I know we sound like a broken record but here we go again: Please, spay and neuter your pets to help reduce the unwanted pet population. Shelters, animal rescues, animal proponents including politicians, community planners, and celebrities have been sharing this message for years and will continue to until unwanted animal populations drastically decline. Those numbers haven’t declined yet and, frankly, show no signs of doing so in 2023.

Shelters across the country, the Humane Society of the Black Hills included, have reached or have nearly reached capacity and this disturbing trend shows no signs of reversing. Generally, we think several things have happened in the past few years that have had a ripple effect on animal populations which has led to these numbers. One thing, of course, was the pandemic and a sharp increase in adoptions. The fallout from that was when many people returned to work and all of a sudden had an at-home pet issues; in addition, veterinarian supplies and access were limited during the pandemic so spay and neuter surgeries declined; community populations are increasing dramatically; and, finally, financial security is weighing on many people as the world economy cools.

Basically, there has been a multitude of things that have lead to increasing animal populations in shelters. What can we do? Well, keep on doing the work we do everyday and never get tired of reminding our friends and neighbors: Please, spay and neuter your pets to help reduce the unwanted pet population.