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| Wednesday is surgery day at IHAC. These two kitties from the same household are drying off after their pre-surgery baths. |
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| Larry Easterwood's Boston "Boccy" begins to wake up from anesthesia following his neuter. The advantages of spaying (your female) and neutering (your male) pet include: |
(1) Helping to control the pet population. Thousands of abandoned animals lose their lives or are put to sleep in Tuscaloosa every year. Yes, your pet is precious and it would be wonderful to have a litter to play with. However, the shelters and newspaper classifieds are already overstocked with pets who need adoption! (2) Male pets, if neutered at about six months old, will not develop the territorial marking habits of intact (unneutered) males. Dogs, for instance, will not have to stop and urinate on every bush when you walk them and tomcats will not spray their pungent musk on everything they can get at around the home and garden (including the insides of cars). This will make you a happier pet owner and your neighbors much more tolerant of your companion animals! (3) YOU GREATLY REDUCE THE RISK of a pet developing cancer and certain types of infections if you have them spayed or neutered. Retained (or cryptorchid) testicles in males are the worst case. The ovaries and testes in pets, as in humans, secrete powerful hormones. These hormones provide certain stimulii to pets, such as the drive to reproduce and for some, result in increased aggressive tendencies. In female felines, hormones produce the heat cycle. A cat in heat is difficult to live with, as she may caterwaul at all hours of the day and night and beg constantly to go outside. This can last for days and is a process repeated for about nine months of the year. As if this weren't enough, these same hormones can possibly stimulate and certainly exacerbate the development and growth of certain cancers in pets. One of the more common arguments against spaying or neutering is, "I just can't do that to him/her!" The alternative is increasing your pet's risk of developing terminal cancer. SPAY or NEUTER! It's worth it! Another risk for female canines is pyometra. This is an all-too-common occurrence in bitches. The uterus becomes infected and swollen. This is not onbe of those problems which will "just clear up" or go away all on its own. Death is inevitable without surgical intervention to remove the infected uterus. Prevention consists of spaying your pet as soon as possible. Our recommendation for both dogs and cats is approximately six months of age. |