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It's little surprise that Aussies love their pets - after all, we have one of the highest rates of pet ownership in the world. But unfortunately, it's not all sunshine and rainbows.
Each year, more than 250,000 healthy cats or dogs are euthanised in shelters because there are not enough homes for them. This is why it's extremely important to get your pet desexed. This guide highlights the reasons why you should desex your pet, the costs involved, and how pet insurance could help you.
Australia is a nation of dog and cat lovers, but in a country with one of the highest pet ownership rates in the world, it’s alarming to see that animal shelters are overwhelmed with thousands of unwanted cats and dogs. Each year, huge numbers of unwanted puppies and kittens are dumped, surrendered to animal shelters and destroyed.
About 250,000 dogs and cats are euthanised every year in Australia because there aren’t enough homes for them. Unwanted pets that are dumped suffer terrible lives of starvation, disease and abuse, without shelter or love.
Having your dog or cat desexed means your pet won’t add to this number and you will be doing your part as a responsible pet owner by reducing the number of unwanted puppies and kittens.
Every dog and cat owner is responsible for desexing their pet. Desexing a dog or a cat (also known as spaying in females and neutering in males) is a quick operation performed under general anaesthetic. It will only take a few days for your pet to recover and return to their normal energetic selves.
As well as reducing the enormous number of healthy and loving, but unwanted, dogs and cats that are euthanised each year, desexing also has benefits for each individual animal, improving their behaviour and their health and extending their lifespan.
In the greater scheme of your pet’s life, the cost of desexing is small. Owners of undesexed pets can be hit with high vet bills if their animal gets injured while out roaming or has complications during pregnancy and birth. Taking an undesexed dog out for a walk or to a dog park can be stressful and embarrassing if your dog is aggressive or tries to mount other dogs.
If you’re planning on going on holiday, many kennels and catteries refuse to take undesexed dogs and cats, while others charge more to do so. And local councils charge more – over four times as much – to register an undesexed animal.
A desexed dog or cat:
Having your dog desexed will cost between $200 and $500, depending on the size, age and sex of the dog, according to the RSPCA. As with cats, many councils will charge much more to register an undesexed dog. The difference can be more than four times the cost of registering a desexed dog.
It costs around $115 to have a male cat desexed and around $300 to have a female cat desexed, according to the RSPCA.
Note that many councils will charge more to register an undesexed cat. The registration costs could be as much as four times the cost of registering a desexed cat.
Some pet insurance policies have additional options to help cover the cost of desexing your dog or cat.
Australia Post Pet Insurance offers an optional benefit that contributes to the cost of desexing. Under the Bronze, Silver and Gold Pet Insurance policies, the $200 optional wellbeing benefit includes $120 towards the cost of desexing or other procedures each year. The other procedures covered include heartworm control, dewclaw removal, prescription diets and microchipping.
Bow Wow Meow Pet Insurance has an optional Routine Care Wellness benefit. This option gives you a $50 annual benefit, which can go towards the cost of desexing. It can also go towards other procedures such as microchipping, teeth cleaning, council registration, heartworm medication or burial/cremation.
Woolworths Pet Insurance gives you the option of choosing Comprehensive Cover, which provides $50 towards the cost of desexing. The $50 annual limit can alternatively be used towards other procedures such as microchipping, dental treatment, dewclaw removal, council registration or obedience training.
In July every year, vet clinics in Australia reduce their desexing fees in an effort to encourage more pet owners to bring their pets in for the procedure. The National Desexing Network (NDN) is a charity that aims to end pet overpopulation by making it more affordable for pet owners in financial need to have their animals desexed.
The NDN keeps a list of veterinarians on its website, so that in July each year you can find the nearest vet clinic that offers a discount on desexing. The registered veterinarians who participate in the NDN program don’t get any extra funding. They choose to reduce their fees out of their own concern for animal welfare.
If you are genuinely struggling financially and can’t afford the cost of desexing, you can apply to the NDN at any time of the year to get help finding a vet who will desex your pet for less. Please note that year-round fee reduction is only available to pet owners who genuinely need it.
There are a lot of myths about desexing that have been in circulation for many years now and that you might still hear from time to time. Here are some of the myths and why they’re not true:
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I would like to find out an estimated cost of how much it would cost me to get my 1 year old kitten desexed and micro chipped please?
Hey Krystel,
Thanks for your inquiry! According to our page, it costs around $115 to have a male cat desexed and around $300 to have a female cat desexed, according to the RSPCA. Note that many councils will charge more to register an undesexed cat. The registration costs could be as much as four times the cost of registering a desexed cat.
In July every year, vet clinics in Australia reduce their desexing fees to encourage more pet owners to do this procedure. The National Desexing Network (NDN) is a charity that aims to end pet overpopulation by making it more affordable for pet owners in financial need to have their animals desexed. You can visit the NBN website to see where the nearest vet clinic is that offers this service. Please note that year-round fee reduction is only available to pet owners who genuinely need it.
Regarding microchipping, we don’t have information on this yet but one way to prevent paying for microchipping your cat is to get pet insurance. Insurers like Australian Pet Insurance covers desexing and microchipping.
Hope this was helpful. Don’t hesitate to message us back if you have more questions.
With care,
Nikki