DEAR DR. FOX: I appreciated what you wrote in your column about the late Pope Francis. As a non-Catholic, I was amazed at how many hundreds of thousands of people from around the world came to his funeral. Please say more about his message and why so many people respected all that he stood for, especially caring for the poor and for immigrants. -- D.M.C., Cleveland, Ohio

DEAR D.M.C.: In his address to the joint Houses of Congress in 2015, Pope Francis called for “a culture of care to address poverty and protect nature.” In his encyclical “Laudato Si,” he spoke out against the “tyranny of anthropocentrism” -- human-centeredness. He was the embodiment of compassion, not just for the poor and for immigrants, but for all sentient beings and the environment. If we are to ever see world peace and save the last of the wild, we must enable all children to acquire such compassion.

This is detailed in the last chapter of my book "One Health," and is likely to face increasing opposition from the Trump administration. Politics without compassion is as dangerous as science and technology without ethics, and religion without ecumenicism.

One case in point is this April post from BecketFund.org:

“A coalition of Western Apaches, other Native peoples, and non-Native allies asked a federal court ... to stop the U.S. government from handing over their sacred site at Oak Flat to a multinational mining giant as early as June 16, 2025. In Apache Stronghold v. United States, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals last year refused to stop the federal government from transferring Oak Flat to Resolution Copper, a Chinese-owned mining company that plans to turn the site into a massive mining crater, ending Apache religious practices forever. ... The emergency appeal comes after the government announced last week it will forge ahead with the transfer even though the case is currently under consideration by the U.S. Supreme Court.

"Since time immemorial, Western Apaches and other Native peoples have gathered at Oak Flat, outside of present-day Superior, Arizona, for sacred religious ceremonies that cannot take place anywhere else. Known in Apache as Chi’chil Bildagoteel, Oak Flat is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and has been protected from mining and other harmful practices for decades.”

Only that which is sacred is secure. Civil society must take action to protect all that makes us human, and that keeps the Earth alive, from the tyranny of human-centered materialism. The late James Parks Morton, Dean of the Episcopal Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City, said, “Ecology is the science of the body of Christ through which we of the Earth community learn our sacred connections.”

I believe that the many crises we are facing today are a call to a spiritual awakening -- one that Christians might call the second coming, and Buddhists might call enlightenment. The conflicts within the male-dominated Vatican over birth control, homosexuality, and women’s rights and ordination can be resolved by the just and compassionate Christian, and by secular civil society embracing everyone -- in other words, equalitarianism! Just as prejudice creates division, so enmity creates enemies. But amity creates friendship, goodwill and peaceful relations.

The nature of life and the nature of love are enantiomorphic and multidimensional. As one life gives to another, so one life takes another, thus sustaining the delicate matrix of planetary existence: the harmonic balance of creation and destruction on which we all depend. Our industrial civilization is out of balance, which we must all address.

AUTHORS OF INFLUENTIAL CLIMATE REPORT FIRED

The almost-400 authors of a U.S. report that outlines how federal and local governments can best deal with the effects of climate change have been fired. The contributors to the sixth National Climate Assessment, a report mandated by Congress, received an email saying that the body was under review.

The next assessment was due to be published in 2028. Previous reports have shown the increasing costs of climate change to U.S. citizens -- in the forms of insurance premiums, food prices and medical fees. For details, see reuters.com/sustainability/cop/trump-administration-dismisses-all-authors-key-climate-report-email-says-2025-04-28.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)

DEAR READERS: In a recent committee hearing, House of Representatives bill 1897, which proposes amendments to the Endangered Species Act (ESA), was reviewed, alongside Rep. Lauren Boebert’s anti-wolf bill, H.R. 845. This coordinated effort underscores the relentless push by extremists to undermine environmental and conservation efforts.

Gray wolves and grizzly bears are being slaughtered by trophy hunters and cattle ranchers, while fragile natural habitats are being decimated by corporate-driven climate change and industrial exploitation. The ESA has been a vital lifeline of defense, shielding these helpless creatures from outside forces threatening their survival. Without it, thousands of vulnerable animals and plants would lose these critical safeguards.

President Trump has nominated Brian Nesvik, well-known for his extreme record on wildlife issues, to run the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the agency responsible for enforcing the ESA. Trump also revived the God Squad -- "a seldom-used committee" that can "approve federal projects even if (that approval) leads to the extinction of a species otherwise protected by the Endangered Species Act," according to the Associated Press. This committee would essentially have the power to override the ESA to prioritize destructive fossil fuel projects.

The worldview of Trump’s mammonist regime is to reduce everything to a monetary value, be it health care, medical research and other federal public services being cut by DOGE, or the profits from logging old-growth forests and mining federal lands. The environmental costs never factor into his calculus.

DEAR DR. FOX: On behalf of the American Veterinary One Health Society, we are pleased to make you a 2025 Honorary Diplomate awardee for your years of contributing to the advancement of One Health. -- John Poppe, Executive Director, American Veterinary One Health Society (avohsociety.org)

DEAR DR. POPPE: I feel honored to be a veterinarian and to receive this award. I am proud to belong to a profession that is advocating for One Health -- addressing animal rights, animal health, and animal and environmental protection -- and serving the common good and the good of the commons. My new book on the topic, “One Health: Veterinary, Ethical and Environmental Perspectives,” is now available.

I wish all veterinarians would join and support the American Veterinary One Health Society. The group is reaching out internationally to promote initiatives that provide hope in these difficult times to improve the health and well-being of millions of people and other species suffering from disease and environmental degradation.

Since childhood, I felt there was an urgent need to restore our existential responsibilities for animals, nature and each other. I was fortunate to win a scholarship to pay for my veterinary education in the U.K., subsequently earning doctoral degrees from the University of London.

I wish there were greater public and political recognition of the pivotal role of the veterinary profession in contributing to public health and to the economy, as well as improving the mental health of animal lovers and building support for animal caregivers and conservationists around the world. These tasks are crucial as we face the challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss, species extinction and emerging diseases of animal origin.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)

DEAR DR. FOX: I am writing to ask you for help. As you know, our pets are in an overpopulation crisis. I have been networking with others across California, and in other states, to try and rescue dogs before they are euthanized.

It is heartbreaking work trying to rescue these dogs, only to see that many cannot be saved due to overcrowded facilities. Boxes of puppies are being dumped at shelters, many with their moms -- whole litters being euthanized. Many shelters are at double or triple capacity and are turning away surrenders. Shelter workers and rescue volunteers have told me they have never seen anything like this before.

Still, it is worth the heartbreak and effort to get even one dog rescued and off to a foster home (and hopefully a forever family).

Growing up, I wanted to be a veterinarian just to spay and neuter dogs and cats. It was evident even then, in the 1970s and '80s, that there were too many pets and not enough people to give them a home. I became a biology teacher instead and just retired after 34 years. Now, I need to help.

I saw the article you wrote several months ago about some kind of sterilization vaccine, and was so thrilled that there may be an easier, more cost-effective way to sterilize pets. Is there any more word on this drug? Has it been approved in the U.S.? I am wanting to take this to a higher level for legislation in California and other states.

Any ideas or information you can give me would be helpful. -- K.V., Santa Rosa, California

DEAR K.V.: I appreciate your concerns about pet overpopulation in many parts of the U.S. This is a human problem of irresponsible pet ownership. In many communities, dogs are not neutered and are allowed to roam free and breed. Some owners feel their animals should enjoy a “natural” life and that their children should witness the miracle of puppies being born, or they impulsively adopt or purchase a pup but never have the animal neutered.

Every municipality, for reasons of animal and public health and environmental protection, should have ordinances prohibiting owned cats and dogs from roaming off-property. Ideally, all pets should have ID microchips implanted, and police or animal welfare staff should monitor communities to catch and impound any free-roaming animals.

As for the vaccine: A veterinarian and professor at the University of Chile named Leonardo Saenz has developed Egalitte, described as "an immunocontraceptive for male and female dogs, given via subcutaneous injection." It is said to work by interfering with certain reproductive hormones, and is also supposed to be reversible. It is currently only approved for use in Chile, though it is patented in 40 countries. (For details, see acc-d.org/egalitte.)

If it works as described, such a product would be a blessing for free-roaming street dogs in communities around the world, and for our overcrowded shelters here. There is also an implant for male dogs approved in the U.S., which I mention below.

DOG NEUTERING UPDATES FROM BVA

Here are some updates on the subject of neutering dogs, paraphrased from those recently published in the British Veterinary Association’s Veterinary Record.

For female dogs with responsible owners, not neutering is preferable to removing the ovaries, the uterus or both, and also preferable to giving a birth-control implant to block GnRH (gonadotrophin-releasing hormone).

For male dogs with responsible owners, not neutering is preferable to castration, vasectomy, intratesticular injection of zinc gluconate, or a GnRH-blocking implant. An example of the latter is Suprelorin, a GnRH-agonist subcutaneous implant for male dogs. It releases a slow, continuous dose of a synthetic hormone that temporarily suppresses the reproductive system.

The health benefits of not neutering male dogs outweigh the potential adverse health consequences of neutering. Not castrating giant breeds like Great Danes and Irish wolfhounds may help prevent bone cancer, a common affliction in such dogs. Neutering dogs, especially at an early age, is linked to metabolic and endocrine disorders such as Cushing’s disease. (For more from the BVA, visit bva.co.uk.)

I believe that the issue of mammary cancer should still be considered, since the incidence is reduced in dogs spayed before or shortly after their first heat. "Mammary tumors in female dogs account for 42% of all diagnosed tumors, with a lifetime risk of 23-34%," per the Veterinary Society of Surgical Oncology (see vet.cornell.edu/departments-centers-and-institutes/riney-canine-health-center/canine-health-information/mammary-cancer). Allowing the first heat cycle may be wise, since earlier neutering may interfere with skeletal development, increasing the probability of osteoarthritis and cruciate ligament rupture later in life.

On the subject, Massachusetts veterinarian Dr. Margo Roman writes: "I do vasectomies and ovary-sparing spays unless there are real behavior changes during the heat cycle. Let them mature and go through one or two heat cycles so that you know if they are going to have a problem. If a male dog has become more aggressive, and training is not as successful, then neutering may cut down on some of the hormonal surges and possibly reduce hormonal intensity."

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)