This time last year, News Alert introduced readers to a special Pit Bull spay/neuter initiative called Operation Pit, a program designed to address the fact that Pit Bulls make up a vast majority of dogs in city shelters. We put our best veterinary troops on the mission, looked for a few good pups and, in its first year in action, Operation Pit serviced 583 canine recruits!
"I am very pleased by the success that we’ve had thus far," says Dr. Louise Murray, ASPCA Vice President of Bergh Memorial Animal Hospital in New York City, who created the program.
Operation Pit, not limited by income or address, offers Pit Bulls and Pit mixes (between three months and six years of age) a free physical exam and free spay, neuter, or vasectomy surgery, along with free Distemper/Parvovirus vaccinations and a microchip. In keeping with the theme, each dog also leaves with a camouflage bandana and “Honorable Discharge” papers for participating.
Before Operation Pit, Dr. Murray noticed that Pit Bulls—whose litters are larger than most other dogs’—represented a very small percentage of pets brought to the ASPCA for routine spay/neuter. That’s why she decided to create a spay/neuter program just for Pit Bulls and their pet parents.
Dr. Murray knew that one of the most effective ways to address the discrepancy was free spay/neuter services, but she also knew it would take more than free services to get some reluctant Pit parents in the door. She needed a creative idea to make spay/neuter more appealing, and she found inspiration with her husband’s co-workers.
“My husband, a captain in the FDNY, works with a lot of guys who aren’t exactly excited to see their dogs ‘emasculated,’” says Murray. “I wanted to present spaying and neutering in a way that wouldn’t be such a turn-off—and the guys gave me two thumbs up on the military-themed approach.”
The approach seems to be working--Operation Pit is on track to serve even more Pits in the year to come. For more information on spay/neuter in your area, visit our handy low-cost spay/neuter database!
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