FEEDBACK ON pet overpopulation
Here are some alternative methods of animal birth control not mentioned in Mike Kiernan's article on the problems of expanding pet population.
In MOTHER NO. 23, Mike Kiernan discussed the problems
created by this country's expanding pet population. I'd
like to add a word on a couple of alternative methods of
animal birth control that Mike didn't mention. One is
available now—I have it done all the time—and
the other is a very promising possibility for the near
future.
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Spaying and neutering (the techniques of surgical
sterilization to which Mike refers) are objectionable to
many people, myself included, because they involve desexing
the animal by removing the ovaries or testicles. This is
not necessary to achieve sterility. A male pet can
have a vasectomy, and a female a Fallopian tubal
ligation—just as humans can—without any
impairment of its sex life. Alternatively, the female's
uterus (womb) can be removed without disturbing the ovaries
(which are also taken in spaying). I prefer this "plain"
hysterectomy for my animals over the tying of the tubes
because the former method eliminates the possibility of
uterine infection—a common problem later on.
Since her operation, one of my female Siamese cats has a
normal heat period every two or three months ... the others
less often. The animals tend to gain weight (I assume
because their appetite level is designed to build them up
for frequent pregnancies) but they show no change in
personality or behavior. When there are young kittens in
the house, one of the sterilized females produces milk and
helps to mother them ... so she's not deprived of even that
joy.
