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In this issue of Expat Woman, we would like to bring to your attention the importance of having your pet spayed / neutered.
We at Al Barsha Veterinary Clinic strongly believe in this and therefore we offer to spay/neuter your pet in March with a 10% discount. Besides that, ABVC offers to spay 1 stray female cat and neuter 5 stray male cats for free on each day in March (except Fridays and Saturdays). This free service will be done on a first come first serve basis, so making an appointment is necessary. If you need to borrow a cat trap to catch your local stray, please contact the front desk at 04-3408601.
Please note that for the free sterilization, all cats have to be strays and that they will get their ear tipped (not negotionable). 
Why should I have my animal spayed/neutered?
First of all, because it is beneficiary to your pet’s health. If dogs are spayed before their first heat it reduces their chances of obtaining mammary gland cancer to “0”, they will not be able to develop ovary cancer and can not develop uterine infections or diabetes. These are 4 major medical reasons to spay your dog at an early age. Exceptions to this early spay advise are bitches with docked tails, since it enhances their chance of urine incontinence. Those dogs normally are advised to be spayed at an age of 2 years old.
Cats just have unbearable behavior when on heat and spaying them adds to the quality of you and your cat’s interaction. Cats can be given the “cat-pill” or the same by injection, which clears this behavior. It is however known that this type of medication can cause massive overreaction of the mammary glands, causing “Dolly Parton” syndrome, after which spaying will have to be done but also the mammary glands will need surgical correction.
Female rabbits which have not been spayed tend to be very aggressive and do not function well as pets for kids to cuddle. Spaying them keeps them in a pleasant and non aggressive mood.
You will also have to realize that breeding is a natural gift. However with the breeds that we have created and call Pedigrees we have created difficulties for some breeds to deliver naturally. Even if you read up on pet breeding you still have a change to lot of problems during and soon after parturition and chance is that you can loose your own pet and possibly the litter as well. This can also leave you with high and un-expected costs.
Castration of male pets (dogs or cats) prevents them from wandering around in search of a female and without “testosteron” they are more docile and pleasant. Neutered cats tend to be in less fights, taking away their chances of obtaining (sexual or bite related) transmissible diseases like cat aids (FIV or FeLV). Due to their better attitude you will find they are less often wounded and are less likely to have abscess formation.
Spayed or neutered pets tend to roam less and hence are less prone to car accidents or other.
Neutered male dogs are prevented from obtaining prostate problems like hyperplasia (enlargement) or even prostate cancer.
Second to this is the moral obligation towards your own neighborhood, As the number of unwanted pets grows every year, animal shelters are filled to capacity with dogs and cats that have no other place to go. Each new litter born only lessens the chance for any of these animals finding permanent, loving homes.
Funding for animal shelters is limited, and donations are frequently relied on to keep the doors open, but in uncertain economic times donation levels drop, leaving the shelters in a precarious position. With all this in mind, it's easy to understand why it's more important than ever for owners to carefully consider whether or not their pets should be allowed to breed. Ask yourself the following questions:
- Are you sure you will have homes waiting for the pups/kittens?
- Are you willing and financially/physically able to keep each pup/kitten that doesn't find a permanent home?
These are tough issues that deserve careful consideration before forging ahead with breeding.
Dr. Ellen Kruijning, Al Barsha Veterinary Clinic