Pet owners urged to spay cats and dogs to help prevent mammary cancer

Breast cancer! It’s not just for humans. In fact, many mammals have the potential to develop breast or mammary cancer, from humans to cats and dogs all the way down to small rodents like rats!

Now when it comes to dogs and cats, here are the statistics. One in four unspayed female dogs will develop mammary tumors and roughly half of those will be cancerous! In cats, the development of mammary tumors is less common than in dogs, however, over 80% of the tumors in cats will be cancerous!

So, what steps can you take as a pet owner? The single best method of prevention is spaying female dogs and cats.

In cats this generally means before they reach 1 year of age and in dogs, before their first heat cycle. So, talk to your vet about what the best time to spay your female pet!