Wednesday, February 29, 2012

War Against Women Call For Action

Much has been said lately about the rights of women in regard to choice, birth control, health care, and reproductive rights, especially where the right to an abortion is concerned.  This has become a really BIG FUCKING DEAL. There is a large contingent of humanity that believes women should be relegated to not having sex, not having birth control, and not have health care where those two factors are concerned. This really disturbs me, primarily because it fails to take into consideration proper medical basic health care for women. Do whatever you want, but reproductive issues are a huge part of what makes and keeps women healthy. Having insurance coverage for that is imperative to a woman's health.

Then, I got to thinking about what would be an imperative call to action for men's health. Then, I remember a pamphlet I read while waiting at a vet's office. Then, I found that pamphlet. Then, I rewrote it to be relevant to men's healthcare today:

WHY MALES SHOULD BE NEUTERED

The overpopulation and the dumping of unwanted infants and children in the welfare system is an all-too-common side effect of irresponsible sex. Every year, thousands of unwanted infants and older children are dumped on the welfare system (where they ultimately end up dying from neglect or finding their way into prostitution or shelters). Many of these children do not ever get adopted. This sad waste of healthy life can be reduced by not letting people breed indiscriminately and one way of preventing any accidental, unwanted breeding from occurring is through the routine neutering of all non-stud (non-breeder) males. By having companion males neutered, they are unable to go out and mate with feral or stray bitches and get them pregnant. This results in fewer babies being born which, in return, benefits not just those unwanted children (who lead a tough neglected life), but also society in general. Human breeding is not merely the production of children, it is the transferal of genes and genetic traits from one generation to the next. Responsible adults should desex males that have conformational, colouring and temperamental traits, which are unfavourable or faulty to the breed as a whole in order to reduce the spread of these defects further down the generations. Males with heritable genetic diseases and congenital defects/deformities should also be desexed to reduce the spread of these genetic diseases to their offspring.


The prevention or reduction of testicular (and epididymal) diseases:
It is difficult to contract a testicular disease if you have no testicles. Early neutering prevents men from contracting a range diseases and disorders including: testicular cancer, epididymal cancer, orchitis (testicular inflammation), epididymitis, testicular torsion, testicular abscessation and testicular trauma.

The prevention or reduction of testosterone-induced diseases:


Males can suffer from a range of diseases and medical conditions that are directly associated with high blood testosterone levels. These disease conditions include:benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH), prostatitis, prostatic abscess, perianal or perineal adenomas (small cancers that occur around the anus of males), perineal hernias and certain castration-responsive skin disorders (dermatoses). Desexing removes the main source of testosterone in the male's body (the testes), which not only prevents the onset of these diseases but can even help to control or cure these diseases if they are already present.

The prevention or reduction of testosterone-mediated behavioural problems:

The testicles are responsible for producing testosterone: the hormone that makes male animals look and act like male animals. It is the testicles that make male animals exhibit the kinds of "male" testosterone-dependent behaviors normally attributed to an entire animal. Males are likely to be more aggressive and more dominant and more prone to male-to-male aggression (inter-male aggression) than neutered animals: i.e. they act like bossy entire males. They will tend to exhibit sexualised behaviours including: aroused interest in females of their own species; mounting of females (particularly in-heat, estrus females); mating of females; mounting and humping of inanimate objects (including toys, chair-legs and human legs) and complete erection of the penis when excited. They are more prone to displaying often unwanted masculine territorial behaviours such as the guarding of resources (food, bones, territory, companion people and pets and so on) and the marking of territory with urine and feces. Additionally, entire male animals are more likely than neutered animals are to leave their yards and roam the countryside looking for females and trouble. Roaming is a troublesome habit because it puts other animals (wildlife, livestock and other pets) and humans at risk of harm and it puts the roaming male at risk from all manner of dangers including motor vehicle strikes. The neutering of entire animals can reduce some of these problematic testosterone-mediated behaviours. 

The disadvantages of desexing  - why some people choose not to neuter.

The male may become overweight or obese:

Studies have shown that neutered males probably require around 25% fewer calories to maintain a healthy bodyweight than entire male animals do. This is because a neutered animal has a lower metabolic rate than an entire animal does (it therefore needs fewer calories to maintain its bodyweight, Consequently, the myth of automatic post-desexing obesity has become perpetuated and, as a result, many owners simply will not consider desexing their males because of the fear of them gaining weight and developing weight-related problems (e.g. diabetes).

 The fact of the matter is that dogs will not become obese simply because they have been desexed. They will only become obese if the post-neutering drop in their metabolic rate is not taken into account and they are fed the same amount of food calories as an entire animal. 

Those of you who care about your finances might even be able to see the benefits of desexing here. A neutered dog potentially costs less to feed than an entire animal of the same weight and, therefore, neutering your animal may well save you money in the long run. 

Desexing equates to a loss of breeding potential and valuable genetics:

There is no denying this. If a male is the 'last of its line' the choice to desex that male means he will not pass on valuable genetics and it will essentially spell the end for that lineage. Of all the reasons given here that argue against the desexing of males, this is probably the only one that has any real merit. Desexing does equate to a loss of breeding potential. In an era where many unscrupulous breeders ("backyard breeders" we call them) will breed any low-quality male regardless of breed traits and temperament just to collect child support, the good genes for soundness, and good temperament are needed more than ever. Desexing a male with good characteristics, good temperament and no genetically heritable defects/diseases will count as a loss for that males quality in general, particularly if there are a lot of subquality studs saturating the breeding circles. 

Loss of testosterone as a result of desexing may result in immature development of masculine characteristics and a reduced body musculature:

The testicles are responsible for producing testosterone: the hormone that makes male animals look and act like male animals. It is the testicles that make male animals develop the kinds of masculine, testosterone-dependent body characteristics normally attributed to an entire animal. These include: increased muscle size and development; reduced body fat; mature penis development; mature prepuce development (mature penis sheath development); the ability to extrude the penis from the sheath (prepuce) and the suppression of development of feminine characteristics (mammary gland development, milk production etc.). Desexing, particularly early age desexing, may limit the development of mature masculine features such that they remain immature and juvenile looking and cause the neutered male to have a reduced muscle mass and strength compared to an entire animal of the same size and breeding. 


So, as you can see, like our dogs, if we aren't interested in actually reproducing with the males in our lives, THEY are better off and healthier if we just whack off their balls now.  So, ladies, write your legislators and send them a copy of this decisive research and demand NOW that all non-breadable males be neutered immediately.