Pet Overpopulation & Euthanasia
Reported Facts
1. Over $2 billion is spent annually by local
governments to shelter and ultimately destroy 8-10 million adoptable
dogs and cats due to a shortage of homes.
Source: Business Wire Features
2. Less than 3% of dog guardians are responsible
for surplus births.
Source: Save Our Strays
3. The main reason for cat overpopulation is
feral, free-roaming, un-owned cats.
Source: Save Our Strays
4. An estimated 6 to 8 million dogs and cats are
euthanized in shelters each year. Millions more are abandoned , only
to suffer from illness or injury before dying.
Source: Doris Day Animal League
5. The perceived high cost of altering is not the
problem , but the lack of education i.e., its benefits .
6. While prices vary considerably, many humane
societies and municipal animal control departments offer low-coast
spay/neuter services . And while the cost of surgery may seem high
initially, it's a real bargain when compared with the cost of
raising a litter of puppies or kittens. Spay and neutering also
saves taxpayer dollars. On average, it costs approximately $100 to
capture, house, feed and eventually kill a homeless animal - a cost
that ultimately comes out of all our pockets.
Source: Doris Day Animal League
7. The cost of having a pregnant female can be
much higher than cost of spaying.
8. Neutering the male before he is sexually
mature will inhibit such "territorial" linked behaviors like
urine-marking and aggressive posturing.
9. Un-spayed females have high incidences of
mammary tumors, uterine infections, and cancer.
10. Neutered pets get along much better with each
other.
11. Purebreds account for 30% of all the animals
in shelters.
Source: Journal of Applied Animal Welfare
Science
12. Approximately 55% of dogs and puppies
entering shelters are killed, based on reports from 1,038 facilities
across America .
Source: National Council on Pet Population Study
and Policy - Shelter Statistics Survey.
13. Approximately 71% of cats and kittens
entering shelters are killed, based on reports from 1,038 facilities
across America .
Source: National Council on Pet Population
Study and Policy - Shelter Statistics Survey
14. Owner Ignorance populates shelters with
abandoned dogs and cats.
15. Pets that spend most of their time separated
from the family, either in crates or in the yard, are at greater
risk of being surrendered to shelters .
Consider this: While our world consists of
interest outside our pets, we are their ENTIRE world and they depend
on us exclusively for their socialization and well-being.
