Hate mail

If you've ever posted a comment on my blog, on blogspot.com, not on Facebook, you may notice that it doesn't appear immediately. I have the comments section set to require approval before they post because 99.9% of them are spam comments from Russian or Chinese bots trying to sell shit. I try to check the comments occasionally and last week ran across this little jewel, posted in response to a post from June 6, 2013, dealing with people who don't believe in spay/neuter:

Maya will walk with any other dog, but I think it's
safe to say that Trooper is her preferred companion.

What an ignorant post. Do some research on the health effects of spaying and neutering before calling people idiots. Cutting the ovaries and the uterus out of a female dog destroys their endocrine system. It is NOT a "harmless" procedure. The same goes for cutting off testicles (although not quite as invasive). Testosterone and estrogen regulate growth and so many other functions besides reproduction. Neutering and spaying is responsible for cancers, shortened life spans, obesity and incontinence (in female dogs). In certain breeds like Golden retrievers in doubles the cancer rate in females. Those problems will then get the dogs dumped back at the shelters. Female dogs with incontinence might get yelled at their whole life because their owners think they are "untrainable" (the reason so many women have incontinence problems after menopause is because they lack estrogen, the same happens to dogs). There are plenty of studies by the University of Berkley and other reputable on           [I assume the writer had more to say, but it cut off here.]

Here's the original post, titled "Tough issue #2, the intact dog." and I stand by what I wrote.

I would venture to guess that the commenter isn't a rescuer and has probably never ventured into a shelter full of found and surrendered animals. I would bet that this person is a breeder, and consequently is a shill for the AKC.

First, I never referred to spay/neuter as a "harmless" procedure. It's surgery and it carries risks, although the risks are low, I think, compared to the benefits. I've been to shelters as most everyone who reads this has. They are not full of dogs who were dumped because of complications from spay/neuter procedures. Most of them are intact dogs who are there because of indiscriminate breeding. Yes, male dogs neutered early probably won't grow as big as they would if left intact, but they also are less likely to be killed on the road chasing the scent of a female in heat, and they won't be contributing any unwanted, unplanned litters. Yes, I've had female dogs who had incontinence issues, but I've never found one who was dumped for that reason. I also doubt that the statistics the commenter talks about concerning life span include dogs who are euthanized in overcrowded shelters or are killed on the roads.



The pictures are unrelated to this post. They are from my walks today with Maya and Trooper, and then Maya and Sparky. It was a beautiful day.