
Low-cost or free spay/neuter programs:
Friends of Watsonville Animal Shelter
Friends of Santa Cruz County Animals
Santa Cruz SPCA
MORE INFO COMING SOON!
Additional Information:
www.americanhumane.org/protecting-animals/programs/getting-to-zero/
www.bestfriends.org (archives describe several great programs)
Difficult Cases: Middle Aged and Sick Animals in the Shelter
Ten years ago, all cats and dogs over 2 years old would be considered unadoptable because shelter visitors prefer to adopt young animals. Also, any animal with disease or even temporary illness would be euthanized because there was no room at the shelters, and it is considered inhumane to keep animals in small cages while they go kennel crazy. Low shelter populations now allow some of these animals to compete with young and perfectly healthy animals, and there is more space available to hold them if they need a little more time than the average pet to be matched with an adopter.
There is a common belief that kittens and puppies are less likely to have behavioral problems than the adult animals at shelters. Actually, young animals are difficult to train, are usually hyperactive, and are too much work for most families. Most of the adoptable adult pets at our local shelter have had previous homes and are well-trained. Some animals do require extra work if they have experienced abuse or extreme neglect, but it is still less work than training a young animal. It is recommended that adopters choose an animal that matches their own energy level. If you run every morning, you would probably love an energetic dog who can run with you. If you prefer to stay home and read during your free time, a calm and mature dog would be a good match. If you are aging, you would want to adopt an animal that you can keep up with in terms of exercise and daily care. Some animals are more independent, while others want your attention constantly. Adult pets have already developed stable personalities, so you can find the perfect match. Kittens and puppies usually change temperaments as they get older. It is our goal to help the middle-aged pets at our local shelter because they get overlooked.
Feral Cats
Feral cats live in almost all neighborhoods. They use playgrounds and yards instead of a litter box, they dangerously reduce native bird species, and they are not friendly towards humans. Most feral adults can never be socialized, but kittens can be separated from their mothers at six weeks (instead of the normal 8 weeks) and be raised as well socialized kittens. It's extremely unsanitary to have feral cat colonies, since they carry diseases which can be spread through their waste products. Feral cats frequently spread toxoplasmosis, giardiasis, and camplyobacter to other animals and to humans. Their diseases also spread to domestic cats, and they frequently get into cat fights with domestic cats. Rabies and FIV (feline HIV) are also spread by feral cats.
Most U.S. shelters euthanize all adult feral cats, with the hope that this will reduce feral populations. Many cat advocates and researchers are now discovering that this method of population control is not very effective. Cats reproduce so quickly and with such large litters that the colony population is dependant on the food available. Euthanizing a few feral cats will only free food resources for other kittens. Research and experience have shown that the best way of reducing feral populations is Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR). This involves trapping cats, neutering or spaying, clipping the ear so that shelters know who has already been trapped, and releasing them back into the same colony. This return to the colony has several meaningful purposes. These adult cats are stronger and more capable of securing food, thus reducing the number of kittens the colony can feed. This alone reduces the colony population, but these cats are also spayed and neutered to further reduce the population. This humane solution may not work unless 50-75% of the feral colony is trapped, neutered, and returned. This is a huge amount of work, and most shelters do not have the resources to do this.
FOWAS will help cover the cost of TNR if the feral cats are living on business property in Freedom or the City of Watsonville. The business owner is responsible for trapping the cats and returning them after they are fixed. Project Purr has the most comprehensive program for TNR and their help is greatly appreciated. Animal shelters around the country spend millions of dollars trapping and euthanizing feral cats, without lowering the feral population at all. Someday it will become necessary to spend this money on programs that work. Learn more about this in the book Community Approaches to Feral Cats, published by the Humane Society of the United States.
Pit Bulls
This breed is the most common dog to enter the shelter. It is also the most difficult to adopt out because of misinformation about the breed. Most people believe that Pit Bulls are naturally aggressive dogs, but they aren't. They are used for dog fighting (which is illegal) because their loyalty makes them easy to train. Unfortunately, many of the backyard breeders for this sport do not socialize their puppies, and they can grow up with severe psychological problems. This is not specific to Pit Bulls: all animals need love and socialization at an early age. In temperament testing, Pit Bulls are more tolerant and less aggressive than Golden Retrievers and Beagles. Visit the American Temperament Testing Society to compare your favorite breed with a Pit Bull. How well does your favorite breed score?
Pit Bulls are part of the terrier family, and all terriers were bred for hunting small game animals when this was a popular sport. Unfortunately, this makes them more likely to chase small animals such as cats. Due to the overpopulation of this breed, pit bulls with cat aggression rarely make it to the adoption floor. They are also less likely to get along with other dogs, though proper training can help with that. Pit Bulls were also bred to be work dogs. They naturally enjoy playing tug-of-war because they were bred to "take the bull by the nose." Playing tug-of-war does not teach your dog aggression unless you allow him to playfully bite your body. It is actually good to provide a safe outlet for their instinct, which is why spring poles and other tug-type exercise toys have been developed. Regrettably, a horrible myth has circulated that Pit Bulls have locking jaws. It simply isn't true. Their jaws are not much different than other dogs. People believe the myth because Pit Bulls do like to grab and hold. Again, this is easily "treated" with appropriate toys. Some owners use this instinct to train these dogs for farm work. Their loyalty and strength make them excellent work dogs.
Pit Bulls are actually very good dogs for children. They are more tolerant and playful than most breeds, and strong enough to handle the rough treatment from kids. The kids are much harder on the dog than the dog is on the child! Of course, any dog should be supervised when playing with a child. Kids need to be trained to treat the dog well. This responsible training is for PEOPLE since these dogs need very little training to treat you well. Even more surprising is the fact that purebred Pit Bulls have more predictable behavior and are better with children. Pit mixes each have a unique temperament, sometimes with very unstable results. If you want a playful, energetic, loyal, and loving dog you might need to take a second look at all the pit bulls crowding animal shelters across the country. Just be prepared for wet kisses, and close your mouth tightly when you want one!
Visit Bad Rap (Bay Area Doglovers Responsible About Pitbulls) for more information on Pit Bull myths and facts.
WATSONVILLE SPAY/NEUTER PROGRAM