Curiously, no study yet has looked at differences in pet ownership by sex, but this may have a bearing on neutering practices. These findings confirm greater female empathy toward cats and illustrate as well a major but little recognized means of cat acquisition. Instead there is a tendency to see the difference in the frequency with which dog owners and cat owners make these complaints as further presumed proof that fewer cat owners really care about their animals. An alternative view is that the middle class background of many humane workers blinds them to the reality of multi-generational poverty. There simply aren't many ves in poor neighborhoods.
Poor people are less likely to own cars.
People who hold low-wage jobs are not only less able to afford neutering, but also less able to afford the loss of wages if they take time off work to get an animal neutered, and are easily replaced if they do take time off. These factors are more important for cat owners than dog owners because while neither dogs nor cats are allowed on most public transportation, one can walk a dog several miles to a neutering clinic if necessary. Residents of inner city Bridgeport, she found, were quite receptive to the idea of neutering both their own pets and local ferals. They willingly chipped in to help finance neutering, contributing far more than most residents of nearby upper middle income suburbs. However, the nearest veterinarian who performed low-cost neutering was nearly 10 miles away.