Behind new government decree that requires the sterilization and chipping of dogs and cats of both sexes and throughout the country there are numbers, prices, fines and also business opportunities. Spaying a dog can cost between $3,500 and $6,000 and chipping between $500 and $1,000. In the case of cats, sterilization can be cheaper.
The prices of these interventions vary by veterinarian, by species of animal (the sterilization of dogs is more expensive than that of cats) and also by sex. Sterilizing a male is cheaper than sterilizing a female because the surgical technique is different, explained representatives of Rivera Veterinary. In addition, the costs can change depending on whether the clients are members of the veterinarians or not, they added from Veterinaria Ellauri.
Coffee & Business carried out a survey with veterinarians in Montevideo and the doctors agree: Despite the fact that dogs and cats are required to be neutered and have an identification chip, there have been no mass inquiries. People are not castrating or chipping anymore.
The only exceptions to the sterilization of dogs is when the animal is kept for productive purposes (and in this case its owner must register as a breeder and have a company with postage to the General Directorate of Taxation and the Social Welfare Bank) or when there is a risk to the health of the animal when undergoing surgery.
Gastón Cossia, a veterinarian and former director of the National Institute for Animal Welfare (INBA), explained that the type of anesthesia used in the intervention will also determine its price. That choice (whether the anesthesia is intravenous or by inhalation) will depend, in part, on the age of the animal and also on the breed, for example, there are breeds of dogs that are “more delicate” from the point of respiratory safety.
Sterilizations done with inhalation anesthesia can cost as much as $7,000, he said. This anesthesia generates “less impact” because the drugs used are “more assimilated” by the animal’s metabolism, and awakening is faster, she explained.
fines
Yes ok there will be economic sanctions for those who do not comply with the normexplained to Café & Negocios Marcia del Campo, president of the INBA, the cost of them has not yet been defined.
The institute, which promotes the National Reproductive Control Program together with the Ministry of Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries (MGAP), has fines ranging from 1 to 500 Adjustable Units (from $1,579 to $789,500) to punish animal abuse or irresponsible possession. . In the face of complaints, the INBA studies minor, serious and very serious cases and, depending on what it is, implements the sanction.
Del Campo reported that the sanctions will depend on each case. It will be taken into account how many animals are in violation and if there is a situation of mistreatment or other determinants of irresponsible possession.
offer and business
In some cases, veterinarians see a problem in the application of the standard, since although it is required that animals be chipped, there are suppliers that do not have an offer. These devices that are implanted subcutaneously, through an injection, are imported, some from China and others from Brazil.
However, there are those who see that after the new regulations there may be business opportunities, since some firms have begun to offer the sale of chips.
The law requires that all dogs and cats have such a device, without exception.
As explained by Veterinaria Animals, many dog owners seek to chip their pets “based on a trip”since the identification is required for the animals to leave the country and also for those who travel in interdepartmental buses.
Since 2021, the Ministry of Transportation requires that those who travel with dogs on this public transport have the “canine certificate”; it is granted by the National Registry of Companion Animals (Renac), where animals that have a chip are registered.
From the Rivera Veterinary they added that clients also consult for chipping when they think that the device has GPS, although it does not. The chip is used to identify the animal, not to locate it. The chip data is recorded in the Renac by veterinarians.
The INBA president assured that the chip does not pose a risk to the animal’s health and that its placement is quite fast, “the animal doesn’t even know about it,” she said. Regarding sterilization, she maintained that it is advantageous for the health of both males and females because it prevents the appearance of tumors of the testicles, prostate, uterus or breasts.
