The “Woof-Meow” show is on every Sunday at 8:30PM on WVOM, 103.9FM, the Voice of Maine. Hosted by Don Hanson of Green Acres Kennel Shop, the show focuses on educating dog and cat guardians about their dogs and cats.

AIR DATE: Sunday, April 23rd, 2006

GUEST: Jeff Mitchell, Bangor Humane Society

Spaying & Neutering from an Animal Population Perspective

Why is spaying and neutering important?

In Central, Eastern and Northern Maine the cat overpopulation is of epidemic proportions. Last summer the Bangor Humane Society took in approximately 550 cats each month. A typical scenario was that somebody could not afford to spay or neuter their cat and that this was their pet’s third litter in a year and they had run out of people to place the kittens with and could not afford to keep them themselves. Spaying and neutering is the answer to this problem.

From May to the middle of September, many cats arrive at the shelter as pregnant females or mothers with litters. This has some serious implications for the Bangor Humane Society. One of the things that occurs is that animals cannot be moved through as fast because the kittens must be 8 to 14 weeks of age before they can be spayed or neutered, and BHS has a policy that all animals must be spayed or neutered prior to adoption. Thus, many of these kittens remain at the shelter for 6 weeks to 3 months, which directly affects the cost of their care. Additionally, the older cats are often overlooked because there are so many kittens available. The longer that any animal remains in the shelter the greater its stress level becomes, making that animal likelier to become ill.

This is not as great of a problem with dogs and puppies because there are fewer of them and people seem to place more priority on adopting dogs over cats. Unfortunately, our society as a whole seems to put a higher value on dogs, and this can be evidenced by the amount of money that people are willing to spend on their dogs versus their cats. Dogs arriving at the shelter are more apt to have already been spayed or neutered in comparison with the cats we see. 

Why is pet overpopulation such a problem?

The numbers are astounding, and the ones given here are a conservative estimate. When looking at the statistics, in one year, a cat and its mate, if left intact, having two litters averaging 2.8 kittens per litter will result in 12 offspring the first year, 376 in three years, 11,000 in five years and 370,000 cats in seven years. For dogs, the numbers are 16 offspring the first year, 512 in three years and 12,000 dogs by year five. There are simply not enough homes for all of these animals.

As a result of the overpopulation, feral cat colonies are becoming more of a problem in both rural and urban areas. There are currently colonies in Bangor numbering between seventy and ninety feral cats. These cats are not living a good life. They have a much higher risk being ill and having parasites, they often go without food, and they pick up and spread disease. As a result of all of this, their life expectancy is greatly diminished. These cats are often so sick when they are brought to the shelter that they have to be humanely euthanized. Additionally, due to lack of socialization as kittens, feral cats can be very difficult to handle.

What is the Bangor Humane Society’s policy on adoption?

The Bangor Humane Society will not adopt out any animals until they have been spayed or neutered. If an individual or family is interested in adopting an animal we first determine if they have any other pets and make sure that those animals are current on vaccinations. While we prefer that all other animals in the household have been spayed or neutered, we cannot say that this is necessarily a prerequisite to adoption.

What are some of the reasons that people give as to why their pets are not spayed or neutered?

One of the reasons people choose not to spay or neuter their pets is that they want their children to experience the miracle of birth. We often remind them that the chances of the children actually being around to witness this are really quite slim. It is apt to happen when the kids are at school or some extracurricular activity or during the night when everyone is asleep. Watching the Discovery channel or renting a videotape would certainly provide for the same opportunity.

Another very common myth that people believe is that spaying and neutering causes animals to become lazy and fat. The truth is that pets in our society are fat because we are overfeeding them. Fifty percent of dogs and cats in the United States are clinically obese. While there is some truth in that there is a decrease in caloric use due to not roaming, we can adjust for this by increasing exercise. A study done in New York, which took place over a span of ten years, demonstrated that pet guardians who walked their dogs regularly lived on average seven years longer than those who did not walk their dogs regularly.

We also often hear, particularly from the men, that they do not want to neuter their male animals because they do not want to take away their manhood. The truth is that for dogs and cats it is not the same thing as with people. They will not miss it as a human being would because it is specifically an instinctual, biological act that occurs once or twice a year. Additionally, the health and behavioral benefits far outweigh maintaining an intact animal.

How is the Bangor Humane Society helping to solve this overpopulation problem?

We all know that it can be expensive to have your pet spayed or neutered and BHS is approaching this problem on two levels. First, we have an in house veterinary clinic so that we can be sure that all of our animals that we are adopting out are spayed or neutered prior to leaving for their new homes. We are proud to say that over the past two years, our veterinarians have spayed or neutered 3,900 animals.

Maine state law prohibits shelters from providing veterinary care to the public so we have developed a new program much like one in Kennebunk, Maine that allows us, with the help of local veterinarians and through the use of grant money, to provide reduced rates for spaying and neutering to low income households. We started with four practices and twelve veterinarians in the Bangor area who agreed to reduce their rates by 33% for low-income households. Now there are currently two practices in Piscataquis County, two in Hancock County, and eight in the Greater Bangor Region that are participating in this program. In addition to the 33% decrease from the veterinarians, the Bangor Humane Society will cover 55% of the cost. This results in decreasing the cost of the spay/neuter by over 50%. The money that BHS puts forth comes in the form of several grants, most of them being from various Maine communities and foundations. BHS has raised $47,000 over the past seven months for this program and as a result we have given out 400 vouchers to date and have another 650 vouchers to distribute this year.

Who qualifies for these vouchers and how can they be obtained?

Anybody receiving MaineCare or Medicaid, SSI, SSDI, TANF, Food Stamps or some other form of public support, qualifies for the low cost spay/neuter program. Additionally, if you are not receiving any assistance because you are working but believe you may qualify financially, you may still apply and your eligibility will be determined based upon previous income tax returns.

To receive an application you may call us at (207) 942-8902 or you can download an application on line by going to www.bangorhumane.org and clicking on general info then low-cost spay/neuter.

Notes from The Woof Meow Show, 23APR06
© Donald J. Hanson, BFRP, CDBC, CPDT