John McEnroe ‘Raises a Racket’ in New Spay-and-Neuter Advertisement

He’s an international celebrity who has penned a book, and he hosts his own CNBC talk show, plays a rockin’ guitar with the best of them and calls The Pretenders’ Chrissie Hynde one of his closest friends. He’s a legend who has been called passionate, intense and competitive.

Best known for his grace on the tennis court, John McEnroe has more than 150 singles and doubles titles under his belt. His achievements include seven Grand Slam singles titles — three at Wimbledon and four at the US Open — as well as 10 Grand Slam doubles championships. Whew! But what you may not know about John McEnroe is that he’s also a champ for animals.

Animal Overpopulation Is Out of Bounds

Love may mean nothing in tennis, but off the courts, McEnroe’s love for animals means a lot to him. Recently, McEnroe, who has a mixed-breed pooch named Lulu, took time out from tennis to promote spaying and neutering in a new advertisement for PETA. In the light-hearted advertisement, McEnroe is a good sport as he pokes fun at himself by unleashing one of his trademark tirades that is sure to raise a smile and raise awareness about animal overpopulation.

Why are McEnroe and PETA so fixated on getting animals fixed? One unspayed female cat can give birth to 36 cats in just one and a half years, and an unneutered male can help create limitless litters of kittens. Every year, millions of unwanted dogs and cats are dumped at overcrowded animal shelters, where most are put to death. The less fortunate ones will be released to fend for themselves in all extremes of weather, lose battles with traffic and disease, have no constant food source and perhaps be stolen by laboratory dealers or be used as bait by dogfighters. Simple surgery (spaying for females, neutering for males) is the solution.

Help improve the lives of dogs and cats who are suffering from cruelty and neglect by supporting PETA’s work for companion animals.