Neuter at 6 months?
I called our vet's office to ask when we should neuter and they said 6 months was the right time. I'm looking at him and he isn't very big yet, he is only about 50 pounds and he is still slightly smaller than our "medium" sized dog. He still barks like a puppy (higher pitched than our adult dog) and squats to pee. His feet still look too big for his body  He is also very puppy like in his behaviour towards other dogs. He is however quickly approaching that "6 month" mark. I was doing some reading online and there are apparently several health issues associated with early neutering. I was also reading that larger breeds grow a lot slower and this should be factored into the decision/timing. I don't want to harm my little guy by getting it done too soon; yet consider myself a responsible pet owner will do what is necessary to ensure that there is no way he can contribute to the massive overpopulation of unwanted puppies! I am wondering for those of you who have neutered your boys, when did you do it? What is the right time? Any bad experiences with doing it too soon? Thanks! |
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| Bogey was neutered at six months at the recommendation of the vet. He is now 4 and has had no problems. |
| We waited until 15 months. I may have left it longer but other dogs were starting to bark at Monty, because of him becoming sexually mature. After his neutering he no longer gets dogs barking at him. Our Newfy breeder asked us to wait until 15 months, because as a large breed dog, when you neuter young it diminishes the hormones produced which aides in bone growth and the dog ends up growing taller, thinner legged, which could increase the problems with joint and ligaments when they are older. We decided it would be better for Monty if we neutered after 15 months as well. |
| For so many reasons it is MUCH healthier to wait, at least 12-18 months ideally. If you do a search of the forum using the terms early spaying and neutering, or early spay/neuter etc you'll find tons of posts with lots of advice and opinions on this topic. |
| Banker, out Golden, was neutered at 18 months per our contract. I was concerned that it might be difficult to have an intact male that old, but it was fine. Bennett was neutered at 6 months - he was huge for a Golden. Huge. |
| Please wait - there are so many benefits that dogs get from the hormones - they do so much! Here is a link to some research done by veterinarian Chris Zink DVM - who became interested in this topic as she was treating sports injured dogs in her practice: http://www.veterinarypracticenews.com/v ... -pets.aspx Inside this article is a link to her analysis, also here it is separately: http://caninesports.com/SpayNeuter.html PS - my OES are 6 years and 13 months - both intact males who are in no way hindered by not being neutered. Truly it's a non-issue - they perform at all their sports and interests as well, if not better, than most neutered dogs  Chewie is titled in obedience, herding, agility, rally, herding, weight pull, has been a therapy dog since age 1, and also does back packing and carting/sledding, as well as being a show Ch. And so biddable that my little granddaughter shows him in Jr's. My little guy Bond already has his CGC and therapy dog certification - at 12 months old. It's more about the quality of dog and then the work you put into them, and NOT assuming a surgery will magically give you a well behaved dog. The spay and neuter campaign in this country has gone way overboard, in my opinion. It's a fairly new trend really, and just lately have the side effects of early spay/neuter been coming into the public eye.  |
| I figured as much! I had always thought you were supposed to wait but my vet office seemed adamant about the 6 month thing. I think part of it is a city rule that more than triples the amount of dog fees at 6 months if you don't get them neutered. There is a HUGE push here to get dogs spay/neutered because there are SO many irresponsible dog owners around. I also know that the local humane society has had 2 half price puppy days in the last couple months because they are so over run. He doesn't seem aggressive or anything and he is the biggest teddy bear I have ever met. As far as Leonard is concerned it seems like he is nowhere near done growing and he still seems so puppy like in the way he moves and looks. I know hormones play such a big part in growth and development. He is such a compact little guy right now, sturdy but compact. Lots of reading to do, but good information! Wonderful! p.s. Stacey, I did a search but didn't use the word "early" when I added that it brought up so much more relevant information. Thanks for the tip |
| Our contract says minimum 12 months. Our breeder said she can spot an early neutered dog from across the room, they tend to be smaller and lankier. I was a little skeptical until I thought about cattle; you can easily pick out even a young bull in a pasture but its hard to tell a steer from the cows. |
Quote: Our Newfy breeder asked us to wait until 15 months, because as a large breed dog, when you neuter young it diminishes the hormones produced which aides in bone growth and the dog ends up growing taller, thinner legged, which could increase the problems with joint and ligaments when they are older. Ditto. Also all my big boys who were neutered early (often rescues/pound pups--most were giant breeds, the other 2 OES or OESx) showed this long legged issue. All had structural issues. Even worse, the giant breeds also developed bone cancer around 7 years old...not the OES  Scientifically I can't prove it........and as you have found the vets are supporting early neutering for population control and no immediate adverse effect. Long term studies are expensive........and long term. Vets are tied to the "books" what they were taught. I like the ancient vets, years and years of experience has opened a few eyes. If you can wait, please do. Yes, he'll be a bit more of a handful as the hormones move through his body......but look how well Dawn's boys behave.....it's the owner and training more so than the hormones. |
| I say wait. We spayed Mady at 5 months due to the vet's pressure and our own insecurity, and I feel utterly terribly awful about it. Her skull plates didn't quite seal up properly, and she is taller than she would have probably been. Of course she is still a very healthy girl, and I hope it never causes her any issues or I will just be devastated because it was our fault. We should have listened to Amber, she said it would be best if we waited until after her first heat, but if not at least a year. After having gone through a heat cycle with Gracie, I can tell you it is really not a big deal. I am sorry but there is a panic over spaying/neutering your dogs and it is just that, an over-hyped panic. It is very easy for a responsible dog owner to avoid unwanted pregnancies without having to resort to neutering/spaying. In my opinion, the trend in North America has been "well, people are going to be stupid, lazy, and irresponsible so this will help prevent problems" instead of even trying to approach it in "encourage people to be better, more responsible dog owners" (I mean, look at Chewie, he still has his nuts and he is a wonderful therapy dog etc etc). Such a defeatist approach to life in my view (and can apply in many other domains as well). Anyway, not meant to be a political rant, just wait for Leonard until it's safest. I don't think I will spay or neuter any other sheepdogs I get, unless it's healthier for the females when they get a bit older to avoid things like Pyometra etc. |
| We neutered Brick at 6 months. I kinda wish we waited. He's fine, but his bark is kinda high pitched and he's a kinda small....down there.  Now those 2 things may not have anything to do with his 6 month neuter, but we'll never know if they did. |
| Wait longer if you can. At least until your boy has reached his full grown size. Excellent reading in the Zink article you referenced, Dawn. Vets' advice is often geared more towards the "average" pet owner rather than a "responsible" owner, because they see more of the former than the latter. Just my 2 cents. Linda Z |
| Our other dog Ru (he might be a wiry labradoodle, we don't really know what he is but he is medium size) was neutered early and has some hip and knee issues already. No way of knowing if that's related but that information certainly raises the question. We got him from the humane society and their stance is neuter ASAP (for obvious reasons; they are overrun with unwanted puppies and deal with the consequences of irresponsible pet owners every day). The thing is I do consider myself responsible, I am confident that I won't let Leonard roam free producing puppies and causing problems. I will have to dig out the information package we received with him. He was so young, I don't remember what it said. I also agree that advice is based on the lowest common denominator; luckily we are careful and Leonard is always tended to. I don't agree with creating puppies unless it is done responsibly (like a professionally breeder) so we will use common sense. I will wait it out and let me vet know that the reminder phone calls/mail outs aren't necessary. Thanks again for all the info! |
| This is an informative link to have a read too. http://www.naiaonline.org/pdfs/LongTerm ... InDogs.pdf If your adament on neutering him then wait till all the growth plates are closed. Around 18 months if you have to have it done.  My personal opinion on the boys is why do it in the first place? Unless there is retained testicles. Girls are different and again spaying them in the larger breeds should be at a bare minumum around 12 months or older. Non of my pet boys have been neutered and no reason for them to get the chop. I just love the way vets use scare tatics to have the boys neutered and of course vets prefer 6 months as smaller everything to chop off. No vets take into account large or giant breeds, small and toy breeds can be fully mature by 7 months old so hence they heap every breed of dog under the same general info of 6 months. So much is being written and researched now on the positive as well as the negatives on de-sexing & early desexing of the larger breeds and I wish vets would pass on information to people on both sides of the coin so the owner of the dog can make a truly informative decision as to IF or WHEN to do it.  Best wishes with your decision and dont let your vet pressure you, you make the choice its your boy  |
lisaoes wrote: I just love the way vets use scare tatics to have the boys neutered and of course vets prefer 6 months as smaller everything to chop off. No vets take into account large or giant breeds, small and toy breeds can be fully mature by 7 months old so hence they heap every breed of dog under the same general info of 6 months. This summer after I got Leonard I went to pick up a friend's dog at the vet (different vet than mine). The receptionist asked if I had any dogs of my own, I told them I had just got a Sheepdog Pup and they (without me asking them to) gave me a quote for neutering costs. They told me the sooner I had it done the cheaper it would be for me; they said I should set up an appointment for a consult when my dog turned 5 months; they would set up an appointment after that. Needless to say I didn't take their advice into consideration. I didn't like the way they were being pushy salespeople fishing for surgeries when they had never laid eyes on my dog! |
| Ramsey is 10 months and we have decided to wait after all the reading and research. Our vet also said, 6 months, but he admitted it's easier doing the surgery on a pup than a full grown dog. But he didn't pressure us to get it done sooner. Ramsey literally JUST started marking a few weeks ago, he's a bit of a late bloomer, but I'm glad we're waiting. Figured we would do it around 2. And yes, the hormones will definitely run through him but we train everyday. |
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