Desexing Your Pets

The first reason to desex your pet is to stop uncontrolled breeding and unwanted litters.

It is not just your female pets who should be desexed, it is also the males. Hundreds of unwanted, abandoned and stray dogs are euthanased each year, simply because homes cannot be found.

Dogs start their reproductive lives at a young age and throughout their lives can potentially deliver many litters of offspring if not desexed.

Responsible pet ownership means getting your pet desexed as early as possible.

If, due to financial circumstances, you can't afford to have your pet desexed, there are a number of animal welfare groups who will assist with the payment.

In addition to preventing unwanted litters, desexing may result, in varying degrees, to a positive behavioural change in your pet. For example, your male dog will be less likely to

• get into fights thereby reducing such things as abscesses and pain for your pet and costly vet bills for you

• suffer from anti-social behaviour

• spray and mark its territory        

Make your life better for your pet.  If it is not already desexed, make an appointment to see your vet today.

What to do if your dog goes missing

• Phone your local council.  They can tell you the pound that your dog would go to if it was picked up by a Council Ranger.

• Phone the Pound that is connected with your local Council area.

• Phone the local Vets in case someone has picked up your dog and taken it there. If your dog is microchipped, the Pound or Vet can scan it and contact you.

• Make “LOST DOG” posters and put them up in the local area and make sure you include a photo of your dog.

• Do a letterbox drop.

Update your information

When you purchase a dog you complete a form and these details are then put into a statewide database, called the Companion Animal Register, against your dog’s microchip number. Keep a copy of your dog’s microchip form so that if you need to update your contact details all you need to do is phone your local Council. You should receive a letter within a few weeks from the Companion Animal Register confirming your dog’s updated microchipping details.

We often get dogs into Sydney Dogs & Cats Home who are microchipped but we cannot find their owners because they have moved and haven’t changed their details on the microchip register. This is why it is important to remember to have your dog's microchip details updated if you move house.

Information for new owners of pound dogs

• Have everything prepared and set up at home and decide on your own house rules.

• Let the dog explore its new surroundings.

• Walk your dog through the house (if it is to be an inside dog).

• If it is an inside dog then let it settle in a quiet room so it can relax and become accustomed to its new surroundings.

• Start training immediately for food and walks.  Be gentle but forceful so they know what you mean.

• Take the dog outside prior to bedtime (for an inside dog) to encourage house training.

• Spend time praising your dog for whatever it has achieved.

• Spend limited time away from your dog so that it can get used to being without you. Gradually increase the time away over a few days.

• Minimise contact with children so that neither children nor dogs are intimidated nor overwhelmed. Introduce children gradually.

Adopt a dog for life

When you adopt a dog you are making a lifetime commitment to love and care for it. Lifetime could be anything up to 20 years. Choose your new best friend carefully and be a responsible pet owner. In no time at all you'll find out how wonderful it is to share your home with a dog or two.

When you adopt a dog from Sydney Dogs & Cats Home you are saving a life and we thank you for giving them the second chance they so deserve. 

We must point out that we get little or no history about our dogs and remind you that when you take an adopted pet home particularly in the case of adult pets, you will need to give your pet time to settle in.  Please don’t hesitate to contact us should you be concerned about your new pet and we will be happy to advise and help if we can. Your understanding and patience will help your dog recover from the traumatic interruption it has experienced in its life.

How will the pound know if the dog belongs to me?

If your dog is taken to a Pound or a Vet they will only know that it belongs to you if it is microchipped. If your dog was born after 1 July 2000, microchipping is compulsory. It is highly recommended that any dogs you own who were born prior to that date are also microchipped.

The microchip is a small chip the size of a grain of rice that is inserted under the skin on the back of the dog’s neck. This chip does not contain the dog’s details but rather a long sequence of numbers. Only a special scanner can pick up this number and these scanners are available at Vets, Shelters and Pounds. It is the law that ALL dogs be microchipped before they are sold or given away.

Microchipping costs from $50 to $70. After the dog has been chipped, you need to take the paperwork you are given to your local Council and pay a lifetime registration fee. This is $40 if your dog is desexed and $150 if the dog is not desexed.

When you buy a dog from Sydney Dogs & Cats Home this charge of $40 is included in the cost and we take care of all the paperwork for you, saving you a trip to your Council.