a) Clare Palmer, Sandra Corr and Peter Sandøe conclude, in their 2012 paper 'Inconvenient Desires: Should We Routinely Neuter Companion Animals?' that, no, we probably shouldn’t (Palmer, Corr & Sandøe, 2012); I seek to argue against that position. Using analytic philosophy supplemented by vignettes from fieldwork conducted in Romania (a country with a strong cultural resistance to the concept of neutering) concerned with assessing the impacts of different approaches to stray dog management, I review and respond to the different arguments presented by Palmer, Corr and Sandøe.
b) Palmer, C., Corr, S. and Sandøe, P., 2012. Inconvenient Desires: Should we routinely neuter companion animals?. Anthrozoös, 25(sup1), pp.s153-s172.
c) The argument is divided into three parts. First, (A) there is a risk, however small, that secure, domestic animals who do not normally possess the freedom to copulate will nevertheless do so. Secondly, (B) there is an issue of international responsibility in achieving a reduction in global overpopulation; Thirdly, (C) there is a concern about the price, in reduced autonomy and flourishing, paid to gain this low risk of reproduction. Ultimately, though sterilisation does pose some health risks (particularly to male dogs), these risks must be weighed against the terrible suffering which results from unwanted animals and the costs of achieving low levels of reproduction in a fertile population.
d) The routine neutering of companion animals, and male animals in particular, is essential to ensuring the welfare of companion animal populations overall. In cultural contexts such as Romania where neutering is stigmatised and viewed negatively by many officials as well as members of the general population, neutering campaigns tend to be run on a piecemeal, localised basis by international NGOs. External efforts might best be directed at veterinary bodies and local as well as national governments to demonstrate the welfare as well as cost benefits of neutering in a bid to achieve and enforce nation-wide campaigns.