Animal Care Center & Pet Resort

800 Pulaski Highway

Joppa, MD  21085

Phone 410-676-2525         Fax 410-676-5151

Why should I spay my pet?

OVER 6 MILLION animals are euthanized in the United States every YEAR

No one will argue with you, puppies and kittens are adorable.  Most of us at the clinic get what we call "puppy fever" every once in a while.  It is this extreme want of a new little critter.  This want is what keeps most people from spaying their female pets, after all, everyone would want one of their cute little puppies or kittens right?  Perhaps you would have no trouble at all selling them in the already vast sea of animals up for adoption out there.  That does not mean that they will be properly cared for or spayed or neutered.  They may even end up in the local shelter.

The picture above is a mom cat with her 11 or so kittens.  Imagine that each of those cats can find a mate and produce hundreds of thousands of new felines through their kittens and their kitten's kittens etc.  Every where you turn there are ads for free cats and kittens due to overpopulation.  About 71% of all cats that enter animal shelters are euthanized.  Only approximately 24% are adopted. *

56% of dogs are euthanized that enter animal shelters.  25% are adopted out.*

Health Matters

A female pet is more likely to be a better companion because they do not experience going through a heat every 6-9 months.  Heat cycles bring hormonal changes that can also bring changes to their personality.  Unspayed females are subject to uterine cancers and also uterine infections that can be fatal.

MYTHS:

She will get fat.  Spaying your pet may cause hormone changes that can cause them to gain some weight. Lack of exercise and a fatty diet are the main culprits of overweight females.

Her personality will change.  The only change that will occur after surgery is that she will not have the need to reproduce occupying her time.  Any other personality changes, such as calming down, mostly happen as they mature in age. 

When should we have her spayed?

We prefer to spay at 6-8 months of age.  

Part of the reason for this is that the adult teeth should have grown in at this point and all baby teeth should have fallen out.   When adult teeth grow in behind baby teeth they are called deciduous teeth.  They can cause a lot of dental headaches in the future for your pet.  Any baby teeth that have not come out by this time, we can pull while the pet is under anesthesia.

We ask that we have seen your pet within 4 months prior to any surgery.

*information from the Humane Society of the United States