Why is it ok to neuter cats and dogs?

[Herman Munster]

If it was your child, would you like it if they chopped off its balls at birth so it would be better behaved and not impregnate girls around the neighborhood when his hormones were going crazy? I know the benefits of neutuering but it just never sat well with me. I don't have a dog or cat though just the idea of it is disturbing to me.

[immoderate]

1. Easier that, than euthenising the excess population.

They're like "dogs in heat," if you get my drift.

--IMM

[kysrsoze]

52. Both my dogs are from the Anti-Cruelty Society. You MUST spay/neuter

and I'm glad. I'm lucky to have my dogs and they are lucky to have me. I sometimes think that they could be dead if we weren't there to pick them up and give them a home. Dogs end up at shelters because people don't take care of them, they're strays or they're part of a litter of puppies that the owners didn't know what to do with. If they don't get adopted, they DIE. Dogs are euthanized in a matter of weeks if they're not adopted. Spaying/neutering means less over-population and less dogs euthanized. And Rover will still hump your leg if you want him to. They don't lose their souls when they're snipped. My dogs are quite fine and lead an extremely happy, well-fed, stress-free life. They don't act as if they're missing out on anything.

Oh, BTW - NO KILL SHELTERS RULE!!!

[Teaser]

2. Because they deserve it.

Fucking animals. Rutting like pigs.

They disgust me.

[Bucky]

82. A-a-a-a--men, Teaser! There's a reason they're called "meat", you know.

It's just like Iraq. I'd rather spay them over there (at the vet clinic) than having them spay US back at home!

[Hissyspit]

3. To prevent the ABSOLUTE MISERY of overpopulation and unwanted cats

and dogs and the DAILY mass slaughter of them. Animal population works EXPONENTIALLY.

Tens of thousands are euthanized weekly. You really have to ask this question?

[Herman Munster]

5. you can make the same case for humans

there are over 2 billion people in the world without basic sanitation, clean water, suffering just like those cats and dogs are.

We don't advocate neutering male children at birth however, in any culture in the world I am aware of.

[Karenca]

7. I do --- I advocate the mandatory sterilization of all

republicans.

[Hissyspit]

8. Animals don't know how to practice birth control or self-control.

[and-justice-for-all]

10. And humans do?

[Karenca]

12. Most do. eom.

[Hissyspit]

13. Humans CAN.

Big difference.

[VeggieTart]

21. well, if you don't lie to them about birth control, yes

Humans can and do know how to control the population. There are far more cats and dogs than there are homes for them.

[Oilwellian]

29. Humans don't normally.....

have a litter of 6-8 children twice a year.

[Herman Munster]

11. neither do half of humans

[Hissyspit]

16. Humans CAN.

[davidinalameda]

31. you made my point for me

animals will reproduce when given the chance

[never_get_over_it]

25. Well except

humans don't pop out 6 or 8 at a time.... humans can - although many do not practice birth control - and cats and dogs can start reproducing at a very early age and have a shorter gestation period - so one dog or cat could produce over 100 off spring - not a lot of humans who can do that -

[gkdmaths]

53. Dude.

Multiply your 'estimate' by 3 and you might be closer to the current global population.

I am waiting for your head to explode.

The current global population is 6.6 billion theoretically employed consumers. http://www.census.gov/ipc/www/popclockworld.html

I spayed my dog because I am a responsible pet owner.

[Kutjara]

57. He wasn't talking about the current population.

He was talking about the current population who do not have access to basic sanitation. 2 billion is a reasonable estimate for that number.

[China_cat]

71. It's a lot more than that.

Two non-neutered cats and their cumulative offspring (assuming a survival rate of 3 cats per litter) can produce over 500,000 cats during their lifetime.

[grace0418]

74. Well, dogs and cats are ready to breed within a year or

two of birth. Humans have at least 14 or 15 years between generations (hopefully more like 25-30 years, but that's a different topic). Humans have one or two children per pregnancy (unless they're on fertility drugs, yet another topic), the gestation period is the better part of a year, and one woman will usually only have at most 4 or 5 children in her lifetime (*usually* ...of course I come from a Cathlolic family of eleven but that's thankfully rare). Cats and dogs have litters of anywhere from 2-8 babies, gestate for a much shorter period of time, and can have many litters in their short lifetime. Lastly, cats and dogs have absolutely no concept of birth control. Of course, look around any shopping mall and it would appear that most humans don't either. But the reality is that humans do have some awareness of the concept.

So if you were to take a male and female of each species (human, dog, cat) and study the subsequent reproduction of those three sets of mates over the course of, say, 75 years, you'd see some drastically different results. Assuming no birth control was used and the three sets of mates had an average lifespan and reproductive cycle (along with their resulting offspring), the total number and generations of cats and dogs would vastly outnumber that of the humans.

Now don't get me wrong, I love cats and dogs, probably more than people. And humans certainly need to start being more responsible about the strain their reproductive choices place on our planet. But ultimately, spaying and neutering domesticated pets is still a responsible action and does not seem to affect them emotionally at all.

[MannyGoldstein]

4. If You Had One

The idea would not be so disturbing.

(I know a number of folks that spend a lot of time with cows - none of them are vegetarians.)

(I guess my karma is fucked now.)

[Karenca]

6. They don't chop off their balls.

A male dog will be miserable if he's always horny
and not getting any.

This is what I've been told.

Some of my dogs have been neutered dogs and some not,
and it appears my neutered dogs are happier.

[and-justice-for-all]

9. Its better then euthanising then....

...I think we need Human population control, its getting to be a bit crowded.

[LoZoccolo]

14. .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuhOj2dQTrk

[rzemanfl]

15. Lesser of two evils, like deer hunting. n/t

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

17. Why Shouldn't It Be?

[BlooInBloo]

18. I love DU geniuses. Animals = people. Sheesh.

[ruiner4u]

30. i know..this is in the twilight zone of common sense n/t

[ShortnFiery]

19. Overpopulation is tragic.

I adopted a beautiful English Pointer mix female in Okinawa.

You could not ask for a dog with a better temperament.

However, there are so many dogs (and cats) that are unwanted due to overpopulation, we decided to have her spayed.

In a way, it's tragic, because her sweet but intelligent temperament ... if it could have been bred, would have provided joy to owners of her pups.

None the less, there are far too many puppies and kittens who need a loving home.

That's why people are thoughtful about spaying or neutering their adopted pets. :hi:

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

20. Well, I hope you don't get a cat or dog then.

Not only are they better behaved and it prevent unwanted litters when MILLIONS of animals are dying in shelters, but it also is better for their health, mentally & emotionally. They won't be driven by hormones (would you want to be horny and not get any for your whole life?) and they live longer, because they are less likely to get certain cancers.

The fact that someone wouldn't want their pet to have a happier, longer life is far more disturbing to me than the fact that my pet has been neutered.

My cats & rabbits are all fixed. They all physically recovered fast and seemed to harbor no grudges. They all love me very much and are quite happy.

[Moochy]

26. Kitty Castrati

My family used to have two siamese female cats, and a siamese tomcat. That females popped out litters every few months. They were mostly indoor cats, except that the tomcat, liked to mark his territory, which included parts of the inside of the house. :(

I own two rescued ferals and one is neutered and the other spayed. I know I'm happier without random spots of horrid putrid feline admixture of semen and pheremones on furniture.

Another reason too is that they are more playful and remain adolescent throughout their lives.

[ShortnFiery]

27. "MILLIONS of animals are dying in shelters"

I concur. In Okinawa, the dogs and cats ran free. Some of the dogs ran wild in packs. It was so sad to observe.

Yes, it is much better that these sweet pets are not ever born, rather to die a horrible death in a shelter or through a nicotine dart from an MP's rifle.

No, birth control is a "good thing" for pets, and just perhaps for humans also. :blush:

[ruiner4u]

22. Uhhh? To control the unwanted pet population?

im not going to go into how neutering cats and dogs will inhibit future cancer, or how people stupidly buy pets, let them breed and get rid of the offspring at the pound.

And to those who are bringing in human population control...

Get a flipping grip.. what a waste of a post..

go away greens

[Bill McBlueState]

45. "what a waste of a post"

Yeah, we don't wanna run out before the counter resets itself at 3:00.

[ruiner4u]

54. huh? make sense?

[-..__...]

23. Did you know they sell the scraps and left overs to the cold-cut industry?

Think about it the next time you sink your teeth into a Hebrew National tube steak or Subway bologna and cheese submarine sandwich.

[Moochy]

35. Ooookayyy

Remind me not to go out to lunch in your neighborhood. :puke:

[-..__...]

36. If you think lunch is bad...

then don't even think about the breakfast menu.

[judaspriestess]

24. I am a huge advocate for TEACHING birth control

especially in starving nations. I personally feel that if women especially would simply be taught and given a choice if they want to be sterilized for example, I suspect 60-80% would do this. No one wants to see their children suffer and die.

On the subject of cats and dogs, you are being sarcastic aren't you. I come from road kill city usa from overpopulation of animals and now I am adament about spaying and neutering. Its the right thing to do!!

judaspriestess

[Karenca]

28. When I was a kid my family never had our dogs neutered

I was always in charge of walking them---We always had large male dogs.

It really sucked, the freaking German Shephard would hump me as I walked him.
He was bigger than I was. And when my friends came to my house, he would
stick his nose up their skirts, and if we tried to
pull him away, he'd scare the crap out of us.

My neutered male toy poodle Booli is a very
content little creature. I would never put a dog through such hell as my parents did.

[quiet.american]

32. Just curious, do you have cats or dogs?

In the case of cats, it would be extremely difficult to keep even one who is not spayed or neutered. Female cats seem to be in heat almost continually, and their cycles can start as early as four months (I have a female cat who started this early). A female cat in heat is not a pretty sight, as mine tended to pace up and down my small apartment almost 24/7 howling, yelping, scratching and other unpleasant things.

Male cats (amongst other behaviors) start spraying and the scent of their spray is just as horrible as a skunk's, and just as impossible to get out of whatever has been sprayed. Also in my case, I adopted a brother and sister pair of kittens. My female cat went into heat first, and was spayed, then it was her brother's turn. He turned into a little furry sex fiend. He would jump on my female cat even if I was holding her at the time. I had to keep them in separate rooms because he was a literal mating maniac, jumping on her morning, noon, and night. This went on for about two weeks before I could him neutered.

He still has his little package, btw, but not the ferocious mating and spraying urges. The alternative to spaying and neutering these two would have had to have been to allow them to remain feral cats, and I don't like to think of my two beautiful little furries having to be on the mean streets fending for themselves.

[Beelzebud]

33. Have you ever had a dog run out in front of a car

Have you ever had a dog run out in front of a car, because a female dog in the neighborhood was in heat, and your dog couldn't resist the urge to go find her?

If something like that happened to a pet you loved, you'd understand a rational reason for it really fast.

[uppityperson]

34. Why not?

[cynatnite]

37. I think the large numbers of abandoned animals speaks for itself n/t

[pitohui]

38. oh for the love of cryin' out loud

neutered dogs and esp. neutered cats are happier than those who haven't had the benefits of human technology -- you can see the difference, hormones create such misery, we all know that, we've all seen that

besides think of all of the little native species of birds, rare rodents, etcetera that would quickly be wiped out of our towns and suburbs if cats and dogs were allowed to reproduce to the point of destruction

dog packs kill, we don't remember that because we have animal control services but dog packs kill

one of my dear friends sacrified tens of thousands of dollars and probably a like amount of hours over the decades to help with a spay/neuter program and various rescue programs -- without spay/neuter there can be no "rescue" there can only be putting them to sleep as fast as you can catch them

dogs and cats literally have litters when they breed, they do not have one or two babies every ten years or so like yuppie human mama, they can have six at a time -- over and over again

for the love of god, support your spay/neuter program

the biggest threat to dogs and cats is OVERpopulation, which cheapens their value and means they are not prized and are considered as disposable pets and which also means that most of them will never have a decent home

[madmusic]

39. Didn't have my dog neutered.

The only problem so far is that after washing the sheets he always has a wet dream.

Solution? Don't wash the sheets.

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

41. Why haven't you gotten him neutered? nt

[madmusic]

43. He's never out, minds well.

And the vet had that gleam in her eye.

He's a plenty cool dog and I love him to pieces.

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

44. Just so you know, you are putting him at an increased risk for cancer.

Something to really consider. "The vet had that gleam in her eye" is anthropomorphizing bullshit and don't think there is no chance of your dog getting loose and impregnanting a female in heat. If you truly believe your dog wouldn't do that, you're deluded.

[madmusic]

48. anthropomorphizing bullshit?

The vet was a human, very smart and pretty one, in fact.

Yes, he would do that if I let him and probably enjoy it very much. But after, um, 7 years, not even a close call yet.

Sleepy time. Good night.

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

50. Hopefully, your dog won't come down with a disease that would have

been prevented by neutering. Someone who loves their dog will consider that, not the imaginary "gleam in the vet's eye."

Something to sleep on.

Good night.

[alittlelark]

40. Soooo - you have no pets and are just asking a question???

You are a ^%$&(%*#$@%^$%(&*^($YTRYUIPU^&^&&E%TT#$$^@!$%$U^&$@



Something or other.


Get a REAL LIFE.

[alittlelark]

42. Hit and Run poster.... 1 response in the whole thread.

[Richard D]

46. Cause they don't use condoms!

[Bluebear]

47. They make MUCH better pets and it is HEALTHIER for them.

Neutured dogs are better pets, meaning they will keep their forever homes easier. The health benefits are well documented, for instance a spayed bitch has far less risk of mammary cancer.

[sandnsea]

49. Oh, now this is a RED HOT issue

:eyes:

[meow2u3]

51. Humans have the capacity for self-control

even though they don't always exercise that capacity.

Cats and dogs, however, cannot control themselves when the females are in heat. They MUST instinctually reproduce when they get the chance.

[nosmokes]

55. if you were my child i would have you neutered -

for sure. nip that branch of the family tree in the bud...

[Skittles]

56. go volunteer at the local animal shelter for a month

THEN YOU WILL KNOW

[billyskank]

58. I got no problem with that - what I don't understand is:

why is it ok to practice eugenics on animals when it is considered bad for humans? Why are 'pure breeds' considered so desirable, when that sort of cross-breeding done in humans results in fucked-up people. Presumably it results in fucked-up animals too.

:shrug:

[radfringe]

59. a true story

a friend of mine's sister/husband are born-agains

they do not believe in abortion or birth control. (last I heard they have 9 kids with no end in site)

they also have a couple of cats which are not neutered/spayed beacause they view neutering/spaying as a form of birth control

so then the cats have kittens - they drown them.

[Anarcho-Socialist]

70. Wow

I see they're incapable of seeing the irony.

[Deja Q]

60. There are countries where they ought to be doing that.

We meander about uncontrolled pet populations, but see nothing about an uncontrolled human population.

Though I wonder if America didn't have the technological stuff that is designed to keep people isolated from each other (portable TVs, ipods, home theatre, et al), would we be breeding as freely and as irresponsibly as other countries' inhabitants? (OTOH, for emotional cripples, we thrive on those isolating devices. It's all we've got.)

Or is it because we're educated that has led us to engaging in safe sex, when not voluntary vasectomies, et al?

[muriel_volestrangler]

61. That sounds rather judgemental

Rather like how P.J. O'Rourke characterised most people's view on world overpopulation: "There's way too many of you, but just the right amount of us".

[Deja Q]

62. Judgmental?

Will you find a sword and then thrust it into your chest just so they can live in your place?

Hmmm, thought not.

Each country is responsible for the well being of its own people. And the people have some responsibilities of their own too. And I am somewhat aware of some of the tactics employed by governments to keep populations under control. Those don't always work either.

Overpopulation is a problem. And the raw numbers alone are adequate evidence as to where the problems lie.

I can also think of far more judgmental tangents, but I don't agree with them so there's no point in saying them, because I am not an advocate of them. (which is atypical, I tend to spout every theoretical tangent, but this time it's different.) All I know is, there is a problem, it's been developing for decades (people fathomed gross overpopulation even 35 years ago), and nothing effective is being done. So, how is the problem resolved while keeping in mind the other factors pertinent in today's world (global warming, available land space for crops, et al). It's a pity we can't terraform Mars...

[muriel_volestrangler]

72. Yes, judgemental - you advocate forced sterilisation for other countries

but not your own. I, on the other hand, am not advocating death either for inhabitants of my country or others. You are being judgemental, I am not.

Western countries use more resources per capita than developing ones. We're the problem, not them - so far, anyway. I want western policies to encourage as small a family as possible - no tax breaks for children (just enough welfare to keep children out of poverty), free contraception. The lower the birth rate, the better, in all countries. But unlike you, I don't want force sterilisation to be part of the programme.

[Deja Q]

76. It's up to the other countries to do what they need.

I did not go to whereever and tell their leader "Do this". Don't put words in my mouth. (I've no qualms against incapable American parents from being sterilized either, there are plenty out there and the children are suffering because of it.)

Also, the world is 6+ billion people. Do you have any solutions that will allow all to survive and live a decent quality of life?

BTW: I'll be happy to fall on my sword so you can survive. I suppose I have little to live for these days. Which is the saddest irony of them all.

[muriel_volestrangler]

78. Perhaps "There are countries where they ought to be doing that" misled me

When you then said that America didn't have a problem in this regard, for whatever reason, it looks like you're telling other countries what to do. I don't think I was putting word in your mouth.

As I said, we'll start with free contraception - which I'd like extended to the whole world, paid for by the richer countrie4s that can afford it.

[Deja Q]

80. A fair assertion. On both counts.

Mind you, 300 million isn't that bad in terms of a base number. But the distribution can be much improved... again, each country has its own problems.

[vickitulsa]

69. If he's being judgmental, at least he's not sparing any group

or even himself. :)

Seems more like a thought process Hypno was going through, doing it out loud like we sometimes do on DU. Am I right, Hyp, or should I just butt out? :hi:

Strangest thing about this strange thread is how it went to humans so quickly, and it seems both areas -- humans and other animals -- are sensitive subjects when it comes to population control. No surprise there I suppose.

If the OP writer was a hit-and-run poster trying to provoke arguments or just jerk our chains a bit (back in the Sixties we used to call that sort of thing, when it was done in a friendly way, "goofing on ya"), then at least I got something very useful from reading all the responses. (THERE. Take THAT, hit-and-run poster!)

Not only did you guys help me get my facts really straight on the issue of pet population control so that I can easily refute what others say when they argue with me about it, but I also heard what was absolutely the "tipping point" reason for neutering a male dog that will have me sending Bebo to his vet this coming week!

He's still young, about two years old, and the ONLY reason I didn't get him neutered in his first year was that I could not afford it (not even the co-payment required by rescue groups for their programs). I rescued him as a puppy, and he's mostly chihuahua, with a little bit of char-pei; so he doesn't go around loose and on the make -- he has NO way to escape my control, either. Heh heh.

I'm the behavioral expert, right? Close friend of B.F. Skinner, psych major (psych and English double-major), and lifelong student of both human and other animal behavior, skilled in free operant conditioning techniques that allow me to control my dogs even when they're unleashed.

I have only Bebo now, because one small dog is all I have room for in my motorhome and all I can physically manage to care for and offer a good life to anymore, really. He's happy and healthy and gets his vet visits, but every time I'm there my vet asks if I'm ready to have Bebo neutered. I always say something like, "I'll do it soon when I can afford it" or "I'm still thinking about it," but really I WANT to do it and CAN afford it now (barely) -- I just haven't gotten around to it because it wasn't a pressing issue to me. Time flies when you get into your 50's, so I keep letting it slip by me when I don't intend to put off important things!

Unless I've forgotten one among the many canines I've owned, I've only had one neutered male dog, one that came to me that way; and I'm sad to have to report that he was so squirrelly that I had to RETURN HIM to the lady I got him from! (No offense to all the squirrels out there, human or not. :))

I've NEVER met a dog I couldn't work with to eliminate behavioral problems, so that one was a definite exception. I recognized that his squirrelly-ness was not necessarily associated with the fact that he was neutered, but I did wonder about it. He also had a bad smell -- and I wondered about that until I checked him out closely and discovered he had a little skin problem, which I treated and cleared up easily.

That was 25 years ago, and since then I have tried to have only female dogs, which are my preference anyway as a rule, so that I didn't have to think about the neutering problem with males. Isn't that silly?

I don't have a single reservation about spaying females -- I even learned to DO IT when I worked for some veterinarians. Also I don't have a problem with the gelding of stallions for all the practical reasons, though I did own one stallion who HAD to be left that way or else risk life-threatening surgery trying to geld him. He was a magnificent animal and I never had problems with him.

But I admit to being a wee bit squeamish about having a male dog neutered. It's not a logical reaction, it's an irrational one, probably, but all the same it's sort of instinctual.

Maybe the OP's question wasn't all that ridiculous after all? I'm still not sure. My first reaction was to think it's a good thing that person doesn't have pets, but he needs to understand the serious issues on this anyway. Then I read the replies and thought it all through along the way.

(I just love the way reading a discussion among DUers in the Lounge is so much more enjoyable in a dozen ways than reading one anywhere else on DU. :))

Fact is, I grew up "country," as much as I was able to manage, anyway, and a lot of our relatives we visited were farm people from way back. German farm people, so you know they were characteristically practical and smart about how they "managed" their animals, including pets.

A lot of us in our extended German family have had and even raised dachshunds (of course!), and they're still and always one of my favorite breeds. My Aunt Lillie and Uncle Earnest had a wonderful male weiner named "Ponto," and when he died they got another male weiner pup they named Ponto ... and that continued until Lillie and Earnest died -- six Pontos total, I think. Hah! All black-and-tans, but of course not "all alike."

The horrors of overbreeding of any species for any reason are well documented and should be taught to every human, IMO, as soon as they're old enough to grasp the concepts.

I remember after reading Dr. Paul Ehrlich's landmark book, The Population Bomb, in the early 70's, I never forgot the key issues; and I noticed that within a decade or so, the United States achieved "Zero Population Growth" -- as did several other "Western" nations and maybe some other cultures as well.

My favorite of all the wonderful Ghandi quotes is the one about how we can judge a society by the way its people treat animals in their care.

And IMO overpopulation of humans remains one of the most critical issues among the many we continue to face.

Only Republicans -- or others who haven't thought about it much or just don't care -- would think it's okay to let at least some "lesser" groups reproduce unhindered, while they'd solve the resulting problems of overpopulation by simply eliminating the excess or unwanted ones the same way Hitler did.

"Culture of life," my ass. More like a "culture of life and luxury for the arrogant elite, and death or 'whatever' for everyone else" that they don't need to do their dirty work, make them richer, and wait on them hand and foot....


Oh, and NO-KILL SHELTERS DO RULE! :applause:

[Deja Q]

77. Correct - thank you highly.

Some people find it more fun to judge on self-righteous beliefs and I too have my own areas where I'm just as guilty.

Population control isn't one of them.

And for those reasons, I didn't name any countries. While some countries need to do a better job, it's something ALL OF US have to be conscious of. I don't see where the problem is, but I sure as hell won't call myself the perfect writer either.

I am not perfect, but I do have a certain encompassing thought process on even topics that are not popular.

I should become a socialogical airhead just like the masses I observe at Target, Wal-mart, and the grocer's. Maybe I'd be able to get a date then. :crazy:

I also know of other topics and have posted them in GD in the past. Nobody responds to them (my favorite non-offshoring topic being the issues that have caused people to isolate themselves*), so I know I like to dabble in topics people don't want to hear about. Maybe I do need to get a life and forget about it. :shrug:


* addendum: These things also help in the increase of the resource usage in America (and increasingly the rest of the world...)

[datasuspect]

63. so before animal eugenics

was the world overrun with cats and dogs?

[Deja Q]

65. No, but domesticated animals would not survive. Or, worse,

become feral and have either a poor quality of life or end up being antisocial and become a nuisance or harm to others. And that's the most tragic aspect of them all.

[datasuspect]

67. a nuisance and harm to small rodents

and bugs.

those feral cats book just as soon as they see you coming.

[Deja Q]

75. Funny. People do the same thing.

Hate me all you want. I'm used to the fact people don't like me.

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

79. I think it's a self-fulfilling prophecy.

[Maccagirl]

64. I never flame someone

but for this post (if you are being serious)I'll make an exception. If you have no pets and cannot figure the answer out for yourself by simply looking around, then all the replys in the world aren't going to educate you. Do you hate animals?

[rug]

66. They must be taught abstinence.

[datasuspect]

68. they need to find jesus

[Bucky]

83. "Where's Jesus, boy? Where's Jesus? Seek! Find Jesus!... Good boy!"

That's a good boy!

[calico1]

73. As it is millions of unwanted cats and dogs

get euthanized every year. Millions more starve in the streets. You want to increase these numbers? :eyes:

[ulysses]

81. because we've decided that it's not ok to let them starve.

We mess with natural selection in a wide variety of ways.

[smoogatz]

84. It IS kind of an interesting contradiction

By spaying/neutering, you're robbing your companion animal (you can't say "pet" anymore, you know) of a big part of its animal "selfness"--what are dogs and cats if not intensely sexual beings, after all? We do so at least in part for our own convenience--to moderate some of the doggy and catty behaviors we find unpleasant or inconvenient. Isn't that ultimately a humanocentric act of cruelty? On the other hand, it's arguably even MORE cruel to allow them to breed unchecked, producing all those unwanted puppies and kittens--most of which will be euthanized. I personally have no problem with spaying/neutering--the last thing I want to deal with is a drawer-full of kittens every six months--but I wonder if the animal rights folks feel at all conflicted about giving their CAs the old snipperoo.

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

86. "Animal Rights Folks" support spay/neutering.

It isn't arguably more cruel to allow them to breed unchecked. It is more cruel. Also, there are legitimate health reasons to spay/neuter. Animals that are fixed live longer, because they are at a greatly reduced risk for various cancers, plus less likely to roam and get hurt that way.

Which is more cruel? Spaying/neutering or having your pet get a disease which was almost completely preventable?

[Nikia]

85. I don't think that my little dog cares

He is a loving affectionate dog towards us and likes to hang around us, chew on raw hides, and tries to catch bugs. I don't think that he is missing out on anything.

[flvegan]

87. Because killing them by the millions sucks ass, big time.

That's why.

[Robb]

88. Because Bob Barker told me to

You need another reason?!?