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| No | 40% | 150 votes | Total: 372 votes | |
| Yes | 60% | 222 votes |
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Add to FavoritesThe Mandatory Spay/Neuter Law is the embodiment of doing the wrong thing for the right reason.
No one wants to see animals euthanized because negligent owners are not responsible for spaying or neutering their pets but by requiring that pet owners sterilize their animals, the problem of animal abuse is certain to increase.
While most people who support this type of law have the animals best interest at heart, it would be wise to step back from the emotional side of the situation and view the big picture.
Ask yourself, why do so many pet owners allow their dogs or cats to breed indiscriminately? Supposing that the pet owner is not a hard-hearted individual who just does not care or a puppy mill owner, the answer lies in the cost to spay or neuter. In some communities, the expense makes it unfeasible for the pet owner to have their animal sterilized.
Now, shift your thoughts to what happens when a pet owner suddenly faces the legal requirement of sterilizing their animals. Remember, they didn't have the money for the procedure in the first place; the new law doesn't suddenly put more cash in their wallet. So they do the only thing they can do in order to comply with the lawthey get rid of their pets.
There are two ways to solve any problem, by offering assistance or by offering resistance. The mandatory spay/neuter laws fall into the latter category. Moreover, the animals are the ones who will suffer. Do you help? Or do you hinder? Any time you try to change something you don't like by hindering others, you create animosity and you encourage resistance. Often, that resistance leads to illegal or unethical activities.
Consider the era of Prohibition because it closely mirrors the desired regulations of the mandatory spay/neuter legislation. Why did Prohibition fail? Because it sought to change human behavior by making the consumption of alcohol illegal. In doing so, it created more problems than it solved and it turned everyday citizens into criminals.
If mandatory spay/neuter laws make their way onto the books, kind souls who now open their hearts and their homes to a stray dog or cat, will begin turning the animals away to fend for themselves. Those who find themselves stuck with a dog that just gave birth to a beautiful litter of puppies will take a step they normally would never considerthey will bundle the puppies in a sack and toss them into the stream.
Instead of attempting to control and hinder, should the pro-animal advocates decide to raise money and implement free-sterilization clinics, along with legislation that rewards a pet owner for bringing an animal in for spay/neuteringsuch as a coupon for two months free dog food, they would find the unwanted animal population decreasing on its own.
But create a situation in which people can no longer afford to render aid to animals without financial punishmentand we will not only punish every animal ownerwe will punish our furry friends who depend upon us for their welfare.
Learn more about this author, G Wallace Taylor.
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Yes
Mandatory spay and neuter laws are absolutely practical but to try and enforce them is a major problem. I live in a small, rural community and whereas the in-town folks are complaining about the strays, you have the farmers that believe if you spay or neuter your farm dog or cat, they won't do their jobs; which is a falacy because my animals do a bang-up job of taking care of business. I have no snakes, mice, rats or any other unwanted critters; although I am a little mad at them for the slight decline in my bird population.
There are more dog and cat populations on this planet than humans and we number 7 billion. The biggest problem is the cost factor. Most vets charge upwards of $105.00, which is excessive and most people can't afford it, particularly with the price of fuel, groceries and electricity. I have taken in several strays and it cost me a fortune so I can see why it's not at the top of the To Do List for most people.
One thing that we have to understand is that WE need to be the responsible parties here. Animals are not a convenience, they are no different than having children to take care of: to feed, shelter, train and make sure they get medical care. Just because you want one doesn't mean that after you get him/her that's all there is to it. Once you get that cute ball of fur, it's going to grow up and you need to make sure that the animal gets fixed and doesn't roam the neighborhoods.
In most large cities, they have low-cost or no-cost clinics and vans that travel around and perform the procedures; so there is no reason for the animal populations to exist in those areas, which means that the human has options to curb the problem and they don't. In rural areas, we don't have access to those services. In my small community I am working with the County Commissioners to not only build a desperately needed animal shelter but to also have a van that will travel in our county to perform the needed procedures.
If we need to enforce mandatory spay and neuter, it does work, case in point; Australia. They were overrun with strays and instituted the law. You might see some strays when you visit that country, but you can bet they've been fixed. They also use the (CSNR), Catch, Spay-Neuter Release program for their feral cat population. Between the two programs this also means that their adoption program is not overwhelmed.
I think if we just make it more affordable to the entire nation, we could see this problem cleared up in as little as a couple of years. We just need to get everybody on the same page. If people could afford to do it then a mandatory law would not be required.
On behalf of the animals, I don't think the females appreciate having litter after litter or for the babies that are left in boxes in some ditch to suffer and die. How many more animals do you have to see dead on the highway or digging through trash for food because they are skin and bones? These beautiful, loving animals suffer and die everyday because nobody took responsibility. If you truly care about the problem, please help your community by donating your time, money or becoming a foster parent to an animal. If you already have an animal, be part of the solution, not the problem.
Learn more about this author, Nanette Piotrowski.
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