Owners urged to neuter as 16,000 dogs put down each year

MORE THAN 16,000 stray dogs are put down in Ireland each year because owners don’t neuter their pets — that’s 10 times the rate in Britain.

The claim was made at the launch of National Spay Week yesterday, which was attended by TV3 broadcaster Claire Byrne.

This year’s Spay Week begins next Sunday and aims to encourage owners to take responsibility for their pet’s fertility.

It follows the announcement last month by the international Dogs Trust group that it would help fund a scheme to subsidise the neutering of dogs here.

Under the scheme, which incorporates means-testing of applicants, a dog can be neutered for as little as €14.

Statistics show that the number of stray dogs placed in pounds and kennels has remained consistently high in recent years, at about 25,000.

Thanks to the efforts of animal rescue services, the number of dogs put down because no homes can be found for them has fallen, but as many as 45 stray dogs are still put down each day.

TV vet Peter Wedderburn said that the number of animals put down here each year was much higher than in Britain.

“This week is about highlighting the fact that we produce way too many animals because people don’t take responsibility for their own pet’s fertility,” he said. “Too many of these animals end up being put down and the public doesn’t see it because it happens behind closed doors.”

He added that pet owners needed to ensure their pet was neutered as it had the benefit of boosting an animal’s health and limited the chances of contracting conditions such as cancer.

Figures for 2004 show 16,598 homeless dogs were destroyed in local authority pounds. Some 72% of stray and unwanted dogs in Ireland are destroyed, 10 times the rate of both England and Wales.

For further information on participating vets and eligibility, please call Dogs Trust Neutering Hotline [phone].