What is the best age to fix a puppy or kitten? Ask ten people,
and you may get ten different answers! Those of us in the animal sheltering and
rescue world usually recommend early-age spay/neuter at 8 weeks of age, or as
soon as possible after that. Promoting early-age spay neuter is part of the
social responsibility we feel to do all we can to reduce 5,000 dogs and cats
euthanized in animal shelters every day.
We see the number of puppies and
kittens barely 6 months old that come to shelters, suffering from such an early
pregnancy. Decades ago, when many vets
were receiving their education, 6 months old was the randomly recommended age
for fixing a dog or cat – you read that correctly, the 6 month old
recommendation is based on clinical sentiment, not than scientific studies!
On
the other end of the spectrum, you have pet owners who mistakenly think it is
better for a female dog or cat to have one heat – or even one litter – before
being spayed, or don’t believe in spaying in neutering at all. They believe this
myths in spite of vets and scientific organizations supporting the benefits and
safety of early-age spay/neuter.
To clarify: Early-age spay/neuter includes both pediatric
surgery which happens at 6 weeks to 16 weeks, and spay/neuter done before 5
months of age. Early-age spay/neuter is endorsed by the the American Veterinary
Medical Association (AVMA), the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA),
the Association of Shelter Veterinarians (ASV), and the Canadian
Veterinary Medical Association (CVMA) among others.
To encourage veterinarians to educate pet owners
about the benefits, the Clinicians Brief is promoting a wonderful campaign,
Five-Saves-Lives. “Five-Saves-Lives,
or Spay Before Five Months (Spay B4V) is a national spay/neuter public
awareness campaign that strives to prevent unintended litters by reducing the
routine spay/neuter age to 4 to 5 months in private practices.
”They remind us, “Both cats and small-breed dogs can
go into estrus with pregnancy risk before 6 months of age, but rarely before 5
months of age… Five-Saves-Lives promotes the addition of a spay/neuter
appointment between 4 and 5 months of age. As with pediatric spay/neuter, the
procedures are faster and easier, and patients recover more quickly with fewer
complications…” Plus female pets
never become pregnant, and male pets do not develop undesirable sexual
behaviors!
We encourage caring pet owners to share this
information with their vet, who may not be aware of Five-Save-Lives. You and
they can help more pet owners make a compassionate decision about the age to
spay or neuter that is best not just for their pet, but for the pets in their
community too.
by Jennifer
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