Thursday Thirteen

To carry on with the current theme and to try and make Mao feel a bit better, I have decided to make this week's Thursday Thirteen all about the benefits of neutering and spaying. I shudder to hear those words but I know that it is a necessary evil. Much like me!

Thirteen facts about spaying/neutering your pet.

1 Surgical altering is the only foolproof and permanent method of birth control for cats.

2 Some people believe that neutering changes a pet's personality. While it may decrease aggressiveness, the pet's genetic makeup and the attention and training it receives are the factors that shape its personality.

3 Although neutering a female after the first litter decreases the future number of unwanted animals, pet overpopulation can be increased when "just one litter" is allowed to be born.

4 Just one litter can result in hundreds to thousands of unwanted pets:

The Prolific Cat

1st year 3 litters = 12 offspring
2nd year 144 offspring
3rd year 1728 offspring
4th year 10, 736 offspring
7th year 370,192

5 Your pet will live longer, cost you less in veterinary bills, and be healthier if it is spayed/neutered.

6 The Cats Protection League estimate there are between 8 and 10 million strays in the UK- outnumbering the 7.7 million cats being cared for as pets. The charity gives £3 million, in vouchers, to cat owners to neuter up to 85,000 animals.

7 Neutering can literally save a cat’s life. Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV) and Feline leukemia Virus (FeLV) are life-threatening diseases for cats. These diseases are transmitted through the cat’s saliva, which makes fighting cats more at risk. Neutered cats are less likely to get into fights with other cats and are therefore less likely to get bitten and be infected with these diseases.

8 Modern anaesthesia means that the cats are dealt with as "day patients" and that they can go home on the same day as the procedure.

9 Cats Protection neuters 100,000 cats each year, but despite this the cat population has risen over 22% in a decade, and around 800,000 kittens are being born each year

10 Both male and female cats can be neutered from the age of 4 months (be advised by your vet).

11 Every year, millions of animals are euthanized in animal shelters, and millions more are abandoned to die on the streets. Spaying and neutering prevents at least some of these from occurring.

12. In her lifetime, a single female cat and her offspring can be responsible for around 50 million kittens.

13. In the Uk in 2003, the feline population was approx. 9.2 million. This is twice the number it was 30 years ago.

So you see, Baby Mao, it really was for the best!

Incidentally, Mao is gloating over the outpouring of support and sympathy from fellow cats. I have had to bite him a little to stop him gloating. Mwa ha ha