Desexing Your Pet

In 2013 there was estimated to be more than 25 million pets in Australia, with nearly 5 million of Australia’s 7.6 million household being home to pets.  At 63% of households, Australia has one of the highest rates of pet ownership in the world.

Australia and America have very similar pet ownership levels, in 2012, it was estimated that 62% of households in America included at least one pet.

In America for every person that is born, 15 dogs and 45 cats are born.

Pet overpopulation is a big problem in America and Australia. As these statistics show, in order to help keep up with the current flood of puppies and kittens, every person would have to own two dogs and six cats at all times.

Adoption alone is obviously not the answer. Desexing is. Please spey or castrate your pets.

Our Pets should be desexed for many reasons:

FEMALES (Speying = Ovariohysterectomy)

• Prevents signs of oestrus (heat).
• Prevents blood stains on the carpet from the heat cycle.
• Decreases surplus of puppies and kittens.
• Decreases the chance of developing mammary (breast) cancer later in life
• Decreases the chance of cystic ovaries and uterine infections later in life.

MALES (Castration)

• Decreases the desire to roam the neighbourhood.
• Decreases aggression - less chance of Cat AIDS infection and vet bills from fights
• Decreases incidence of prostate and peri-anal cancers later in life.
• Prevents testicular tumours
• Prevents Tom Cat spraying and marking furniture and walls.

Desexing Facts

• Speying does NOT cause a pet to get fat or lazy. This comes from overfeeding or lack of exercise.
• Personalities are NOT altered by speying. Personalities do NOT fully develop until two years of age. Aggressiveness and viciousness are not the result of surgery. Guard dogs will still remain protective. Your pet's personalities will ONLY get better!
• Surgical risk is very slight due to modern anaesthesia and techniques, but there is ALWAYS some SMALL risk when an anaesthetic is used.
• It is much easier on the pet to be speyed before going through a heat cycle, due to the smaller size of the reproductive tract.
• The best age to spay or neuter pets is 4-6 months of age.
• Surgery is performed painlessly while your pet is under general anaesthesia. Post-surgical pain management is a priority to ensure your pet is as pain free as possible in the recovery period at UQ VETS Small Animal Hospital.
• Most pets go home the same day surgery is performed.