Everyone in the animal welfare community knows that the best way to save lives is to stop new ones from being born.  Statistics show that the number of  animals killed in shelters in the U.S. declined as the spaying and neutering of household pets became the norm.

The best national survey data indicates that U.S. animal shelters killed 23.5 million dogs and cats in 1970, 17.8 million in 1985, and 4.6 million in 2000.  That amounts to a decline from 115.8 dog and cats killed per 1000 humans in 1970 to 16.8 dogs and cats killed per 1000 humans in 2000. 

The lowest rate of shelter killing can be found in the more affluent and urban Northeast, while the highest rate of shelter killing is in the rural South, with the exception of the Washington, D.C. area and affluent parts of Fla.  The low killing areas have in common residents with discretionary income who regularly take their pets to the veterinarian and for whom spay/neuter surgeries are an expected part of pet ownership. 

Peter Marsh led his rural state of New Hampshire into no kill status by engineering a state funded spay/neuter program.  As a result of this program,  between 1994 and 2000 New Hampshire shelters saw a dramatic decrease in shelter intakes (-35%) and euthanasias (-75%).  Please read more about this exciting effort by going to http://www.saveourstrays.com/Marsh.htm.

The key is providing the means for people who are unable or unwilling to pay for surgeries to have access to the procedures.  The Humane Alliance of North Carolina which operates self supporting low cost spay neuter clinics tells us:
 
" In this country we spend a minimum of one billion dollars annually to pick-up, house, and destroy companion animals.  if only 5% of that one billion were allocated to spay/neuter, we could open 250 clinics across the nation, and sterilize more than 4 million companion animals every year.  This necessary next step would end euthanasia as the current solution to the pet overpopulation dilemma." To learn about their exciting program, go to www.humanealliance.org/HA2/what.htm.

Another vitally important aspect is ensuring that every dog and cat adopted from a reputable shelter is spayed and neutered.  Pediatric spay/neuter ensures that shelter animals will not contribute to the problem.  Surgery can safely be performed on kittens who weigh 2 pounds and are 8 weeks of age and puppies who are 12 weeks of age.  Shelters benefit from this approach because they no longer need to do follow up.  No shelter worker needs to hear:  "I had an appointment scheduled for the next week and I opened the door and she ran out and she came back 3 days later and before I could get another appointment, she had these kittens. . . " or  the infamous "I didn't know a brother and sister would mate!" For all the information you need on pediatric spay/neuter click  www.columbusdogconnection.com/PedSpayNeuter.htm.

All local shelters and rescues should ensure that each animal they adopt out is spayed or neutered.  They  should also provide low cost/no cost spay/neuter services to the public.  For local low cost spay/neuter programs and what you can do to help, click www.webspawner.com/users/nklv and go to spay/neuter page.