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Safe
solution resisted in pet-breeding crisis
October 4,
2007
A few days ago, a well-meaning person came to the shelter with a litter
of puppies bred with the plans to give them to someone else. For a
multitude of reasons, the arrangement fell through and she found herself
with puppies she was unable to care for and felt she had no choice but
to bring them to the shelter. We urged her to have the mother spayed and
she protested, saying the mother was a pure breed who hadn't gotten
herself pregnant by any old stray.
When you're involved with an animal shelter in any capacity, nothing
affects you more than seeing the number of animals entering shelters. I
often imagine what it would be like if there were enough homes for the
millions of animals in shelters across the country?
I wonder if there's a formula that animal-welfare professionals haven't
discovered to solve the problem -- one that would solve the problem of
animal overpopulation, which ultimately leads to millions of animals
having to be euthanized because perpetual life in a shelter is not the
answer?
A colleague who has consulted with others about animal-sheltering issues
all across the United States, Russia, Brazil and Taiwan often says that
the biggest animal shelter ever would not have room for all animals
requiring shelter. Unless we find Utopia, a place lacking the things
that ail our planet, including homeless animals, what is the answer?
Any scientist will tell you that before you solve a problem, you have to
find that tiny cell or that core source that creates the problem. Find
the cause and you're halfway there. The cause in our case is humans
facilitating the breeding of millions of animals.
It doesn't dominate headlines, but a safe solution was discovered years
ago by animal-welfare professionals and volunteers. Some of you know it
as "fixing," others use the term "altering." Technically, it's spaying
and neutering.
If "s/n," as shelter folk call it, was welcomed by every individual with
a companion animal every day for a full year, all around the world, we
would still have an endless supply of animals needing homes, but it
would be a great start. And if "s/n" was practiced every day, and every
year, then I'm convinced we would witness life-changing advances for
every companion animal.
For some people, financial hardships make it difficult to take advantage
of spaying and neutering, but there are organizations in communities
like ours that offer low cost s/n options. Unfortunately, finding a way
to get each and every person to embrace the concept has been the
greatest challenge.
Myths lead many to believe that the procedure somehow changes our pets
for the worse. In fact, it improves their lives for the better. For
example, the odds of testicular cancer in males are reduced when they
are neutered.
Our pets also don't need to experience breeding "just once." It's not a
right of passage for them, and they won't have to run to an analyst's
couch to bemoan what they've missed. It's a nonissue. Some men who own
pets resist the idea, mistakenly thinking that neutering is somehow
removing a male pet's manhood. But again, our pets are not us.
So for those who have their doubts, take a deep breath, erase all the
myths you've ever heard, and embrace the ultimate cure to end animal
overpopulation. For our companion animals, that would be the beginning
of something resembling Utopia.
- Gloria
Dauphin
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