Top 10 Reasons to Spay or Neuter Your Pet
To piggy-back on HSI’s June 11th Spay-ghetti Dinner at the SNIP Clinic in Mooresville (www.snipclinicnc.com), the following information is very applicable.
Whether you’ve recently adopted a pet or you’re considering it, one of the most important health decisions you’ll make is to spay or neuter your cat or dog.
Spaying — removing the ovaries and uterus of a female pet—is a veterinary procedure that requires minimal hospitalization and offers lifelong health benefits.
Neutering — removing the testicles of your male dog or cat—will vastly improve your pet’s behavior and keep him close to home.
Not convinced yet? Check out our handy—and persuasive—list of the top 10 reasons to spay or neuter your pet!
Your female pet will live a longer, healthier life. Spaying helps prevent uterine infections and breast cancer, which is fatal in about 50 percent of dogs and 90 percent of cats. Spaying your pet before her first heat offers the best protection from these diseases.
Neutering provides major health benefits for your male. Besides preventing unwanted litters, neutering your male companion prevents testicular cancer, if done before six months of age.
Your spayed female won’t go into heat. While cycles can vary, female felines usually go into heat four to five days every three weeks during breeding season. In an effort to advertise for mates, they’ll yowl and urinate more frequently—sometimes all over the house!
Your male dog won’t want to roam away from home. An intact male will do just about anything to find a mate! That includes digging his way under the fence and making like Houdini to escape from the house. And once he’s free to roam, he risks injury in traffic and fights with other males.
Your neutered male will be much better behaved. Neutered cats and dogs focus their attention on their human families. On the other hand, unneutered dogs and cats may mark their territory by spraying strong-smelling urine all over the house. Many aggression problems can be avoided by early neutering.
Spaying or neutering will NOT make your pet fat. Don’t use that old excuse! Lack of exercise and overfeeding will cause your pet to pack on the extra pounds—not neutering. Your pet will remain fit and trim as long as you continue to provide exercise and monitor food intake.
It is highly cost-effective. The cost of your pet’s spay/neuter surgery is a lot less than the cost of having and caring for a litter. It also beats the cost of treatment when your unneutered tom escapes and gets into fights with the neighborhood stray!
Spaying and neutering your pet is good for the community. Stray animals pose a real problem in many parts of the country. They can prey on wildlife, cause car accidents, damage the local fauna and frighten children. Spaying and neutering packs a powerful punch in reducing the number of animals on the streets.
Your pet doesn’t need to have a litter for your children to learn about the miracle of birth. Letting your pet produce offspring you have no intention of keeping is not a good lesson for your children—especially when so many unwanted animals end up in shelters. There are tons of books and videos available to teach your children about birth in a more responsible way.
Spaying and neutering helps fight pet overpopulation. Every year, millions of cats and dogs of all ages and breeds are euthanized or suffer as strays. These high numbers are the result of unplanned litters that could have been prevented by spaying or neutering.
SPAY-ghetti Dinner a SUCCESS!!!
On June 11th, HSI held the first ever, SPAY-ghetti Dinner to benefit both the SNIP Clinic and the Humane Society of Iredell County.
Held right inside the lobby of the SNIP Clinic, our friends at HoneyBaked Ham (yes, the ham & turkey company) provided us with a pretty tasty pasta meal.
Many stopped to pick up and take home after a long day at work, but there were plenty that dined right inside the lobby…then were able to get a behind the scenes look at the SNIP Clinic first hand.
Overall, the event generated approximately $1,200 that will be split between HSI and the SNIP Clinic.
A HUGE thank you to Honeybaked Ham for catering, and to the SNIP Clinic for allowing HSI to hold the event in their facility. To the HSI volunteers that had a hand in putting this together, and that helped out that evening either serving, greeting guests or giving tours…all if it was critical to the success of the event.
Lastly, to all of you that purchased tickets for this event (whether you were able to join us or not) HSI is extremely thankful for your support of this event. It is only because of you that it was so successful!!
CALLING ALL VOLUNTEERS!!!
We have lots of events planned the next several months, as we try to spread the word about our wonderful organization!!! But with that we need help staffing these events. We have some real needs with “Miles of Mooresville” events (July & August), as well as the “Bowling for Fur” event on July 18th. If you can spare some extra time to help with one of these, please call 704-663-3330 or email director@iredellhumane.org.
Are you new to HSI? Never volunteered with us before? No worries, no experience is necessary. All we require is that you believe in the cause…Helping the Animals. So, why don’t you join us?
Bowling for Fur – July 18th
WE NEED BOWLERS!!!
HSI is hosting a bowling tournament as our next fundraiser. Please click the link below to find out how to register. Spread the word to your family and friends!!
The more money we raise, the more animals we can save!!
http://iredellhumane.org/bowl-for-animals/
Available for Adoption – Coco
CoCo is our adored Special Needs Girl. She is looking for a Forever Foster or a Very special Family that will welcome her into your heart and home. We would love to discuss special options to make her life perfect. Coco is a beautiful 8 year old female Siamese mix with absolutely gorgeous markings. She has a very soft coat which feels like rabbit fur.
She is a true “LAP CAT” and loves to be held and petted. She is truly a people loving companion cat! Coco does get along with other cats very well as long as she receives lots of love from her person.
What cat lover would not love a kitty like that? Coco has recently been diagnosed with HCM (Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy), and she will need to take a pill every day for her heart. She is so full of love, she purrs constantly, and she is simply wonderful.
If you think that you can provide Coco a loving environment and regular healthcare and check-ups, please complete an application for adoption. Serious inquires only. Coco would really appreciate a real home where she will be spoiled and loved-as she deserves! The normal adoption fee of $115.00 includes spaying or neutering, current vaccines, de-worming, a combination test for Feline Leukemia (FeLV) / Feline Aids (FIV) and fecal testing for intestinal parasites. Coco is up-to-date with routine shots, house trained and spayed.
Your first step in adopting a new family member is to fill out an adoption application. The adoption form must be filled out completely with phone numbers and a vet reference (even an old one, or a reason there is not one) before it will be processed. Your application will not be processed without this information. Please visit our website at www.iredellhumane.org to download an application, or email a request for an application to iredellhumane@yahoo.com. Please fax your application to 704.663.3353.
Available for Adoption – Lucky
Profesionally Obediance Trained!! Lucky comes with 3 free Training Lessons to train his people, not him. He already knows it all. Lucky is the luckiest of all the dogs we have pulled from Animal Control. You see Lucky, by no fault of his own, was next in line to be euthanized when the shelter was at capacity. Scared to death and shaking in the cage we saw something in him that was screaming “help me”. We immediately saw a new dog when he saw daylight. He is a wonderful boy and so thankful.
Lucky is approximately 40 pounds, UTD on all vaccines, heartworm negative, and on preventative. As well as house trained and neutered.
Lucky gets along wonderful with other dogs and he is very submissive. His new foster home is a dog trainer so his luck just keeps getting better and better. He is now a pro with his basic obedience. Lucky loves attention and wants to please.
If Lucky is your missing family member, please apply today. The adoption fee is $125 which includes current vaccines, spaying or neutering, heartworm and flea preventative and fecal testing for intestinal worms. Your first step in adopting a new family member is to fill out an adoption application. The application must be completed with phone numbers and a vet reference (an old one, or a reason why there is not one) before it will be processed. Your application will not be processed without this information. Visit our website at www.iredellhumane.org to download an application or email us at iredellhumane@yahoo.com. Please fax your application to 704.664.8880.
Thank you for your interest in our animals!
We Need Your Vote!
The Animal Rescue Site is awarding $100,000 in grants to eligible Petfinder.com member rescue organizations to help animals. The grand prize is a $10,000 grant, and there are many other prizes! Visit www.theanimalrescuesite.com to vote every day and learn more. You don’t have to register, and voting is free. Support your favorite shelter and vote today! Thank you!
Safety for Animals on the July 4th Holiday
The ASPCA has outlined some things everyone (pet ower or not) should consider about our domestic pets on this festive holiday.
Do not put glow jewelry on your pets, or allow them to play with it. While the luminescent substance contained in these products is not highly toxic, excessive drooling and gastrointestinal irritation could still result from ingestions, and intestinal blockage could occur from swallowing large pieces of the plastic containers.
Keep citronella candles, insect coils and oil products out of reach. Ingestions can produce stomach irritation and possibly even central nervous system depression. If inhaled, the oils could cause aspiration pneumonia in pets.
Never use fireworks around pets! While exposure to lit fireworks can potentially result in severe burns and/or trauma to the face and paws of curious pets, even unused fireworks can pose a danger. Many types contain potentially toxic substances, including potassium nitrate, arsenic and other heavy metals.
Loud, crowded fireworks displays are no fun for pets, so please resist the urge to take them to Independence Day festivities. Instead, keep your little guys safe from the noise in a quiet, sheltered and escape-proof area at home.
