Our dog Riley was spayed this past Friday. Like everything involving the dog ownership process, I did a lot of research to make an informed decision. I am very happy with my decision and hope this story helps inform yours as well.

You may think the spaying and neutering of dogs and cats is only relevant to pet owners. But as taxpayers, we all have a vested interest.

More than $2 billion is spent annually by local governments to shelter and ultimately destroy 8-10 million adoptable dogs and cats due to shortage of homes. So controlling this problem means money in our pockets.

Where to Go

While prices vary considerably, many humane societies and municipal animal control departments offer low-cost spay/neuter services.

The cost of surgery may seem high initially, but it's a real bargain when compared to the cost of raising a litter of puppies. On average, it costs approximately $100 to capture, house, feed and eventually kill a homeless animal.

By making sure dogs can’t have puppies, you will have peace of mind knowing their offspring will not be euthanized in an animal shelter. You may be surprised to learn that millions of dogs are euthanized in shelters every year. Often these are the offspring of cherished pets for whom good efforts to find home placement are unsuccessful.

Homeless dogs need to be euthanized because more dogs enter shelters than find homes with people willing to take care of them. Spaying/neutering your dog is the only permanent solution to this problem.

Prevention Is The Best Medicine

The cost of having a pregnant female can be much higher than the cost of spaying. In 6 years one unspayed female dog and her offspring can reproduce 67,000 dogs.

Your female pet will live a longer, healthier life once spayed. The procedure also helps prevent uterine infections and breast cancer, which is fatal in about 50 percent of dogs and 90 percent of cats. Spaying your pet before her first heat offers the best protection from these diseases. These complications could lead to very high doctor/hospital costs in the future.

Neutering provides major health benefits for your male. Besides preventing unwanted litters, neutering your male companion prevents testicular cancer, if done before 6 months of age. These also mean lower doctor/hospital costs.

Your spayed female won't go into heat. Most female dogs have two estrous cycles yearly. That might make you think their cycles are six months long, but they're not. Females have two cycles that last about a month, about six months apart. By eliminating these, you save the cost of extra money for house cleaning no longer needed.

Meanwhile, your neutered male dog won't want to roam away from home. An intact male will do just about anything to find a mate! That includes digging his way under the fence and making like Houdini to escape from the house. And once he's free to roam, he risks injury in traffic and fights with other males.

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