Debate To spay or neuter... or not?

A little background:

Spaying and neutering, collectively called "alteration," are routine surgeries which, in a spay, remove a female animal's uterus and ovaries, and in a neuter, remove a male animal's testicles. These procedures can prevent cancer and infections of the reproductive systems, and reduces the animal's urge to wander and thereby decreases the chance they will get lost, become injured, or contract a disease from another animal. Neutering in male cats and dogs reduces aggression (and the smell of the urine that male cats mark territory with - it also makes them less likely to spray at all). Spaying in females removes the risk of unwanted litters or pregnancy/birth complications, and your cat or dog won't keep you up all night meowing or scratching to get out when she's in heat - and you won't have to contend with noisy suitors, either. On average, altered animals live far longer than their unaltered counterparts.

What are the downsides of alteration? Aside from the standard risks involved in any surgery, and the possibility that males will become less active and gain more weight if overfed, there are no physical risks. There is no evidence to suggest that altered animals suffer psychologically from being unable to breed, despite this being the primary argument against the practice.

Personally, I feel it's a nonissue - I think that ALL pets should be altered if the owner does not intend to breed them. I've seen firsthand the damage done by people who let their pets have litter after litter - I've seen kittens by the dozen wandering the streets at dusk because whoever "owns" their mother doesn't let any of them in the house, thereby putting them at risk from exposure, traffic, and other animals; I've seen puppies and kittens in shelters being put down because no one wants them - to say nothing of the ones drowned or thrown in the trash. I think anyone who just doesn't feel like getting their pet altered is irresponsible and immoral, and has no right to keep a pet.

Example: my mother's purebred German Shepherd died at around eight years old, because of a uterine infection. The dog was NEVER bred in her life, and there was no reason not to have had her spayed. Her premature death was completely preventable.

Likewise, I can't tell you how many cats are euthanized in specific shelters every year because they're feral (wild) - it's easily in the thousands just in individual cities, and this excess is largely due to abandoned pets left on the streets to breed. Their offspring go wild. A cat can have as many eight babies per litter (though four to six is more common), and can have three litters in a year. Dogs can have easily a dozen puppies!

Despite all of this, I constantly find people who either just don't want to deal with the expense of alteration ($35+ for male cats, $45+ for females, more for larger dogs - but still a very small amount in comparison to the food and potential health costs of a litter of kittens or puppies), or who think it's morally wrong to prevent nature from taking it's course. And then there are the a**holes who let their pets breed because their kids want to see kittens or puppies! Never mind that they don't want to KEEP an additional four to twelve animals - they tell themselves they can find good homes, but many "free to a good home" pets end up neglected, abused, abandoned, or as snake food or attack-dog bait. Even IF the pet gets a good home, that's one less available home for an animal in a shelter somewhere.

So... where do you stand?

 

I'd probably go with what you said there, and say that unless the animal was procured for breeding purposes, it should probably be spayed or neutered. Hence, I would say that the owner, not the supplier, is reponsible for the procedure being done: it's their animal, so it's their responsibility.

 

ag. . .i meant the first option. Actually, I miss read the option, but what ever the case. But I do some what agree with the option the that i choose.


I dont think i would ever want to be nutered. But in the case of dogs and cats, it seems nessessary. There are too many stray animals in this world today. I think out were I live the Humain Susiety spays for free. I would rather have animals be spayed them to see dead and starving animals along the streets. I'm okay with breeding, for reasons such as show dogs. And I'm okay with breeding then giving the pets a good home. And knowing they will be able to get a good home. I think there must be a garenteed home before they breed. "Controlled Breeding" you could say is what I believe in. So you could say I agree with Dilandau.

 

Well, as I see it, I don't really think that cats or dogs have the level of consciousness to CARE if they're spayed or neutered. I DO believe that animals are intelligent, feeling creatures - but they don't put the same stock in parenthood and sexual identity that we humans do, y'know? I have three neutered male cats currently, and have had many other altered pets in my life - and none of them have ever seemed unhappy, even those who were altered after having reached full sexual maturity.

And yes, there are many ways that a pet owner can have their pet(s) altered for free. In fact, Medicare (or is it Medicaid?) will cover one pet's spay or neuter cost, I believe. There are lots of places which offer discounts or vouchers, too.

Now, as for declawing, BB, I don't agree with that. *bristles* My reasoning there is that it DOES have proven behavioral changes and problems - it can cause infection, if the cat gets out somehow it has a hard time defending itself (it can't even climb well), it can cause litterbox problems... In fact, cats that have been declawed can become defensive and skittish, because they've lost their first line of defense. It also makes them much more likely to bite. Declawing impairs function, so I think it's cruel. (It's not just the claws that get removed, but the entire first bone of every toe.)

 

That's true enough. Still, I wouldn't condone declawing any of my cats for any reason - I figure if you can't abide the idea of a little clawing on the furniture, or a few scratches on your hands, pets probably aren't for you. (I just trim my cats' nails with a regular nail clipper.)

As for the claws growing back... I would say that's probably because they weren't removed in the conventional way. A true declawing procedure takes off a whole bone, so there wouldn't be anything left for the nails to grow from. Weird.

In my experience, it's better to just teach the cat that if they can't play with their claws retracted, they won't get to play at all. (Not that it works every time... I'm fostering kittens at the moment, and if I don't trim their nails regularly... *eyes all the scratches on her arms* >_>)

 

I honestly can't say I have anything against spaying/neutering, simply because it seems much more practical and humane then allowing hundreds if not thousands of stray animals to roam the streets and eventually get themselves either beaten or run over.

My dog was spayed when she first arrived at the pound, so we had no input in the matter since we selected her around two weeks later, but from what I've noticed she doesn't behave differently from any other dogs I've come in contact with (probably because the majority are also spayed/neutered, but then again it doesnt seem, to me, likely that spaying/neutering would have any sort of psychological impact or behavioral alterations).

Edit: I didn't initially see this option on the poll (so I didn't select it), but I also see no issue in allowing the pet to breed if there are guaranteed good homes in advance (people that you've actually associated enough with to know whether or not they're capable of caring for an animal).

 

I definitely have to agree with Bahjim. All my pets (except my hamsters, and they are all female) are spayed/neutered. I go to the pound and see all these pets that are going to be killed since people let their dogs shag other ones and they end up tossing them on the street. I support getting this done, and only if you completely plan it out to breed your pets you really shouldn't mess with it.

 

i don't really care about the spaying or neutering thing but i think that it's better to just let them be the way they are.

 

Even if that means that your pets - assuming you have any, and that you haven't had them spayed/neutered - are contributing to a massive overpopulation of stray and feral animals which damage wildlife populations and spread disease to other people's pets? Even if thousands of animals are killed in shelters every year just because no one wants them? I'm not even talking about the sick or feral ones, although those make up an impressive majority of euthanizations - but many, many friendly, healthy animals are put down, or live their whole lives in a tiny enclosure, because nobody wants to adopt them.

It's that "I don't care" attitude that bothers me the most, I think. I have more respect for people who have conviction and reasoning behind their argument, even if it's the opposite of mine. It's because people who "just don't care" are, in my opinion, not worthy of even having a pet - because they haven't thought about what they're doing to that animal's life, for good or ill. Most of them don't take their responsibility to the animal seriously - they don't understand or care that having a pet is like having a child, it's something you have to take care of.

I don't mean to jump on you about your viewpoint, yakamashi, it's just that you're the only person who hasn't basically agreed with me so far. XD YAY for having someone to debate with.

 

mendou kusaindamon. if people in the shelters have to kill the animals just because there's just too many of them, they should just kill them and sell them as fresh meat for cheap so then that way, there wont be as many stray animals and lots and lots of meat!!

 

>_> OK, not only is that not an option because in many developed countries, people would NEVER buy into that idea, and also, most of these animals have never been vaccinated or tested for diseases... but if that was a joke, it's definitely NOT funny, yakamashi.

 

it wasn't a joke.

 

*Big ol' hairy gasp*

Yakamashi, how can you say such a thing? And I thought we were on the road to recovery, guess it's back to not agreeing on anything *yanks tea glass and crumpets away and barracades herself behind refrigerator*

Nah, but seriously, not only is it illegal to eat most domesticized pets (at least here in the U.S [or I'm assuming it is, according to BB's previous statement]), but the majority of the U.S population would probably consider that to be vile and barbaric, figure you out to be a cannibal, shun you, and laugh as you end up a hermit crab in Death Valley.

Plus if we executed your plan, nothing would be left of the animals considering quite a few pets get their homes from shelters, at least those not purebred. Are you saying mixed-breeds are no longer valid in the eyes of our society? And I thought this sort of discrimination only applied to people *huggles mixed-breed doggie*

 

Where I live...

I live in a relatively poor neighborhood.

Animal plagues are very annoying (i.e. pigeons). You can see dog **** on the sidewalks... and nobody does nothing. In big avenues, if you take your dog for a walk and you don't pick up its poop, you get a ticket. But in small, hidden streets (the majority), there are no cops. What can be said of uncontrolled animals?

In my opinion, these animals are not beneficial for anyone. Instead, they're disease magnets, and shoul be exterminated. No matter how "cute" they look when they're cubs.

[EDIT] Off-topic: ¬¬ great... now i shall be known as "the thread killer". Nobody answers!
And no, it's not the first time it happens. sigh... [/EDIT]

 

Animals ARE beneficial, though - I could go off-topic and point out the numerous studies that have shown that pets provide both physical and psychological benefits to people just through simple interaction, but I won't get too detailed on that. Just because an animal isn't someone's pet doesn't make its life any less valuable or worthy of respect, in my opinion.

It's true that animal overpopulation, especially in poor areas, is a huge problem. I should know - my neighborhood is overrun with stray cats. But I wouldn't want to see them killed, not unless they were sick and suffering. That's like saying we should kill poor people because they're disease magnets - which the ARE, if they're living in unsanitary places and don't have the money for decent healthcare. I'm all for keeping the human population in check, but not that way. XD

But see, this is the key point of my entire argument. This is why animals need to be spayed and neutered - so they DON'T breed out of control and spread disease and make the streets a mess. It isn't their fault that they breed when they come into season - that's just instinct. But these are domestic animals, bred by humans, and so it's our responsibility to care for them. Pet owners have a responsibility to see to the needs of their individual pets, and cities have a responsibility to control the feral/stray populations in humane ways.

 

I have to agree that it is probably for the best interests of the animals that they are spayed or neutered. It's better that they are not born rather then come into a world were they are not wanted, left to die, drowned (if they still do that, although i bet theres still a few inhuman people who do) or abused. I think that the last part of that could be the worset of them all, cause an uwanted dog or cat is probably going to be starved and abused. And thats going to mess them up completely, cause they're going to be scared of people and try to defend themselves even if a human is trying to help it.
I have a friend in college and her dog's former owner abused it (and it must have been really badly), cause everytime a new person walks into the house it starts barking at them and it wont go near them. Although i'm told once she gets used to you she'll be jumping on your lap looking for attention ^^.
The point is it's better not to put the animals through this kinda torture cause not eveybody is going to be so loving and caring. And if the unneutered and unspayed animals are left outside in on the streets then they're more then likely going to breed even more which will only lead to more trouble with overpopulation.