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South Australia's new pet desexing laws may put 'puppies at risk'; dog attacks on the rise

By Rebecca Opie
Puppies may be at risk under desexing law changes

Vets fear puppies undergoing desexing operations may be exposed to greater infection risks due to their age.


The health of newborn puppies could be put at risk under South Australia's proposed compulsory desexing laws, according to the Australian Veterinary Association (AVA).

The South Australian Government is introducing legislation making it compulsory for dogs and cats to be neutered at point of sale.

The change originated after a citizen's jury found more needed to be done to reduce the number of animals being euthanased every year.

In South Australia puppies can be legally sold from seven weeks of age.

President of the AVA's South Australian division, Dr Anne Fowler said while she supported the desexing of pets, neutering neonatal puppies could be problematic.

"We are concerned about these very young animals going through a surgery and the risk of infection at such a young age," she said.

"The risk comes around how neonatal animals cope with anaesthesia, particular attention needs to be given to accurate dosing of drugs."

I feel that may have meant getting the best outcome was sometimes hampered by either too much information or not enough information and not enough emphasis.
Dr Anne Fowler

Ms Fowler said dogs and cats should not be grouped together under the legislation.

"We think young cats can, and possibly, should be desexed before they become mums from as early as four months of age," she said.

"But the thought of insisting that the owner of a large breed dog such as a labrador or a great dane must be neutering that puppy essentially from six weeks of age, we feel that isn't addressing the welfare needs of that dog."

Most veterinarians in South Australia currently recommend for dogs to be desexed before six months of age.

Ms Fowler said performing the operation at four or five months of age was much safer.

"When to desex is something that really is a decision between the client and the veterinarian and it's based upon the breed, [and] the risks that might actually occur around that procedure," she said.

Once the changes are introduced, Ms Fowler said some vets may refuse to perform the operation if they felt the puppy was too young.

"This legislation gives us the opportunity to essentially write a statuary declaration that states that this animal shouldn't be desexed," she said.

Ms Fowler said the AVA supported the State Government's intentions to reduce the number of pets being euthanased but felt it had failed to develop legislation which maximises animal welfare outcomes.

"The citizen's jury had a very challenging job of coming up with a raft of recommendations in a very short period of time," she said.


She said the AVA would continue to lobby for the law to separate the ages for dogs and cats.

Desexing to combat rising dog attacks: Environment Minister

New figures show a rise in the number of people hospitalised for dog attacks in SA.

In the past financial year some 299 people were admitted to hospital for severe attacks, an increase of more than 100 on figures four years ago.

Environment Minister Ian Hunter said 1,347 dog attacks were reported to councils last financial year.

Some 479 were attacks on people while 868 were attacks on other animals.

There were 29 more attacks on humans resulting in hospital treatment in 2014-15 than the previous financial year.

"It's a small increase but unfortunately the number of attacks that are leading to hospital admission is on the rise," Mr Hunter said.

"It's another very strong case for mandatory desexing of animals.

Mr Hunter said the majority of dog attacks that led to death were linked to dogs that had not been desexed.

He said 56 children under the age of nine were among those hospitalised with dog bites in 2014-15.

"We know many of the attacks are on younger children because they haven't learnt proper behaviour around dogs," Mr Hunter said.

"Mandatory desexing will we hope decrease the number of attacks and certainly make dogs less aggressive."

SA Health chief medical officer Paddy Phillips said mandatory desexing could reduce dog bites by up to 40 per cent, a figure he said was based on experiences interstate and overseas.

"Desexing dogs is known to be an important modifiable risk factor for dog attacks as it usually makes dogs less aggressive and less likely to attack," Mr Phillips said.

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