should I wait or neuter him now?
Well when we saw the breeders last weekend and I mentioned that they said that they would just get him fixed now if we were planning on neutering. That way it would stop any bad behaviors before they got started. So.....any thoughts on either one of those ideas? (Oh and his Auntie won best in breed at the show on Saturday which was pretty neat) |
|
|
| Hi,
Given the choice I'd have my boys neutered at aprox six months. I've had the pleasure of living with 7 dogs and all had it done within that time frame with the exception of Merlin. Merlin was purchased as a show pup although very beautiful and with a ton of CH in his lineage , he started exhibiting a lot of dominance by age 10 months so I had him neutered. I say don't wait, as it's true that some behaviors will already be established after a year old and best to get it done earlier. Leg lifting, dominance, humping, challenging behaviors are some of the undesirable behaviors which may arise. (not that leg lifting is a bad thing but most dogs that have been neutered early usually squat to relieve themselves as they don't need to spray urine up high as a territorial thing.) I also live in an city which is very dog friendly and has over 45 offleash dog parks and some parks stipulate that intact dogs are not allowed in the offleash areas. It's not so much that they are the problem but other dogs view them with jealousy and it causes quite a few fights as they are constantly challenged. Marianne and the boys |
| Six months is the appropriate time to neuter your dog. I have heard the theory about waiting but believe that any effect on growth is pretty minimal and not worth the aggravation and behaviorial difficulties of having an intact mail for that length of time.
As Marianne has said above, there are many behaviors which can become an established problem in a dog left uneutered. If you "Google" "When to neuter your dog" you will find alot of compelling reasons to neuter at 6 months. |
| We were advised by our breeder that we could wait until he is a year old before neutering. That way, he'll have had his chance to grow into a male sheepdog. Right now, his head still has some growing to do. Males are structurally larger, so we're allowing his male hormones the time to get him to grow into a full-grown male... before we cut them off.
We spoke with our vet about this on Saturday and he said that was just fine. He also said that 1 year was early enough that he won't have bulked up too much. Some of the danger of waiting longer is that a male will bulk up with muscle, then when you cut off the testoterone they no longer have the hormones to support the muscular build and they might become overweight. 1 year old seems to be a good balance. I've seen some males that were neutered young (not sheepdogs) and they just look like females. Small head, narrow face, etc. Talk with your breeder and your vet as well before deciding what's best for you & Edgar. |
| P.S. We were also told to neuter ASAP if he shows any signs of agression. None yet (normal puppy/herding nipping doesn't count) and he's 7 months. |
| I would neuter sooner rather than later. We were keeping Merlin intact to be used as a possible stud for my breeder. At around 7 months old he started displaying very strange behaviours... if the whole family was in a room he would 'mark' the doorway of that room...he would 'mark' any bag left on the floor. Weird things like that.
We spoke to our breeder about other weird things he was doing and his size (he's on the small side) and decided he was not stud material. we made an appt to have him neutered...before his appt was the grooming session that lost him. After he was lost, we had no choice but to neuter, his testicles got frostbite 
Merlin was neutered at 14 months. He is still small.(62 pounds)..so NOT neutering did nothing for his growth. |
| I think 6 months is a good time. Clyde was neutered then and, as you can see, his growth was definitely not affected. Lol. Unless he was supposed to be even bigger! |
| There certainly are good reasons to do it at 6 months, and there are good reasons to wait too.
Poor frostbitten testicles!  Ouch.
Barkley weighed in at 62 lbs. when we were at the vet on Saturday - at 7 months old! |
ButtersStotch wrote: I think 6 months is a good time. Clyde was neutered then and, as you can see, his growth was definitely not affected. Lol. Unless he was supposed to be even bigger!
Tasker was neutered at 6 months and currently weighs 97lbs  |
| We had the opposite. Ollie was neutered as a 6 yr. old and was a lean and athletic 75 lbs his whole life. |
| We neutered both sheepies at 5 1/2 months, and both grew up to be sturdy boys. Quincy was 115 lbs. full grown, and Oscar is 103 lbs. Neither suffer from either of the traits mentioned.
Laurie (Oscar's Mom) |
| For a pet I would probably go ahead and neuter at 6-9 months.
I have been looking into this subject quite a bit, and there are some extremely strong arguments for both sides. As far as health goes, I actually think it may be better to wait til 9-12 months, but from an overpopulation standpoint, the sooner the better. Here is a link describing some of the risks http://www.caninesports.com/SpayNeuter.html |
| I think you need to weigh the pros and cons.
Myself, I would neuter/spay at 8 weeks, if I could find a vet to do it...which I can. That is my own personal preferance, weighing all the pros and cons.....That is MY opinion.......... As for in general, the younger the better. I would not be showing a pet, so any impact on legginess or whatever would not matter to me. Heaven forbid the dog lets lost or stolen...An purebred intact dog that is missing is a scary thing and less likely to be returned.. Besides I can do without the behavirial things that can start, and then develope into problems that need remedial training or even behavior modification to resolve. Something to remember is that intact dogs are more of a target to other dogs. When it is said that intact dogs get involved in more fights it is often the "other" dog that causes it. Imagine this....you are at a park with your 8 month old pup, and a pointer decided it doesn't like him because he is intact. The pointer attacks your dog and a figth ensures. Even if there are no physical injuires. your dog would come away "possibly" with an aversion to short-haired dogs with floppy ears....and then you have THAT to deal with... So, pros and cons to be reviewed... |
| Great points.
We won't be going to the dog park until he's neutered because the rules are no unaltered dogs at the dog park. He won't impregnate anyone at training class, but there is a dog-aggressive dog in our class who has been snarling/barking at Barkley for no apparent reason... which may or may not have anything to do with him being unneutered. I don't know the rest of the class's altered status. Should dog-agressive dogs be allowed to go to class (an intermediate level class at Petsmart with 10 dogs)? |
ButtersStotch wrote: I think 6 months is a good time. Clyde was neutered then and, as you can see, his growth was definitely not affected. Lol. Unless he was supposed to be even bigger!
Exactly what I was thinking - Bailey was neutered at 6 months and it definitely didn't stunt his growth  |
Quote: For a pet I would probably go ahead and neuter at 6-9 months.
I have been looking into this subject quite a bit, and there are some extremely strong arguments for both sides. As far as health goes, I actually think it may be better to wait til 9-12 months, but from an overpopulation standpoint, the sooner the better. Here is a link describing some of the risks http://www.caninesports.com/SpayNeuter.html That is a very interesting article. Why can't things be more black and white when you are trying to make a decision.
We hadn't decided yet what we were going to do. Well I should rephrase that. We knew we were going to get Edgar neutered we just didn't know when. Right now he hasn't been doing anything crazy. The only time when we are out with him he is leashed. And we have a six foot block wall that goes all the way around our yard. So him getting out isn't a problem. And he has only been to a dog park once. But i guess I shouldnt bring him back unless he is altered. Good point on that. |
| It doesn't necessarily stunt growth, in fact they may grow abnormally large, longer limbs etc. It alters their normal development. Causes legginess, which in turn changes how joints fit and work together, it causes a narrower skull and chest as well...
Those are just appearance though. I would worry more about the higher incidence of bone cancers, spay incontinence, increased incidence of thyroid and immune issues etc... |
| Good luck with your decision! If we weren't showing Bingley we would probably have had him neutered at 6 months, but I haven't done any research. |
Harley was also sniped  at 6 months and he is 87 lbs at 1 year old .....
Antoinette |
Didn't find exactly what you're looking for? Search again here:
Custom Search
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|