Host: Why are all dogs spayed or neutered before going to their new home?

Michelle Otis: Well, in our country and actually, across the world there is a huge overpopulation problem with domestic pets and that is ac the reason why we have some of these shelters is because there are just too many dogs and cats out here and not enough homes for them. That's why we promote adoptions and foster programs and spay and neutering especially. Most people don't realize that when their animal has litter after litter after litter, ultimately, some of those animals are going to end up in a shelter environment if they are not very carefully placed and kept in their homes for their lifetime. Salmonso ultimately, a lot of those animals end up in a shelter and as a animal welfare organization, most shelters are not going to contribute to the overpopulation by releasing an animal that could get pregnant and reproduce out into a world. So it is a philosophical position I think from any shelter. If we contributed even one unwanted litter, then we would not be doing our job. So having a 100% spay and neuter compliance is very important for animal welfare organization and it is something that you should look for when you are choosing where you are going to adopt your dog from. The other reasons are that we find that it definitely has a positive impact on a dog's temperament and makes it much easier to work with behavior issues and actually eliminate a lot of behavior issues if you have the spay-neuter surgery done at an early age such as marking and things of that nature. So it really is just overall better for your pet physically, it also eliminates the possibility of certain cancers that effect dogs. So there is really no reason not to spay and neuter animals before they are adopted and there is every reason to do the surgery prior to them leaving.