To Be or Not to Be? Spaying, Neutering, and Their Ethical Implications (Revised)

No matter what field you work in, there always seem to be ethical issues where two (or even three or more) frames of mind find each other and clash. It is an unavoidable issue and I was tempted to find an obscure topic to discuss just to avoid striking up forest fires. But then I realized that if everyone avoided ethics, there wouldn’t be any to discuss, or worse, they would get resolved in an entirely unsatisfactory manner. Ethics have to be faced (and argued about) unless we want someone who knows nothing about the issue to decide what is going to happen. Thanks for putting up with my humble attempt at learning how to play with matches.

With that said, my ethical argument is going to be on spaying and neutering. This issue affects not only the veterinary profession, but pet owners, and even the general population, although most people don’t realize this.

To be clear, spaying is when the ovaries from a female animal are surgically removed so that they can no longer produce eggs or sex hormones. Neutering is when the testicles are surgically removed from a male animal so that semen and sex hormones are no longer developed.

NOTE: For simplicity’s sake, ProSN = people for spaying and neutering and ConSN= people against spaying and neutering.

One of the main reasons spaying and neutering is recommended by ProSN is because of the excess of animals that are already overcrowding shelters and pounds.

ConSN like to say that the overcrowding theory is a myth, and that “sure, there are homeless pets, but isn’t homeless better than mutilated? And speaking of homeless, why don’t we spay homeless people against their will?” (http://www.thepetitionsite.com/2/stop-spaying-and-neutering/)

As I mentioned in my field explanation blog 5-7 million homeless pets are circulated through US shelters each year, 3-4 million of which are euthanized, not adopted. The US average for one year of people who experience homelessness in some way is 2.3-3.5 million while permanently homeless people average at ~805,000, none of which are euthanized. You compare the numbers and tell me if the US has a pet overpopulation problem or not.

One ConSN misunderstanding is that spaying and neutering is a painful mutilation of the animal and that they experience pain forever afterward because of it. Mutilation is defined as the cutting off or otherwise depriving an animal of a limb or other essential part. Hate to say it, but ovaries and testicles are not essential to life.

Also, animals are anesthetized during the spay or neuter, so they don’t feel a thing, and they are supplied with pain pills, just like a human would be after surgery. The average spay or neuter “victim” is back to their normal hyperactive self in about 2 days. Like every surgery (including human surgery) because anesthesia is involved and because it is a surgery, there is some risk and the chance that something will go wrong. However, these risks are small and nonexistent with a good veterinarian (also like human surgeries, minus the vet).

ConSN tend to treat animals the same as humans. Animals are not like humans. They don’t the capacity to understand the concept of not mating so extraneous offspring aren’t born. Males do not miss their “family jewels” like a castrated human would. Females don’t need to be moms to be “complete”. They don’t even treat sex like humans do. Aside from dolphins, humans are the only species on earth that has sex for fun. Every other species, including companion animals, breeds to propagate the species. And they are amazingly good at it.

People tend to imprint their own feelings and thinking patterns onto animals, which leads to the “animals are people too” idea. Animals do not build skyscrapers. Animals do not use computers. Animals do not have pets. Because of these differences, pets must be treated differently from their owners, no matter how human they act.

Another argument that the ConSN group make is that the spaying and neutering campaign is just veterinary propaganda so that vets (and vet techs) can make more money off of pet owners. And that may be true for a small number of unscrupulous people. But I’ll let you in on a little secret: most people don’t become vets to make money. It’s a bad idea and doesn’t pay off. Vet school is extremely expensive and the salary of a vet is nowhere near the salary of a doctor, even though they basically do the same job.

A vast majority of a vet tech’s job is communication of proper animal care to pet owners. Being able to talk to people effectively about proper care, training, nutrition, exercise, health, and whether they should spay or neuter is literally a make-or-break job qualification for a vet tech. And one of the things we try and point out to pet owners, especially new pet owners is the need for them to be good stewards.

A lot of ConSN like to point out that in Europe spaying and neutering are considered to be animal cruelty and therefore illegal. But what they fail to understand is that what allows no spaying or neutering in Europe is the peoples’ attitude toward responsible pet ownership. They are accountable for everything their animals do, whether it’s biting, sheep worrying, or siring an unplanned litter. They take steps to insure that these incidences happen as little as possible.

In the US, we have a tendency to have “disposable” pets. A lot of people like and want a pet, but they fail to understand all of the implications involved in pet ownership, all of the responsibilities. A lot of people think that when things get hard, or even if the pet just annoys you, give up the pet, and there are no consequences. For the human.

Fully half of the pets given up or abandoned at animal shelters never find good homes, and are euthanized because there is just not enough space for every shelter to be a no-kill operation (no-kill means that once an animal is given up/abandoned, it is kept by the shelter until a suitable home is found, for life if that’s what it takes). No-kill is a noble cause, but for many pet charities, it is just not possible. And a sad choice has to be made between being noble and practical.

Until people realize and fix the consequences of not spaying and not neutering and not taking proper care of their animals, the US will never be able to NOT spay and neuter.

Arielle Glaspie Veterinary Technician (Revised)

This picture is a perfect explanation of why I need to have this article on my blog. Every person has a different idea of what exactly a veterinary technician does. Friends think I get to hang out with cute animals all day. Parents often think of elaborate surgical procedures. Society thinks that all I do is play with cute, fluffy puppies and kitties. Clients tend to think I like long sharp needles and pinning their pets down on the exam table. I think I am a champion, fit to stand in the presence of superheroes. In reality, a vet tech’s job includes all of the above and more.

When I say that I am studying to be a veterinary technician, people always Always ALWAYS say "Oh, you want to be a veterinarian! That's cool." And I have to say "Cool, yes. Vet, no." Then I get the blank stare.

What most people don't realize about the veterinary profession is that there are 3 strata in the veterinary office. At the very tippy top are the DVMs (Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine) with 8 years of college (if they’re lucky). As the actual doctor, vets are the ones who perform surgeries and diagnose diseases.

Next come the veterinary technicians with a Bachelor’s degree (4 years). Vet techs take care of anything the vets don’t do or don’t have time to do, which covers a wide and extensive range of duties.

Last are the receptionists, who don’t have to have a degree but do have to be able to organize the office, keep track of and let the other staff know of appointments, fill out entire forests’ worth of paperwork, and be mildly versed in insanity in order to keep up with co-workers and put up with clients.

Of course, what I’m most concerned with is the vet tech part of things, but one thing that keeps getting mentioned in my vet tech classes is the value of teamwork. The vet tech doesn’t have as much school/knowledge as the vet and without the receptionist the vet would be stuck fixing paperwork instead of pets. Even vet techs have to constantly work with other vet techs, especially when an ornery animal walks into the clinic. Every person is essential to the running of a smooth and efficient clinic.

There’s a reason vet techs are also known as veterinary nurses. That is what they are. The vet/vet tech relationship in a clinic is exactly like the doctor/nurse relationship in a hospital, only they take care of animals, not humans.

On one hand, taking care of animals is simpler than taking care of humans. On the other hand, it is excruciatingly more difficult. Animals are easier to prep for surgery, they don’t get infections as easily as humans, they have warm cuddly fur (not counting amphibians and reptiles), and if they’re in the right mood, will love you to death.

But animals can’t tell you what is wrong with them and their favorite way of telling you “That hurts!” is to bite in order to get you to back off. And that is when they are in a good mood. Dominate, crabby, or unsocialized animals will claw, bite or scratch if you so much as look at them.

They can’t understand that vets and vet techs are there to help, not hurt them.

Professionally, being a vet tech is a catchall job. I have to know how the x-ray machine works, what part of the animals needs to be x-rayed, how much anesthesia to give to any sized dog (or cat), how to restrain animals for examination so they don’t eat my face off or savage the examiner, how to autoclave instruments, set up for and shave animals for surgery, how to give shots, pick up poop, do laundry, write in charts, talk to clients about their pets, how much to feed all the animals, plus anything else at the end of the day that needs to get done.

Ultimately, vet techs are there to prevent this:

Every year, thousands of animals are actively abused and passively neglected. Another 5-7 million pets are circulated through pounds and shelters. Of that, 3-4 million are euthanized, mainly because there are just not enough resources to care for all of the neglected and abandoned animals.

As a vet tech, my goal is to care for any and all animals, regardless of breed or past history. Also as a vet tech, abuse and abandonment hold a special place in my heart particularly when animals are euthanized because vet techs are often the ones who do it. We are the ones who look into the animal’s eyes as we slide the needle into their cephalic vein and inject enough drugs to kill them because a stupid someone didn’t take care of them. In lieu of an actual owner, we are the ones to hold and watch over them as they die because the person that promised to protect them ended up abandoning them and leaving other people to clean up the mess. And doing that week after week in a shelter environment or even just in a veterinary clinic takes its toll.

Which is why helping animals heal and find new homes brings such joy to those of us in this profession. In order to stand the bad side of things, in order to not burn out psychologically, vets and vets techs focus on the positive things: the kitten that was carried in with a mangled face but who walked out with nothing but a funny shaped nose; the trouble dog who kept getting sent back finally coming to an owner who understands him; the joy of children as they find their new buddies; the sad smiles as families say goodbye to a much loved friend. These things are what make our jobs and sacrifices worth the pain.