Ashley Hughes, DVM, of the Friendship Hospital For Animals discusses spaying and neutering your pets.

Medical benefits
Male:
--eliminate testicular cancer
--decrease chance of prostatic disease and hernias

Female:
--decrease chance of mammary cancer by 99% if before first heat, 92% by second heat.  Still benefit if spayed later in life, it is never too late.
--eliminate ovarian and uterine cancer
--eliminate uterine infection called pyometra which can be fatal.

Behavioral benefits
Male:
--dogs: decreases urine marking, aggressive tendencies, wandering and humping
--cats: decreases spraying indoors and wandering and fighting outdoors.
--fighting can lead to spread of disease and abscesses which usually require treatment.
--wandering can lead to getting lost and hit by car

Female:
--can make more affectionate, eliminates messy discharge during heat cycles.

Pet overpopulation
--humane society of the United States estimates that over 8 million animals enter shelters every year; over half of these are euthanized.
--fertile female cat can have 12-18 kittens per year; female dog can have 12-20.

Spay or neuter your pet
 Spaying and neutering are routine surgeries, which remove a dog or cats reproductive organs. This single, simple act has numerous benefits for your pet's health, yourself, and the millions of unwanted animals living in shelters.

As a general rule, if you do not plan on breeding your pet, he or she should be spayed or neutered by 6 months of age.  It is common for some shelters to perform these surgeries on younger animals.  Breeding correctly takes a lot of research and education both for the safety of your pet and to pass on desirable traits of the breed.  If you are not dedicated to improving the genetics of your chosen breed and producing offspring that are healthier than their parents, then you should not breed your pet. 

 Female dogs and cats spayed before their first heat have less than a 99% chance of developing mammary cancer.  If you spay them before their second heat you have a 92% chance of preventing mammary cancer. By spaying you completely remove the chance for an often life-threatening uterine infection called pyometra as well as uterine and ovarian cancers.

 Neutering a male dog or cat eliminates the risk of testicular cancer and significantly decreases the chance of prostatic disease and hernias which occur under the bodys influence of testosterone.

 Plus, a pet that is spayed or neutered is simply more pleasant to live with. Neutering your male dog decreases and may even eliminate such undesirable behavioral tendencies as aggression, urine marking, wandering and the dreaded humping. Male cats are less likely to spray if inside and fight or roam if they are allowed outside. 

Female dogs in heat are really messy - who wants that mess on their carpet or sofa? And anyone who has ever lived with an un-neutered male cat will recall the joys of damp carpets and the delicate aromas of cat pee wafting through the room.

 If the reasons above do not move you, let us consider the tragic pet overpopulation problem in this country.  The humane society of the unites states estimates that 6-8 million dogs and cats enter a shelter every year.  Of that number over half are euthanized, that is 4 million dogs and cats put to death every year.  The average fertile female cat can produce about 12-18 kittens per year and female dog 12-20 puppies.  Shelters and rescue groups work tirelessly to find homes for these pets but they just cant keep up with the number of animals entering the shelters. 

 Spay and neuter today! Do it for your pets health, do it for yourself and do it for the millions of unwanted animals living in shelters.