Low Cost Spay and Neuter Options

The Humane Society of North Iowa is asked on a frequent basis about spay and neuter assistance.  Spaying or neutering your pet is the BEST way to help keep your pet healthy and fight pet overpopulation.

As a rescue shelter, we do not have a Veterinarian on staff who provides surgical services, so we are unable to provide spay/neuter services to the the public.  However, below is a list of options we encourage you to explore if you need assistance to spay or neuter your pet:

• If you need financial assistance the Humane Society of North Iowa offers “Spay/Neuter Assistance Certificates” to help offset the cost of spay/neuter surgeries for dogs or cats.  The certificates do not cover the entire cost of a spay/neuter surgery, but covers a good portion.  Certificates must be applied for and are only avaiable when funding is available. Please call the Humane Society of North Iowa for more information: 641-423-6241.

• If you have barn/feral cats that you would like to have spayed/neutered, the Iowa State University School of Veterinary Medicine offers a Feral Cat Alliance (FCA) program.  It is a volunteer, veterinary student organization under the supervision of ISU College of Veterinary Medicine faculty and staff that is dedicated to serving central Iowa communities by humanely controlling the feral cat population.  Their mission is to humanely reduce the feral cat population by using a trap, neuter, and return program (TNR).  The Feral Cat Alliance program offers spay/neuter services for barn/feral cats for $20 per animal.  Please visit their website for more information:  http://isufca.weebly.com/caretaker-information.html

• The Jewell Animal Hospital (located in Jewell, IA, about 70 miles south of Mason City) offers a monthly Low Cost Spay/Neuter Day.  You must call the Jewell Animal Hospital to make an appointment.  Please visit their website for more information:  http://www.jewellvetonline.com/Low-Cost-Spay-Neuter.html

• Lastly, when making the decision to have your pet spayed or neutered, it is absolutely recommended that you call several Veterinarians in your area and ask for a price quote for their services.  Make sure to ask the price of a rabies vaccine if your pet’s vaccinations are not current at it is required by law that all pets be kept current on this particular vaccine.

BENEFITS OF SPAY/NEUTER FOR CATS AND DOGS

• Benefits of Spaying (females):
  

  • No heat cycles, therefore males will not be attracted
  • Less desire to roam
  • Risk of mammary gland tumors, ovarian and/or uterine cancer is reduced or eliminated, especially if done before the first heat cycle
  • Reduces number of unwanted cats/kittens/dogs/puppies
  • Helps dogs and cats live longer, healthier lives

• Benefits of Neutering (males):
  

  • Reduces or eliminates risk of spraying and marking
  • Less desire to roam, therefore less likely to be injured in fights or auto accidents
  • Risk of testicular cancer is eliminated, and decreases incidence of prostate disease
  • Reduces number of unwanted cats/kittens/dogs/puppies
  • Decreases aggressive behavior, including dog bites
  • Helps dogs and cats live longer, healthier lives

• Top 3 Reasons to Spay and Neuter
  

  • It helps to reduce companion animal overpopulation. Most countries have a surplus of companion animals and are forced to euthanize or disregard their great suffering. The surplus is in the millions in the United States. Cats are 45 times as prolific, and dogs 15 times as prolific, as humans.They do not need our help to expand their numbers; they need our help to reduce their numbers until there are good homes for them all.
  • Sterilization of your cat or dog will increase his/her chance of a longer and healthier life. Altering your canine friend will increase his life an average of 1 to 3 years, felines, 3 to 5 years. Altered animals have a very low to no risk of mammary gland tumors/cancer, prostate cancer, perianal tumors, pyometria, and uterine, ovarian and testicular cancers.
  • Sterilizing your cat/dog makes him/her a better pet, reducing his/her urge to roam and decreasing the risk of contracting diseases or getting hurt as they roam. Surveys indicate that as many as 85% of dogs hit by cars are unaltered. Intact male cats living outside have been shown to live on average less than two years. Feline Immunodeficiency Syndrome is spread by bites and intact cats fight a great deal more than altered cats.

• Additional Benefits:
  

  • Your community will also benefit. Unwanted animals are becoming a very real concern in many places. Stray animals can easily become a public nuisance, soiling parks and streets, ruining shrubbery, frightening children and elderly people, creating noise and other disturbances, causing automobile accidents, and sometimes even killing livestock or other pets.– The American Veterinary Medical Association
  • The capture, impoundment and eventual destruction of unwanted animals costs taxpayers and private humanitarian agencies over a billion dollars each year. As a potential source of rabies and other less serious diseases, they can be a public health hazard.  – The American Veterinary Medical Association