Females spayed before their first heat cycle have 96.4% less risk of breast cancer. Spaying after the first heat but before a litter still reduces the risk by 84%. Breast cancer is four times more common in dogs than in humans.
Spayed females have no risk of uterine infection, or uterine, ovarian, or cervical cancer.
Dogs and cats have their own sexually-transmitted diseases, many fatal, and some potentially contagious to humans. Spayed and neutered pets are rarely exposed to these diseases.
There are many complications associated with pregnancy, having babies, and raising a litter - infections, emergency c-sections (very expensive), seizures due to calcium deficiency, etc. The risk of pregnancy and rearing a litter is far greater than the risk of anesthesia and spaying. |