- 6-8 million dogs & cats enter shelters yearly
- 3-4 millions dogs & cats are euthanized at shelters yearly
- 25% of dogs in shelters are purebreds
- Average number of litters a fertile cat can produce yearly: 3
- Average number of kittens per litter: 4-6
- In seven years, one female cat and her offspring can theoretically produce 420,000 cats.
- Average number of litters a fertile dog can produce yearly: 2
- Average number of puppies per litter: 6-10
- In six years, one female dog and her offspring can theoretically produce 67,000 dogs.
- 45 cats and 15 dogs are born for every 1 human being in the United States.
- More than 70,000 puppies and kittens are born every day, compared with 10,000 human births each day in the United States.
Spay/Neuter surgeries are performed at low-cost veterinary clinics throughout Contra Costa County. Each animal that is funded through CCHS’s SNAP program costs CCHS an average of $52.00*.
* This is an average cost and takes into account both spays and neuters for cats and dogs. CCHS does not operate a veterinary clinic and does not perform these surgeries. This is the average cost reimbursed to local, affordable veterinary hospitals with which CCHS’s SNAP program works.