To neuter or not!

[kwillia]

Just curious on opinions to neuter male dogs or not. If so, what age? I have read a lot of articles but would like to know from experienced owners. Thanks.

[Tanya]

While I know there are some responsible dog owners that keep their dogs intact and train them properly and contain them/have them under watchful eye to ensure no "oops" litters are produced - I still think the average person should neuter/spay their dog when age appropriate. I see too many "responsible, respectful people" having "oops" litters. And all those "oops" adds up to lots of dogs in shelters and pounds and needign rehoming because the buyer of a pup got in over their head.

ultimately it is a very personal choice each of us have to make. I just want to stress how on the ball you must be if you leave your dog intact. It's a big responsibility.

not sure if you saw this post with lots of articles with pros and cons.
https://www.lab-retriever.net/board/d...cle-links.html

[voodoo]

I plan on neutering Chili between 2-3 years old. I would prefer a technique I read about that just sterilizes him without surgery(I hate/dont trust any surgeries unless they are to save a life). but this is still at least a year away, so I have time to change my mind

[Labs4ever]

My previous dogs were females and were both done at 6months old, but Maya my last lab died at a little past 10years old from Cancer of the spleen. I later learned on the board here, that it's a common form of Cancer. My new Lab Wylie, I was going to wait until 18 months per his breeder and maybe a little past that. He'll be sixteen months old this month and last month I contacted the breeder, because he's been marking on walks and in the house when I was hospitalized for awhile. I asked if I could do it in July a month before he's 18months old, she said his growth plates should be alright by now and should be no problem to neuter him now.

The other day I was walking him with a Neighbor"s 7 year old cavalier king charles spaniel Coco and he's known her since he was a puppy. We walked together around our park and towards the end of our walk, we stopped to talk to another neighbor who has a dog also. While talking, Wylie went and sniffed Coco's butt and started to Mount her, which he's never done before. I immediately corrected him, but the rest of the walk home he kept looking and wanting to go back to her. Coco is fixed by the way. I was always worried about humping with a Male dog, which Wylie has never done yet until that moment. So since he's starting to mark more on walks and getting some bad behaviors as he's getting more mature, I'm having him fixed at the end of this month. He'll be 16 months old. I would like to wait more, but there's more I can do with him, once he's finally neutered. I know I can correct some of the behaviors with Training, but I want to start agility around the time I would have him neutered at 18 months old, so rather get it out of the way now.

This is just my experience with my Lab, so take it for what it's worth to you. I've read the articles on spaying/neutering later which is suppose to be better, which I agree with, but I want to be able to take him to daycare and not have to worry how other dogs might react, because he's intact. He may still have problems after getting neutered, but that will be taken care of with training. Just my 2 cents.

[BaconsMom]

I wouldnt neuter before 1.5 years, but we at the moment are not planning on neutering Bacon.

[smartrock]

Tanya works a lot with rescue and I'm betting she sees more "oops" litters than most of the rest of us ever will.

Chase was neutered at age 3. The breeder wanted us to wait until he was 18-24 months of age but she preferred it be done after that point and we verbally agreed to that arrangement. It's not like she came to check on us, though. Some doggy day care places and some kennels and many dog parks prefer dogs be neutered and that can be a hassle if you wanted to use one of those facilities. When we got our second lab, she was (is) a female. Again, breeder requested not to have her spayed until 18-24 months of age, which meant she was going to undergo at least one heat cycle. That Chase had already been neutered made that process much easier. They're housedogs, I don't run a kennel, so keeping them separated for 4 weeks would have been really inconvenient- our breeders both live out of state. Chase is now 7 years old, no known health problems, orthopedic or otherwise. He can't eat as much as he used to or he'll turn into a porch-buster, but we can maintain a good weight without too much trouble. It seems more people are opting not to have their male dogs neutered. I'm hoping we found a good balance between making sure the hormones were there to promote healthy growth and proper development and not having to worry about the responsibility of keeping an intact dog, when our intent is never to have him bred, on purpose or otherwise.

[Labradorks]

I would not neuter a large dog until they are at least 18 months. But it depends on the dog and the owner. I have had males that were completely asexual (which may have changed if given an opportunity with a girl in season) and I have one currently who falls in love with just about everyone and is always in other dogs' business. As he is submissive the dogs that he's been molesting find it easy to tell him to back off and at that point he usually drops the subject and since he is also well-trained he listens to me fairly well. But he is easily distracted by some of these special friends he has (or thinks he has). I cannot wait to get him neutered but I need to let him finish growing and filling out. I am counting down the days. I imagine in a less strict (for lack of a better word) home his owners may have chosen to neuter him at the 6 month mark and I would have encouraged it! He would be a hormonal nightmare in the wrong home.

I prefer a neutered dog because it affords them more opportunities because many times intact dogs are not allowed in day cares and other social situations and because there are a lot of dogs that target intact males so it makes it harder to be out and about with my dogs off leash hiking, swimming, etc. which we both enjoy very much. Also, having a horn-dog poses challenges and can be very annoying at times, even in a home where training is a daily occurrence. Unfortunately, most people I run into with intact dogs, unless they are breeders, well, let's just say it is not working for them. Again, depends on dog and owner. Overall, I think neutering when the time is right, whether that is when the owner can't deal or when the dog is full grown, is the responsible thing for most people.

[dxboon]

I have one neutered male who was fixed at 18 months, and I have another 3 year old male who is intact for showing. I have never had any issues with marking or dominance or any commonly recited problem that supposedly comes with owning intact males (with these dogs or previous dogs). My dogs are loose in the house together all the time, and often running around with other intact males at club gatherings. Never any temperament issues.

If you are a responsible and vigilant owner, my personal opinion is that you should wait until your dog's growth plates are closed before neutering (usually 18 months is cited as roughly the time this happens, but each dog is different). I think for the average pet owner having an intact animal takes a lot more planning, as many day cares, etc. will not allow intact dogs. I personally believe there are health benefits for a puppy to stay intact until at least 18 months, and I also believe beyond health benefits, dogs that are fixed later in life have the chance to grow and develop into the best aesthetic version of themselves. I've seen so many people buy dogs from great breeders and great lines, only to spay/neuter early, and end up with pets that look nothing like their gorgeous parents. If you did the research and went with a good breeder to get a dog that looks like what the breeder produces, neutering at a young age will probably lessen the chances that your dog will look like its dam/sire.

Of course, all the above with the caveat that if a person feels like their lifestyle/circumstances make it probable that their intact dog will produce an oops litter, then I say spay/neuter asap. The world doesn't need another litter of badly-bred Labs/Lab mixes or another well-meaning but clueless backyard breeder; there are sadly too many of these ruining the breed as it is.

[Berna]

Cookie is intact and he will be 8 years old in July.

I really believe all dogs should be well trained if allowed off-leash, both neutered and intact. I don't think neutering will solve behavioral problems per se, without any effort to train the dog. Mine was potty trained when he was a puppy and never ever marked in the house. He started marking when he was 14 months old. He is well socialized and gets along very well with all the dogs he knows, however he won't take any dominance BS from other male intact dogs (most dogs here are intact). This is one of the reasons we don't go to dog parks.

I think it's redundant to say that he has never had an "oops" litter? Although some people are idiots and bring their females in heat among dogs, I am always vigilant and when we encounter idiots we leave immediately. It's really beyond me how anyone can have an "oops" litter unless he owns the female too and leaves the dogs unsupervised.

[Jeff]

Hemi is intact, he will be 3, he goes places with lots of other dogs, he is well trained and I keep a very close eye on him. I have talked to a couple different vets recently as I have thought about it. Not that he has any problems, just that there are a lot of places that restrict him from going because he is intact. Every vet knows me and Hemi well, they know what we do and how we train. All of them recommend leaving him intact unless there is some medical issue that requires it. Hormones are a good thing for the body. Also is because I am extremely careful with Hemi and we do so much training. If I were to do anything to Hemi I would probably give him a vasectomy. This is more common in Europe as well again Hormones are healthy for dogs same as for humans. I only had one issue with Hemi, when we were doing rally and following a female in heat. He kept wanting to smell the ground and would loose focus. We completed but man that was rough. He was certainly distracted.

If you are going to leave a dog intact I do think it is not for everyone and I agree not for the common person. Everyone here that has older intact dogs are extremely responsible dog owners and they put a lot of thought into where their dogs go and what they do. Like Berna and Cookie for example go on all kinds of fantastic little adventures and cookie has a great social life and lots of friends but she is careful not to make sure he gets into places like dog parks where he may have issues.