When do we have to spay or neuter our pets?

Question

i have heard of this law and i would like to find out a little more, just to make sure its true.

-thanks

Answer 1

In many places you don't have to - it's simply advised. Animals do not have the restraint that humans do, and will reproduce at the first chance. Also, many household pets may remain open to reproduce but never do, and this can cause complications (I know that by not spaying a female rabbit, she has a higher risk of getting cancer).  

Answer 2

My veterinarian recommends to spay or neuter at 6 months, possibly a month earlier. Thanks for being a responsible pet owner!

Answer 3

Do you mean when or why?  Laws vary from town to town. Generally it is accepted that when pets reproduce, most owners cannot find decent homes for the pups/kittens and a whole bunch end up on the streets where they will suffer and probably die horribly. Therefore it's better to have them spayed/neutered early on. The animals have no psychological trauma and recover quickly from the procedure. Males too should be neutered, because unless they never go outside at all, they will be agitated by the scents of females in heat in the neighbourhood and become more aggressive and restless.

Answer 4

It depends on where you live, but a lot of places require, if you don't get your pet spayed/neutered you to pay a fee. In the town my parents live in you need to submit a proposal saying why you want to keep your pet spayed/neutered (they are able to deny your proposal if the reason is not valid) and pay a fee of about 100$. This law only applies to dogs, but you get get some pretty hefty fines if you do not abide by it.

It's usually a good idea to get your pets neutered, not only is there an ethical problem with breeding your pets (especially if they are mixed bred)  but there can be serious health problems that can be avoided completely by neutering your animals. I have kept rats in the past---nearly all of the females I did not get spayed developed some sort of mammary tumor--NONE of the spayed females ever developed these problems.

Generally it is best to neuter your pets before they reach puberty, so around  6 months. The surgery is very safe, and most pets are back to their normal selves within a day or so.

If you are thinking of NOT spaying/neutering your dog, so that you can breed it, I highly recommend checking out this website

www.dogsindanger.com it is a pretty sobering look at the pet overpopulation problem.