Sorry for the crosspost, but this question comes up in so many lists I'm on,
I had to respond. The issue is someone with a new chihuahua asking, "Well,
shouldn't I 'let' her have just one litter before I have her spayed?"
Everybody immediately jumps in with the veterinary viewpoint -- pyometra,
mammary tumors, emergency c-sections -- or the rescue viewpoint of discarded
dogs being euthanized. But I'm going to do something a little different and
just give the common-sense, layman's standpoint.
Look at a female in heat. They're uncomfortable. You can see it. They
lick themselves constantly. They whimper. They are not having a good time.
Look at a heavily pregnant female dog. They are *miserable*, carrying
around that weight while the puppies suck up all the nutrition they take in.
Their nipples are swollen and painful. They can't get comfortable. They
can't run and play as they did. Any woman who's been heavily pregnant can
talk about just how much Mama Dog is enjoying this.
Look at a dog in labor. It's not pretty. Tell me this dog is enjoying
pushing multiple puppies out of her body over the course of hours with no
pain control. Even assuming everything goes perfectly, it's painful,
exhausting and miserable -- and then the dog has to take care of all those
puppies when she's drained and exhausted. Does any mother believe the dog
had a good time?
Then, after the dog has gone through this ordeal, a few weeks later the pups
she loves are taken from her and she probably never sees them again. And if
the owner keeps their word and it's "just one litter," the dog still has the
spay to go through. The alternative being MORE uncomfortable heats and
pregnancies and painful labors and lost puppies.
I'm curious as to exactly what benefit people think Mama Dog is supposed to
get out of this experience. I'm not going to bother with the medical
arguments or the ethical arguments or the genetic arguments or the rescue
arguments, you'll get plenty of that. What I don't see nearly enough of is
the plain old common-sense argument.
Yes, I agree, it's not the same as the human experience of motherhood. It's
a heck of a lot worse. Humans get pain control, medical assistance, and
nurses to help with the baby. Humans get to KEEP the babies they went
through all that for.
So who exactly is it who gets any good out of "just one litter"?
Anne
" Lets talk about our wonderful little friends!
Join today! "
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Chihuahuas/
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
