With the “World Spay Day” designation, we explore numerous benefits of spaying and neutering your pets, plus information on Treasure Valley organizations that offer financial assistance to pet owners.

As February draws to a close (already!)  we want to acknowledge the 20th year of World Spay Day, recognized earlier this week.

The Humane Society of the United States, Humane Society International and mulitple veterinary professionals, businesses, and rescue groups partner to emphasize the benefits of spay/neuter for pets. They have put together an infograph with some eye-opening facts and figures regarding unaltered pets, you may see those HERE.  

Financial assistance available in Ada County. Two options that assist local families with spay/neuter costs are SNIP and Simply Cats.

Spay and Neuter Idaho Pets (SNIP), a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, provides low cost procedures for qualifying Idaho families’ pets.  To date, more than 3,400 Treasure Valley families have received financial assistance to spay or neuter their pets. You can get involved with this wonderful mission, SNIP’s annual fumdraiser dinner and silent auction is coming up. For more information check out their website HERE or call 208.968.1338.

In addition, if you’d like to volunteer with SNIP, there is information on their website regarding current needs and an application.

Simply Cats, also a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, offers low cost/spay and neuter vouchers for Treasure Valley cat owners. This shelter, launched in the 1980’s with a handful of rescued cats and some amazing volunteers, now enjoys a state-of-the-art adoption center. Simply Cats is dedicated to finding homes for felines in Ada county. You can support their efforts at their annual “Catsino”  fundraising evening, coming up in a few weeks. You can register HERE. 

Cat owners will find numerous resources on their website regarding training tips, cat health and wellness, and socialization. Simply Cats also welcome volunteers and foster families, if you are looking to make a difference to animals in the Treasure Valley, take a look at the opportunities listed on their website.

Why spay/neuter? There are too many homeless pets in every community. It is estimated that 7 million animals enter shelters annually— with barely half being adopted. That means that 3 million pets are euthanized. Spaying and neutering is 100% effective in easing the pet population burdens handled by area animal rescues and shelters. Plus, there are some health and behavior benefits for your pet, too.

A few benefits include:

• A longer life; spaying/neutering increases a dog’s life by an average of 1-3 years, and a cat’s life by 3-5 years.
• Animals will have less desire to roam; and are less likely to be injured in a fight, or an auto accident. As many as 85% of dogs hit by cars are unaltered.
• Reduced risk of certain types of cancers (and veterinary expenses to treat them).
• An unspayed dog is 12 times more likely to develop mammary tumors; there is a nearly 50% malignancy rate in dogs.
• An unspayed cat is 7 times more likely to develop mammary tumors; there is nearly 90% malignancy rate in cats.
• If spayed/neutered, both female cats and dogs have a reduced risk of uterine cancer and cancers of the reproductive system.
• Neutering decreases prostate disease and eliminates risk of testicular cancer, the second most common tumor in male dogs.
• Behaviors such as being aggressive, urine marking/spraying, and other dominance-related behaviors can be decreased.

Last year, USA TODAY published an article outlining pet longevity in the United States including the effects of spaying/neutering, you may access that story HERE.

Veterinarians recommend the procedure when your pet is still young and has not cycled through “heat” yet. Please speak with your family veterinarian about spaying and neutering. They will answer your questions and concerns and get a convenient appointment for you..

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