Attitudes of Veterinary Teaching Staff and Exposure of Veterinary Students to Early-Age Desexing, with Review of Current Early-Age Desexing Literature

Animals : an Open Access Journal From MDPI
Alannah JupeSophie Fleming

Abstract

Approximately 50% of cats admitted to Australian shelters are kittens, and 26% of dogs are puppies, and, particularly for cats, euthanasia rates are often high. Cats can be pregnant by 4 months of age, yet the traditional desexing age is 5-6 months, and studies in Australasia and Nth America reveal that only a minority of veterinarians routinely perform early age desexing (EAD) of cats or dogs, suggesting they are not graduating with these skills. This study aimed to describe the attitudes of veterinary teaching staff in Australian and New Zealand universities towards EAD, and to determine if these changed from 2008 to 2015. It also aimed to identify students' practical exposure to EAD. Most (64%) of the 25 participants in 2015 did not advocate EAD in their teaching and, in their personal opinion, only 32% advocated it for cats. Concerns related to EAD cited by staff included anesthetic risk, orthopedic problems, hypoglycemia, and, in female dogs, urinary incontinence. Those who advocated EAD cited benefits of population control, ease of surgery and behavioral benefits. Only three of the eight universities provided a majority of students with an opportunity to gain exposure to EAD procedures before graduation, and in two of the...Continue Reading

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Citations

Apr 18, 2018·New Zealand Veterinary Journal·M C GatesR K Sawicki
Jul 6, 2018·Reproduction in Domestic Animals = Zuchthygiene·Orsolya BaloghIris M Reichler
Dec 24, 2018·Animals : an Open Access Journal From MDPI·Heather M Crawford, Michael C Calver
Jul 3, 2019·Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery·Anne-Claire GagnonEmilie Rosset
May 18, 2020·Animals : an Open Access Journal From MDPI·Mandy B A PatersonJohn M Morton
Mar 20, 2019·Frontiers in Veterinary Science·Jacquie RandKuan Tan
Dec 22, 2020·Frontiers in Veterinary Science·Erik Davis Fausak
Jan 20, 2021·Scientific Reports·Loic MazeauJulia A Beatty

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