What age do you Neuter??

wingshooter · Post by **wingshooter** » Tue Jul 03, 2007 6:46 pm

My first big investment in a good hunting dog, I have a 20 week old male yellow lab with restricted papers that I plan on having neutered and wondering what others have done or those that have had multiple dogs and your results. Looking for some advice on what age to neuter and pros or cons.

My breeder suggested leaving him intact and getting him neutered just before turning 1 year of age and that it will help with his bone structure and development.

My vet on the other hand said that studies have been done showing after 8 weeks of age you can neuter without any adverse effects and that it would be less traumatic the younger they are?

Look forward to what your thoughts on this are--Thanks for the help!

fitchjr · Post by **fitchjr** » Tue Jul 03, 2007 8:24 pm

i talked to a vet that said as soon as the dogs testes start to drop.

im no expert, thats just one opinion ive heard.

tedcankat · Post by **tedcankat** » Wed Jul 04, 2007 4:37 am

I was told 6 months male or female that's when I plan on getting my Brittany spayed.

Post by **ezzy333** » Wed Jul 04, 2007 7:16 am

They have found some unusal growth patterns in male dogs nuetered too early. Many animals show this as they mature. There is thinking now that possible muscling problems may be a factor too.

As far as stress, the younger the better.

Ezzy

MikeB · Post by **MikeB** » Wed Jul 04, 2007 10:06 am

If you don't want the dog growing up lifting his leg "marking" everything then neuter before he starts lifting his leg to urinate. 6-7 months old has always been my guide line for both males and females and I have never had any problems.

The local guide dog school I have raised pups for in the past alters their pups at 8 months old. They breed many many Labs, and Goldens etc. and their experience has shown this is a good age for spaying and neutering. I have never heard or seen a problem with this age time frame.

Post by **Ayres** » Wed Jul 04, 2007 10:20 am

ezzy333 wrote:They have found some unusal growth patterns in male dogs nuetered too early. Many animals show this as they mature. There is thinking now that possible muscling problems may be a factor too.

I've heard this as well, and my training partner reports seeing these types of things first-hand.

ezzy333 wrote:As far as stress, the younger the better.

I've heard this too, but I don't really understand it. Why would there be less stress on a younger dog than on a mature dog? It's the same procedure.

Tail docking and dew claws, yes, the bone structure isn't as hard at 3 days old as it is at 3 years old... but neutering... doesn't make any sense that there's less stress.

hubweims · Post by **hubweims** » Wed Jul 04, 2007 11:00 pm

6 months is what i was told by my vet, and when i have it done. i think too that if done too early its harder on the pup. before the testes drop, they would have to go in and get them. it is more of a major surgery compared to when the testes drop. vets now are making small incisions in the scrotum and extracting the testes this way after they drop. easier on dog, vet, and owner as it requires less activity restrictions following the procedure.

as far as stress on the older dogs i think that if you wait 10-14 months the dog knows you took his manhood. he's gotten used to the testosterone in his system and realizes what his function (breeding) is. this is purely hypothetical b/c i don't speak k-9, but if you took my jewels now i would know. but, had you taken them when i was six months i wouldn't know the difference. if you alter a pup at 6 months, he still doesn't haven't everything figured out just yet.

Theresa · Post by **Theresa** » Thu Jul 05, 2007 7:42 am

I have speutered a 9 month old pitbull, a senior pitbull, and some 11 week old rat terriers. This is my experience.

The 9 month old pitbull was male. I had thought to keep him intact as long as possible for the growth reasons, but when my sister brought her boyfriend over, I saw my dog take one look at the new fella in her life and then go over to the couch and hike his leg! I didn't want him to form any bad habits, so I got him an apt ASAP and got him neutered. He was sore. He barfed. He was miserable for the first 48 hours. He was not supposed to run but doggone if I could keep a healthy, exuberant pup calm! I had no complications other than those first 48 hours being uncomfortable. My boy later went on to tie a female - so just because they are neutered doesn't mean they have zero drive in that regard!

The rattie pups I altered at 11 weeks because I didn't feel they were brood quality, and I wanted to insure that they were not used for breeding. (Funny the number of folks who called wanted "just a pet" who back peddled to hear the pets I was selling were altered! Had they really wanted 'just a pet' they should have been delighted it was all taken care of! Anyway...) I had them in to the vets and picked them up still groggy in their crates. When I got home to let them out, they came bouncing out of the crate like superballs! The males had less soreness than the females, and you could tell this in the first 6 hours or so - after that all was equal. The pups recovered so quickly, nothing like the 48 hour ordeal with my 9 month old pitbull boy.

I had an older female pitbull spayed. She was a brood, she had cancer, and the U of M said I should do all while she was out for the cancer surgery. If I could do it again, I would not do it - but the U had me worried about pyometra and while it can happen.. I just didn't have my thinking head on that day. My old girl had a huge incision, needed pain meds for many days - the good thing being she was old and not frisky so keeping her quiet and calm was very easy. She died 6 months later - so I have no idea if the spay benefited her in any way. She was on prednisilone, and had accidents all over the house - I can't say it was incontinence due to being spayed because of her late spay and the drugs.

These are the links I have on early speuter (under 6 months is considered 'early') and speuter overall - take them or leave them as you see fit!

In no particular order, mostly dealing with early/pediatric speuter:

http://www.thensome.com/neutering.htm

http://www.columbusdogconnection.com/PedSpayNeuter.htm

http://www.cvm.uiuc.edu/ope/ivb/spay-neu.htm

http://regaliapyrs.tripod.com/early_spay_neuter.htm

http://www.king.igs.net/~brica/esp.htm

http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Conten ... &A=584&S=1

http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Conten ... &A=574&S=1

http://www.littleriverlabs.com/neuter.htm

(Check out this site for the lab links FYI: http://www.woodhavenlabs.com/articles.html )

This covers long term effects: http://www.naiaonline.org/pdfs/LongTerm ... InDogs.pdf

This is from a vet's point of view for the canine athelete: http://www.caninesports.com/SpayNeuter.html

And last but not least: http://showdogsupersite.com/kenlclub/br ... neutr.html

GOOD LUCK slogging thru all the info and making up your mind

wingshooter · Post by **wingshooter** » Thu Jul 05, 2007 8:19 am

Thanks to all those that replied! Ezzy/Ayres/Theresa and others-- I've decided to wait longer as my vet is urging me to have this done soon. I definitely think there is a difference in opinion from dog owners/breeders vs. the vets. Special Thanks to Theresa for all the info. on this seemingly simple procedure! Some great stuff on the health issues to consider if you neuter early vs. later.

Glad I joined this forum.

Wingshooter & 21 week old Jaeger!!

markerdown · Post by **markerdown** » Thu Jul 05, 2007 2:53 pm

You open a can of worms with this one! Two schools of thought . Most Vet, animal foundations say spay and neuter early, like 6 months. However, hunting dogs are not lap dogs. They need the testosterone/estrogen and time to develop muscle mass and strenghten cartlidge. Now I'm no vet, I'm speaking from experience with GSPs that you won't learn in a book. A early spay/neuter will not allow the dog to mature physically. Think about it. What does the onset of sexual maturation do to a body? Lots. Now stop that process before it runs it's course and what do you get? I'm sure others will disagree and it's really up to you. But looks at both sides of the issue before your hunting partner goes under the knife! ................................markerdown

Terry · Post by **Terry** » Fri Jul 06, 2007 12:19 am

I have a lab, I just neutered this week, he just turned two and I have been planning to neuter him since I bought him. I wanted him to be mature.

I am not a vet, but I know if you alter a bull, or a person, or anything at a young age it will change its growth pattern. My vet agreed and told me that if the dog was going to be run hard it would be better to wait until he was mature...1-2 yrs and that he would have more muscle and a stronger bone structure.

tfbirddog2 · Post by **tfbirddog2** » Sun Jul 08, 2007 10:02 am

I have always heard between 1 an 1 1/2 yrs to make sure they are done growing and mature too.

dog dr · Post by **dog dr** » Sat Jul 14, 2007 8:33 am

I'm a vet and i agree with markerdown and terry. wait until the dogs musculoskeletal system is fully developed and the growth plates are fully closed. i would wait until 2 years if you are going to neuter him at all. i have a 3 yr old intact Britt who has zero marking problems. Also neutered out golden at 4 yrs (due to health reasons) and he had zero marking problems prior to that. Something else to think about- out of all the ACL tears i have seen, only 1 has been in an intact male. And the owner of that dog saw him step in a hole on the retrieve.

bobeyerite · Post by **bobeyerite** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 12:16 pm

I agree with ezzy. I had my Brit neutered as soon as he was ready. He is now 2 inches over size in all aspects. He weighs 58 pounds and is because he was clipped to young.

The testosterone Glands lose their ability to shut. So the dog just keeps growing. Is what my vet told me. It is one the things that happen with early clipping.

I like the oversize, it makes him easier to see in the tall weeds. My son has a standard female Brit and man she is really hard to see on point in some places.

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What age do you Neuter??

What age do you Neuter??

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Thanks Everyone!!---Going to wait a little more!

Neutering