I think my parents must have been bored in February, as my siblings and I were all November babies. Along those lines, February signals the beginning of “kitten season”—often the first of three heat cycles female cats go into, which produces the abundance of kittens throughout summer and fall.
Who suffers during kitten season? Sweet, wonderful adult cats have a hard time being adopted during summer months with all those cute little fluffballs tumbling around them. Shelters are slammed with boxes of adorable but unwanted kittens that must be euthanized. Even your wallet [suffers]: An unspayed cat can give birth to 18 kittens each year (an unspayed dog, 20 puppies) and the average cost for shelters to handle, euthanize and dispose of each homeless animal is $176.
Young cats can become pregnant as early as 4 months old. So grab a cat or dog, make an appointment at Humane Alliance, and get [that animal] spayed! If you or someone you know feeds outdoor cats, get them fixed now to avoid a summer of homeless kittens.
Feb. 26 marked the sixth annual National Spay Day (spaydayusa.org). During Spay Day USA’s first 13 years, participants spayed or neutered an estimated 1,387,000 animals! It’s clear that Spay Day USA participants have, potentially, prevented millions of surplus births and saved millions of taxpayers’ dollars.
— Jackie Teeple
Asheville
we treat our pets better than we treat ourselves.
I treat my pets well. I feed them well and spend a lot of time loving them. And I do not sexually mutilate them. That is so cruel. Let the person in favor of this be the first to neuter themselves.