If the spay/neuter efforts are successful, is there a risk of creating a shortage of puppies and kittens?
A. Utah shelters handled more than 85,000 homeless animals in 1999, of which nearly 46,000 were euthanized. Though this number has been greatly reduced, many kittens and puppies are still euthanized annually in Utah. When No More Homeless Pets in Utah reaches its goal of finding homes for all the homeless animals in the state, while simultaneously slowing the birth rate, there will be animals in other states needing help. Approximately 5 million cats and dogs are killed in the U.S. annually. If our efforts resulted in a shortage of available animals in Utah, we could then look at importing homeless animals from those states still struggling with pet overpopulation.
