How long for hormone levels to come down after neuter?
So, he was neutered 3 weeks ago and was on restricted activity for 2 weeks (so I may be premature in my concerns, he could just still have pent up energy and less stamina from being on rest for 2 weeks), and once we started going back to the dog park I noticed that for the first 20 minutes or so it's like he can barely control himself. He plays SUPER rough (not aggressive - in fact, his playmates still come back to play even though they are at first surprised by how rough he's being), he's way more vocal, and he feels the need to chastise dogs that he thinks are being unfair in some way (to be perfectly honest, this is not a new behavior, it just seems to have increased). The good news is that during those periods of nearly uncontrollable energy I can still get him to come to me for a time-out if he's getting too rough. So he is not TRULY out of control. And when I tell him to be polite I can tell he is trying... He has also seems to "crash" harder after activity and has declined the dog park twice in the past week (yes, he knows how to tell me if he doesn't feel like it). It seems that if he's had a walk before the park he's too tired to go (which was unheard of before). And at night he's so completely zonked that he falls asleep on our bed (he always used to go to his own bed after 20-30 minutes snuggle time), and often starts breathing really hard. Twice we got so worried about his breathing that we woke him up to see if he was OK and it was like he was so deep in sleep that he almost couldn't wake up. His eyes remained rolled back in his head and it took several seconds before he was alert. Again, the good news is that he DOES wake up after several seconds, his breathing usually relaxes at some point in the night, and he seems to just be sleeping really HARD. Many puppy parents might not even notice these changes, I'm just particularly "aware". So, what can you all tell me about post-neuter hormone changes and behavior changes? Have those of you have have neutered sexually mature dogs noticed a transition period? And how long did it last? |
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| His increases in behavior could have just coincided with the neuter and would have happened anyway as he is getting order. He sounds like Monty, rough play and heavy breathing, eyes rolled back in his head when he is sleeping all of which got more intense when he was around 2. He was neutered at 15 months. Monty is 4 this year and he still plays rough and heavy breathes, but he doesn't play rough with all dogs now just a select few. It is probably part of the OES nature. It sounds like you are controlling him so he doesn't go overboard, which is good. I find that Monty listens much better now at 4 than at 2 so if you keep up with the good dog owner/training it will get easier but I doubt the behaviors will go away, welcome to boisterous OES boys.  Such fun! |
| Actually, that makes me feel whole lot better. And its true for Merlin also, that he doesn't play rough with all of the dogs, just some of his favorite playmates who are larger dogs. He has always played this way with his older OES cousin, but never with any dog at the park. Now he is playing especially rough with a particular Anatolian Shepherd girlfriend of his. She's only 15 or 16 months and is 112 lbs and still growing. Perhaps he just decided that she was big enough and old enough now to get super rough with! She seemed a bit taken aback though :p When he plays with smaller dogs the other owners often comment what a gentle giant he is. So, I guess I'm a paranoid puppy mommy. But we DID choose an OES boy partly for the goofy boisterous personality, so I guess I asked for it! Thanks for the reply! It helps put my mind at ease. He really is a good boy. Just... ROWDY as all get out sometimes! |
| Same with Monty, he will bark when he is chasing another dog and body check the dog, it looks really rough. Today he decided to run up and down a fence barking at an aggressive sounding dog, which is a first for him, so maybe he won't get quieter over time! It makes for entertaining walks, our Newfoundland is so quiet and boring in comparison. |
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