80,399,780.

Number of weeds in the garden?

Latest price per gallon of gasoline?

Number of doggie treats you’ve dispensed in your lifetime?

Well, maybe. But try this on: 80,399,780 is actually the total number of felines that one unspayed female cat and one unneutered male and all of their offspring can produce in 10 years’ time.

Astonishing. Can you imagine keeping all those letter boxes clean?

The magic that computes these statistics goes far beyond my mathematical prowess, but I know the numbers prove a point: Two unfixed animals of the opposite sex with a little free time on their paws constitute a force to be reckoned with.

That’s why the Lawrence Humane Society advocates spaying and neutering.

It’s not that we have anything against kittens or puppies. They’re charming, they’re cuddly, they’re loyal and devoted, and that baby playfulness and wonder about all things new can captivate us for hours.

But the world just doesn’t need that many domestic pets because, unfortunately, there aren’t enough loving homes for all of them.

More unfortunately, this overabundance of pets often means they end up on the streets, and that isn’t a healthy situation for them or us. Left to their own devices, stray animals can annoy or frighten children or joggers, make messes, dig and cause accidents. They don’t mean to be trouble, but, after all, they’re animals. They’re doing what nature intended.

Among the things they’re intended to do is reproduce.

For domesticated dogs and cats, life is better when humans are in control and can provide a good living situation for them. Spaying and neutering makes for happier, better-behaved pets who enjoy a decreased risk of certain types of cancers. They likely will live longer since they lose their desire to roam, become less aggressive and mark their territories less.

According to the American Veterinary Medical Assn., animals who are “fixed” ultimately cost communities less money, because “The capture, impoundment and eventual destruction of unwanted animals cost taxpayers and private humanitarian agencies over a billion dollars each year.”

And the cost of spaying/neutering to owners? The price of the surgery varies among veterinarians, but in the end it’s always worth the money. Sometimes the price of spaying or neutering a pet might create a budget strain; the Lawrence Humane Society offers financial assistance to individuals who otherwise could not afford to spay or neuter a pet.

Baby animals are without a doubt a joy and a delight, but if you’re looking for a new pet, you can receive the same devotion and loyalty from an adult animal who may have been waiting – sometimes as long as a year – for a real home. In June, the Lawrence Humane Society took in 292 dogs, in addition to the 185 already housed there, and an astounding 345 new cats (our highest number ever), for a total of 631 in our care.

Please help us lower those numbers by having your pets spayed or neutered.

Mark your calendars! Be sure to stop by the Lawrence Humane Society’s booth Thursday at the annual downtown Lawrence sidewalk sale on Massachusetts Street. Come visit us on July 30 for the “Black Dogs and Blackberries” event at the Lawson Brothers berry farm, one and a half miles east of Vinland on Douglas County Road 460. If Fido needs a bath, the Lawrence Humane Society is sponsoring a dog wash from noon until 4 p.m. Aug. 6, at Petco, 3115 Iowa. Volunteer orientation is still held at the shelter at 4:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. the first Thursday of each month. And this year’s annual Pawsible Dream auction is scheduled for Sept. 30.