Thus, dogs and other animals should be neutered or spayed due to the fact that there are too many pets in the USA and neutering and spaying reduces many health risks known in animals. The population of New York City is about equal to the amount of homeless animals in the whole US. The number varies from state to state, as The Humane Society specified: “…in some states there are as many as 300,000 homeless animals euthanized in animal shelters every year…nationwide, more than 2.7 million healthy, adoptable cats and dogs are euthanized in shelters annually.” (humanesociety.org). Homeless, intact animals have offspring, and the offspring get caught by Animal Control. The animals then get put in shelters, and are usually euthanized.
For cats it is even worse. One un-spayed female cat and one un-neutered male cat and their offspring results in 420,000 kittens in 7 years” ("Why You Should Spay/Neuter Your Pet: The Humane Society of the United States, par. 22."). Many people might be surprised by the numbers that more than 2.7 million healthy, adoptable pets are put down in shelters annually ("Why You Should Spay/Neuter Your Pet: The Humane Society of the United States, par. 27.").
“ Each dog and cat costs about $10 a day to care for; the average stay for an animal is five days (Anderson 2).” Spaying and neutering animals is not only essential for domesticated animals(pets) , but also for feral animals that live in the wild and reproduce without restrictions. “Two unaltered cats and their offspring can produce 420,00 cats in seven years. Two unaltered dogs and their offspring can produce 67,000 dogs in six years (Lobeck 1).” Many ... ... middle of paper ... ...aken the animal to the local shelter and paid a small fee. We, as a society need to make it our priority,to reduce and even diminish the rising animal population. The programs are here in the United States.
Dogs and Cats are cute and cuddly and they provide comfort for many people but what happens when that one cat or dog turns into three more and that three turns into six. Will they still be cute and comforting when there are to many mouths to feed and there is no longer room for them? Animal overpopulation has become a problem in many parts of the world. The Humane Society of The United States did a survey in 2012 on how many cats and dogs there were who had owners. There study show that there is an estimated 83.3 million dogs and 95.6 million cats who belong to someone, and they estimate that there are 6 to 8 million animals that go to shelters each day, but these numbers still do not include the number of animals that are wandering the streets (U.S. Pet Ownership).
With a little more effort, animal euthanizing of healthy animals can absent in the next few years. Making it a law to have animals spayed or neutered is somewhat of an easy fix. When a cat or dog comes into a vet’s office to get their shots, like all require, the vet can keep said animal and fix them themselves. All these procedures need to be paid for however, so in order for owners to get their pets back they must pay the costs of the operation. If all cats and dogs are fixed however, this would come to an end of all dogs and cats.
The Havahart article also states, “Feral cats only live 3-5 years”, and they will be killed by vehicles, dogs, disease and starvation. The second solution, Trap, Neuter, and Adopt (TNA) does not require them to be euthanized, but rather ferals are domesticated and can then be adopted. Customers could pay a fee so the shelters could fund these programs. If we just e... ... middle of paper ... ...d not be able to do anything about it? I think not.
Shelters all over the United States are past the overcrowded level and even dog rescue groups are finding it harder and harder everyday to find homes for animals in their care. According to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (P.E.T.A) over 50,000 puppies and kittens are born every day in the United States alone. Furthermore, P.E.T.A. also states that about 9 million animals enter shelters every year and of that amount 3 to 4 million of these animals each year are euthanized. While reading this information I keep seeing the Sara McLaughlin song and the commercial over and over in my head and wishing that I had a larger home to care for more animals.
Approximately five to seven million cats and dogs enter animal shelters yearly, and, out of those, around three to four million end up euthanized. The most effective way to reduce these euthanasia numbers is to spay and neuter all cats and dogs. Unfortunately, the last stop for about half the animals that end up in a shelter is the shelter. The other half of the animals are the ones that are lucky enough to find their original home or a new home. Animal shelters don't always have enough room to house and take care of every animal that they receive, therefore, the other half that don't find homes, are euthanized.
Though we do not realize many animals have a life as this dog has had. Studies show that more animals in the United States are being euthanized every day due to the fact of overpopulation of animals, serious injury or diseases, puppy mills and natural disasters. According to the Humane Society of the United States, they estimated that in 2013, animal shelters care for about six to eight million dogs and cats every year, of this approximately three to four million are euthanized (Pet Overpopulation). This stated would mean that about one animal every eight seconds is euthanized a day. There is no central data reporting agencies of animal shelters to keep track of how many animals are put down so the numbers are estimated.
There are more reasons than those just listed to own a companion animal. However, in the United States there is one problem with these pets and companions. Companion animal overpopulation in the United States is a real problem and this includes domesticated cats, dogs and exotic animals. Millions of animals each year are abandoned and brought to shelters, and about half of those millions are eventually euthanized. It is important to note as P. Elizabeth Anderson does in her work, The Powerful Bond between People and Pets, that every animal purchased from a breeder is taking away a home for a pet from a shelter (pg.