Safe Sex for Pets

PETA stands for People For The Ethical Treatment of Animals. It has launched an interesting twist on the importance of spaying and neutering animals.

Would you encourage your teen to have lots of sex, popping out babies every nine months ? That's the question, Peta is now asking. When you think about it, what's the difference between humans overpopulating the planet with unwanted offspring and allowing our pets to have babies no one wants in the long run?

Peta is holding pet owners to the same standard expected of parents with teenagers and young people on the dating circuit. Is this laughable? Their new skit on the subject which you can see when you Google "PETA," might prompt a chuckle, but reality is hitting close to home on this one.Their new video is called ABC, featuring two parents encouraging their teenage daughter to have sex right away and often.It's a short though bittersweet satire asking an important question. If you wouldn't encourage your children to have unprotected sex why would you allow your dogs and cats to run around all over town, exposing themselves to the dangers? Realistically, unwanted cats and dogs are roaming the streets at alarming levels.

When animals aren't fixed, they breed and the result of sex in the animal community is over-population, the same as for humans.

I've got some experience in this department. My family assumed our dog wouldn't get pregnant, because she is "protected" by a fenced in yard. Wrong!

Lassie dug a hole to get to her and we wound up with four pups, only two of which we've managed to find homes for since their birth in October of 2007.

As soon as Midnight's babies were weaned, we got her fixed.

Now, we have kittens, because a street cat we took in got pregnant before we made it to the vet. Animals, like humans, will always find a way to get laid. It's just nature. Cats and dogs will hurry out the door in a blink of an eye, no different than a young person who simply doesn't know any better or who just doesn't take the time to think about the consequences.

Personally, I would never turn animals out to fend for themselves, but it's clear that a lot of people evict their pets. Life on the streets, increases the risk of FIV , the chances of contracting feline leukemia and stray dogs may be exposed to parvo. The answer is no more complicated than spaying and neutering our pets and refraining from an easy way out of pet ownership. When we own pets, it is no different than consenting to be parents. We are responsible for our animals just as we are responsible for the safety and well being of our children.