Better for health
Neutering has several health benefits for your cat – while also providing benefits for you as an owner.
– The female cat avoids heat, which can be stressful, and they avoid the strain of carrying many litters.
– The female cat avoids birth control pills, which increase the risk of developing mammary tumors.
– The cat fights less and will not mate. This reduces the risk of serious viral diseases, e.g. feline leukemia virus (FeLV) and feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV)- The cat roams less and stays closer to home – the risk of disappearing decreases. It also reduces the risk of accidents that can occur on long trips away from home.
– An unneutered male cat also has a stronger urine odor and a need to mark. By neutering, you can avoid neighborhood disputes as a result of marking in the neighbor’s garden. You can also prevent fighting with other cats in the neighborhood with accompanying veterinary bills for which you as the owner can be held responsible.
Homelessness in cats
Human irresponsibility makes animals homeless. Many acquire pets impulsively and later wish to get rid of the responsibility for this extra family member. Some choose to abandon the animals rather than finding them a new home. Every year, Animal Protection Norway rescues animals from ditches and dumpsters, among other places, where they have been dumped alive. Unfortunately, we don’t always arrive in time, and the animals die before they are found, or must be euthanized due to illness or injuries. Nearly 85% of the animals Animal Protection Norway rescues are cats.
Lack of restrictions on purchase, sale and breeding contributes to increasing the number of unwanted family pets. When family pets such as cats and rabbits are not neutered, it further exacerbates the problem.
There is no public assistance for homeless animals, which is why Animal Protection Norway steps in and rescues nearly 7,000 homeless animals every year. The animals are often malnourished, and most require veterinary treatment. We ensure they are rehabilitated and rehomed to new, caring homes.
Animals have intrinsic value regardless of the utility value they may have for humans – their existence is not to be a pet or a toy for us humans. The animals are part of the family and not something we can just throw away the day we get tired of them. They must be treated well and protected against the risk of unnecessary stress and strain (Animal Welfare Act, § 3).
Our family pets have been domesticated for so long that they are dependent on us humans. By making a family pet homeless, the animal will be exposed to an uncertain future and probably certain death.
The value of the cat
Almost all animals helped by Animal Protection Norway are cats. Compared to dogs, cats have a lower status in society, and Animal Protection Norway actively works to raise the status of cats in Norway.
While acquiring a dog often entails high costs, it is common for cats to be given away for free on classified ad sites like Finn and in various animal groups on Facebook. This is also reflected later in pet ownership, where, for example, microchipping and regular veterinary follow-ups for cats are often absent, whereas this is a given for most dog owners. Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for something given away for free to be taken for granted. Animal Protection Norway believes that acquiring a cat must come with a cost to reduce the throwaway mentality that, unfortunately, some people have towards cats today.
Cats are overrepresented in the statistics that deal with abuse and killing of family pets in Norway. This may be because cats are more outdoors on their own, compared to other family pets, which makes them more vulnerable to attack.
Many of the cats that are taken in by our volunteers are sick and have injuries. Sometimes we have to make the difficult decision to rather let the cat escape the suffering than to try to give it treatment. Homeless cats live a tough life and are exposed to frostbite in winter, eye problems in case of injury or illness, bite injuries and various infectious diseases. Not all the cats we take in thrive with humans, as they may have been born to an already homeless mother, or have lived too long without human contact. These cats will not have a good life in a normal home. In some cases, the only humane thing to do is to euthanize the animal, rather than it continuing to be homeless and exposed to diseases, injuries and malnutrition. In other cases, a living situation can be arranged via the local branch, for example with a permanent foster home with follow-up.
ID mark your cat
A cat that is both neutered and ID-marked – is a cat that is taken care of by a responsible family/owner. This is important, both for your own cat and to prevent suffering for other cats.
ID marking allows family pets that have strayed to find their way home again. ID marking of cats is done at the veterinarian, who injects a small capsule with a microchip under the skin of the cat. The microchip is programmed with a number, which will follow the cat for the rest of its life.
A cat that is found can be taken to a veterinarian where they have scanners that read the cat’s unique ID number, and this number is found in a register. Dyrebeskyttelsen Norges local branches, the police and some rescue services also have such scanners. The cat’s chip number is stored in a register at DyreID, where most ID-marked family pets in Norway are registered. If the animal’s ID number is known, you can do an ID search via DyreID on the internet and find out who owns the animal. You can read more about ID marking here: www.dyreid.no.
Animal Protection Norway advocates for mandatory microchipping for all companion animals
The organization has worked for legally required ID marking for over 40 years. Below you can read about some of the reasons for this wish:
- More animals that get away from their owners will find their way home again – and thus reduce the number of animals that become homeless
- Family pets without ID marking have in practice no legal protection
- Accountability of bad animal owners, including in connection with dumping of animals or abuse
- Ensure correct identification of animals, for example when selling animals over the counter (the zoo industry) and when breeding animals
- Help us – Sign the petition for the introduction of mandatory ID marking!
