02/22/21 The 23rd of February 2021 - World Dog and Cat Spay Day
Let's help animals and stop uncontrolled reproduction and human irresponsibility
- The 23rd of February 2021: Spaying is the only option to reduce the number of abandoned and abused animals
Scenes of puppies left in boxes next to shelters, wounded, sick and malnourished animals, eyeless kittens, and similar horrors constitute everyday life for the associations of the Network for the Protection of Animals and their volunteers. By caring for discarded puppies and kittens they solve a problem created by irresponsible individuals who do not neuter their dogs and cats, leaving their offspring at the mercy of cold, heat, hunger, thirst and car wheels. "Excessive reproduction of dogs and cats is the main cause of abandonment of animals," emphasizes the association Animal Friends Croatia.
To highlight this major problem, since 1995, on the last Tuesday in February, more than 70 countries around the world have been celebrating World Dog and Cat Spay Day. It seeks to emphasize the importance of neutering male and female dogs and cats in order to reduce the number of abandoned animals and generally improve their health. Namely, in addition to unwanted puppies and kittens, many diseases are transmitted through uncontrolled reproduction among animals.
"Despite the long-standing legal obligation of dog and cat caregivers to control the reproduction of their pets, in Croatia, there is still a huge problem of their uncontrolled reproduction and then the abandonment of puppies and kittens. Apart from the great suffering of discarded animals, the consequences of their rejection are never borne by those who rejected them, but primarily by local communities that pay for their care in the shelter and animal protection associations that citizens often turn to when they find abandoned animals. Therefore, the necessity of spaying both abandoned animals and those in care is obvious," points out Luka Oman from the Animal Friends Croatia association.
He states that dogs and cats cannot control their instincts and can have a lot of offspring - in seven years only one female dog and her offspring can give birth to 67.000 puppies, and only one cat and her offspring can give birth to as many as 420.000 kittens, which puts enormous pressure on shelters, local communities and animal welfare associations. “Spaying effectively affects the cause of the problem and prevents the suffering and death of animals. We have examples of more than 100 local communities that finance or subsidize the spaying of dogs and cats in care, and this has resulted in the reduction of the number of abandoned animals, as well as significant budget savings,” the Association claims.
There are thousands of abandoned animals in Croatia and shelters are full of puppies and kittens. Without spaying, their constant influx cannot be stopped. Spaying also helps the physical and mental health of animals and facilitates their coexistence with humans. Therefore, veterinarians consider this, now routine, the procedure to be an important part of responsible care and it is recommended to castrate animals before getting into the first heat.
Animal Friends Croatia calls on everyone to mark World Spay Day - local communities to prescribe permanent neutering as a mandatory way to control the reproduction of dogs and cats and to subsidize spaying, and animal caregivers to learn about the benefits of spaying and help dogs and cats under their care.
"For years, we have been helping citizens who take care of abandoned animals and adopt them and take care of more animals, despite their being in a bad financial condition. Through our project, applications for more favorable spaying, they pay for spaying at more favorable prices. Please do not buy animals, but adopt abandoned dogs and cats if you have the conditions for long-term care of the animal," recommend Animal Friends Croatia.
They point out that, thanks to the efforts of the shelter in Èakovec, guardians of dogs and cats from the earthquake-affected area can castrate their animals for free. Spayings are paid with donations and are performed in agreement with the veterinary clinics in Petrinja and Sisak. There are not enough donations because the need is very large. Therefore, all who are able to help may make a donation to the account number HR7823400091511112646, ZEU Friends of Animals and Nature Èakovec, model 02, reference number 888, purpose of payment: donation for the spaying program.