Neutering?? Side affects?

whatanidiot

I always planned to neuter my boy when he turned one but I've had so many people telling me their horror stories of how badly their pets reacted afterwards that I'm terrified to get him done I know it has to be better for him in the long run...the thoughts of him getting testicular cancer which I could have prevented had I not listened to a few peoples stories would be u unforgivable. Is there any truth in the stories of personality change or becoming aggressive? Stories of dogs "attacking" their owners after getting neutered are the most common I've heard in the last two/three months I've been called cruel for even considering it We go home to my parents home as often as we can and his best friend in the world is our kitten but the last time we were home it turned into a nightmare for the poor thing with Ogie wanting to get a little too close I know this could be dominance but if he were neutered would humping be a thing of the past? I have him booked into the vet this evening for a checkup and chat about this but would appreciate any advice :)

EGAR

I have no idea how people come up with these stories, I have neutered literally hundreds of male dogs and never had any negative development afterwards. With a few dogs you have to adjust exercise and feeding as they can become a bit chubby afterwards and some dogs change their coat a bit like Setters or Cockers but I have never had behavioural issues afterwards.

westies4ever

yes itts best for them. i have a male and a female both neutered and no side affects at all - he'll def be a bit sore and grumpy for a day or two - is this when peoples dogs are attacking them? its so much better for their health and mental well being - to be blunt - if you dont neutuer him hes going to have uncontrollable sexual urges but he wont be able to act on them (if hes in the house etc as a pet) - i actually think that crueller. do a bit of research online, read dog behavior books and talk to you vert - they will put your mind at ease.

westies4ever

oh by the way - he might still do a bit of humping as my lad still does but it should be greatly reduced.

mosi

I was worried about this myself a while back as I had never had a neutered male dog. I came across all sorts of rumours while searching the internet and decided to ask my vet about them.

Firstly, the only behaviour changes that can happen is if the dog's behaviour is highly sexually motivated. My boy is the same now as he always was - cheeky, boisterous, loving, generally a bit mad! I was worried that some shrinking violet would emerge from the vets after the surgery but he is fine.

I also heard that neutering can increase the risk of prostate cancer, although other sources suggested the opposite. My vet assured me that there are equal numbers of studies that say both, although in either case environmental factors need to be studied more. One thing that is conclusive though, is that there is a higher incidence of testicular cancer in dogs that are not neutered than there is prostate cancer in dogs that are. Having him neutered will eliminate that risk. Neutering also helps potential problems such as enlarged prostate.

You should also bear in mind that you may want to add another dog to your family at some stage. Having your dog neutered will definitely make life easier. My new girl was in heat when I got her from the pound three weeks ago - I can only imagine how difficult things would have been if my boy wasn't neutered. She will be getting spayed in two months time.

It really is the right decision to make. As said, I was doubting whether I should do it (of course the OH was biased on the subect:eek:), but I don't regret it one bit

mosi

I meant to add that a number of the websites out there that take an anti-neutering position are backed by people in the dog breeding industry so be very wary of such sources of (mis)information

whatanidiot

Thanks for your replies :) Ogie may not be so happy with ye though I've been looking it up with a bit and I had my mind made up that once his first birthday came I'd be booking him in but I listen to people, particularly if it could hurt my boy in any way, so hearing all these stories threw me I'll have a chat with Ogie's vet and I'm sure he'll help me decide fro sure Thanks again for the replies....I need to learn to take things with a little pinch of salt :D:rolleyes:

Daisy!

My jrt became a lot more aggressive after we had him neutered. And I mean a lot more! Towards other dogs only. I've had two Vets and a dog trainer tell me that this can happen. Same thing happened to a friend of mine. Her dog was neutered and became a lot more aggressive, barking more and generally just being a bit of a grump. He used to be such a friendly dog, now he just barks at us.

Now I did think for a long time that maybe our jrt was in pain after the operation or something but no, the Vets and dog trainers said that some dogs have a bad reaction to getting neutered so I trust their opinion. We have to go back to basics with training our dog now and it's frustrating but it was our choice to neuter him so we have to do the hard work now.

So yes I've had a negative experience with neutering my dog but I'd still do it again tomorrow if I was asked, I'll neuter every dog I get. We were just unlucky.

I have heard that if you neuter springers , this can effect their coat making it look discolored and dry .

But its very hard to say what side effects can occur as every dog is different in its own way.

hughowen

Can I ask why you're waiting till he's 1 to do it? Neutering more often than not will not change a dog's personality. I've had dog's neutered before and everything was normal afterwards.

Neutering has more pro's than con's IMO, so if you're not going to be using him for breeding then I would definitely suggest it.

boodlesdoodles

We neutered my fella when he was one. He was up and about after a few days. He had no side effects and the vet told me that sometimes the weight gain after the op is due to soft owners treating there doggies with too many niceties :-) He still humps his bed the odd time but that is normally when I'm not paying him attention in the kitchen!

TooManyDogs

Some people can connect changes in behaviour to neutering when it actually has nothing to do with it. When dogs go through the 'teenage' age they can become aggressive with other dogs, and this can start around the same time dogs are commonly neutered.

Knine

TooManyDogs wrote: »

Some people can connect changes in behaviour to neutering when it actually has nothing to do with it. When dogs go through the 'teenage' age they can become aggressive with other dogs, and this can start around the same time dogs are commonly neutered.

Yes that is so true. Ive a neutered male and he can be dog aggressive but I bet had I not had him done he would have been a hell of a lot worse.

As EGAR mentioned above the coat texture in some breeds can change and their coats can be a bit more difficult to groom as they get slightly woolier, I have noticed this in the spaniels, retrievers and similar coated breeds. Its more obvious in spayed bitches then neutered dogs.

Sigma Force

I agree with Toomanydogs but also that at around the age they get neutered they also start to grow up a little bit more and are a little less puppyish, although they usually stay puppyish until they are around 2 depending on the breed and dogs personality in general.

I've had dogs, cats, rabbits and guinea pigs all neutered/spayed with no problems over the years. Their personality never changed.
The most recent would of been our male who is nearly 2 and we had him done when he was around 9 months old (waited a little longer because he's a small breed and just wanted him a bit sturdier) didn't make a blind bit of difference to his personality at all he's still nuts even without his nuts.

Safety wise it depends on your vet, as said I've had rabbits and guinea pigs spayed/neutered and they are much more delicate and more at risk than dogs or cats are. Papillons tend to be sensative to anesthetic but we had him neutered with no problems whatsoever.

I think people giving horror stories can be down to many reasons of course there are risk with anesthetics but a healthy animal neutered by a competant caring vet is 99.9% of the time going to be just fine.

schnorkleborg

Is there a recommended age to neuter pups or is it a play it by ear situation? I have two male terrier pups 8 weeks old today. My 1st pets so all new to this.

TooManyDogs

Commonly dogs are neutered/spayed around 6 months old, but later if the dog is a large breed so 9 months to 1 year for dogs like rotties, danes, mastiffs etc.

My lot were all done at 6 months old, with the exception of a stray dog we took in who went into heat 2 weeks after we got her, what a bloody nightmare!!!!

schnorkleborg

TooManyDogs wrote: »

Commonly dogs are neutered/spayed around 6 months old, but later if the dog is a large breed so 9 months to 1 year for dogs like rotties, danes, mastiffs etc.

Thanks for that.

TooManyDogs wrote: »

My lot were all done at 6 months old, with the exception of a stray dog we took in who went into heat 2 weeks after we got her, what a bloody nightmare!!!!

Haha my pups are a result of their mammy, a taken-in stray, wandering.:)

lorebringer

TooManyDogs wrote: »

Commonly dogs are neutered/spayed around 6 months old, but later if the dog is a large breed so 9 months to 1 year for dogs like rotties, danes, mastiffs etc.

My lot were all done at 6 months old, with the exception of a stray dog we took in who went into heat 2 weeks after we got her, what a bloody nightmare!!!!

Good pun!

@ schnorkleborg - 6 months for a small breed dog is old enough to get them done. Also, the earleir you get them neutered the less likely they are to have hormone related behavioural issues that then become habit and can be difficult to curb (humping being the prime example!). Well done on taking in a little stray and taking on the pups!

whatanidiot

After speaking to Ogie's vet I've decided to go ahead and get Ogie neutered. Just health wise I think it's whats best for him...I'm already dreading the day I've to drop him in Thanks for all the replies and advice :D

TooManyDogs

lorebringer wrote: »

Good pun!

Never even copped on about the pun

LucyBliss

When I got my three neutered, the vet said to ring around 2pm to find out when I could come collect them. I rang about 1pm and they said that they were ready to go home asap as they'd woken up around midday and were practically bouncing in their cages. When I collected them, the vet said that they would be sore and quiet for a couple of days and not to worry if they seemed out of sorts. So I thought I'd have a bit of peace & quiet because two of them were six months old and acted like they were out of their skulls on crack cocaine - even though we were working on commands it was a one step forward, two steps back affair - but what happened was that I let them out the garden when we got home, two of them started chasing one another around the tree and bushes while the other one ran around just for the hell of it. I was flying after them shrieking, "Don't stretch your stitches!!" They slept that evening (eventually), it took them a while to settle down. The next morning, I woke up to the sight of one of them having pulled his collar off and was chewing the collars on the other two. We eventually had to take the collars off them because they kept being headbutted by the other lad who wanted to play a game and it just didn't same fair. We had to even the odds a bit.

The only ill effect of the procedures was the hit to my bank balance. Other than that, it really made no difference to them whatsoever. The one who I thought it was make a difference to was Jack who was an extremely difficult dog to train, although loyal and loving, but he is very strong willed. Then I realised that I'd only sent him to be neutered, not get a personality change.

Personally, I think that unless you're going to breed a dog, neutering is safer for all concerned. It means you're not dealing with a female whose would be suitors are practically camped on your doorstep or run after your male who has turned into an over sexed Romeo. Sometimes I think that the people who are so adamantly anti-neutering are confusing the dog with themselves.

schnorkleborg

lorebringer wrote: »

Good pun!
Well done on taking in a little stray and taking on the pups!

Actually was my OH's mum that took her in and thought she'd have more time to get her sorted. She had 5 puppies so we helped her out & took 2 so they'd keep each other company. So far so good but they can be little brats when they want to be. Double trouble.:rolleyes:

reeta

Deleted User wrote: »

I have heard that if you neuter springers , this can effect their coat making it look discolored and dry .

But its very hard to say what side effects can occur as every dog is different in its own way.

I got my 11 month old cocker/springer spayed three months ago and it definitely changed her coat (chocolate brown). It became discoloured and dry.The vet said this could happen. I then got her groomed and the groomer removed all the hair which had grown fuzzy and dry and now she looks great again. Her temperment stayed the same, mad as ever !!!

Cherry Blossom

reeta wrote: »

I got my 11 month old cocker/springer spayed three months ago and it definitely changed her coat (chocolate brown). It became discoloured and dry.The vet said this could happen. I then got her groomed and the groomer removed all the hair which had grown fuzzy and dry and now she looks great again. Her temperment stayed the same, mad as ever !!!

It sounds like she just got her adult coat Cockers need to be handstripped every 6 months as adults regardless of whether they are neutered or not to remove the dead undercoat.

Daisy!

No my dog was 2 and a half years old when we got him neutered so he wasn't going through "puberty" He changed. And not for the better. Sorry but I take two Vets and a dog trainer's opinion over anyone here. No offence. Just explaining my situation to the OP. Not against neutering but it did have a negative affect on my dog.

aigster

Lots of info .... I've only seen dogs improve after neutering... And for responsable owners the fear of unwanted litters is also such a fear...shop around , and get a vet reccomended!...

The Sweeper

My dog (bull breed X) was neutered at 12 weeks because I'm in Oz and it's illegal to rehome from rescue without desexing here.

Here's a guide to his personality and development - and remember, he's practically never had his balls, so I can't blame them.

12 weeks - 20 weeks - playful, friendly, affectionate. Would wool anything he picked up off the ground in quite a strong shake. Relatively obedient.

21 weeks - 32 weeks - selective deafness. Earned the name 'dickstar' - because one hour he'd be a dickhead, and the next a rockstar. This refers to his inconsistent response to very consistent training. For an entire week he would sit obediently before a door opened for him - sit before going out, sit before coming in. He would wait while we went out a door ahead of him. Then suddenly out of the blue with no apparent external distrations, the dog would nearly take the legs out from under you barging through a half-opened door ahead of you or at the same time as you.

Also, humping. Never humping people, but takes every opportunity given to try humping other dogs. Always corrected. Still tries it.

33 weeks - meets an adult border collie in the street outside our yard. The adult male is very dominant and snarls at our dog. Our dog responds by raising his hackles and bouncing in and out at the border collie, stirring him up big time. He's never shown any aggression to another dog in his life up to this point. (Incidentally, he's also never shown any aggression to another dog since.)

34 weeks - 41 weeks - socialisation continues. Selective deafness continues. Responsiveness to training improves - sit, lie down, roll over, shake hands, wait for it, leave it, stay, all pretty good. However each day is different. One day he will be a fantastic dog. The next day he'll have you close to dementia and tempted to strangle him before lunchtime comes around.

Some days he's brilliant. Other days he's just bold, bold, BOLD. And it has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with being neutered - it's his age and his personality.

I'm not ashamed to say we're completely 'eyes on the prize' for him to turn 18 months to 2 years and hopefully settle some with maturity. We'll keep ploughing on, working on obedience and consistency, trying to enjoy him on good days and trying not to kill him on bad days.

I could easily see, however, how if we'd had him neutered around the seven to eight month mark, how I could have made a connection with the change in his behaviour and him being neutered.

reeta

adrenalinjunkie wrote: »

It sounds like she just got her adult coat Cockers need to be handstripped every 6 months as adults regardless of whether they are neutered or not to remove the dead undercoat.

Actually that sounds about right, as her coat is really glossy now. Didnt know cockers needed to be handstripped every 6 months, thanks for that ...

reeta

reeta wrote: »

I got my 11 month old cocker/springer spayed three months ago and it definitely changed her coat (chocolate brown). It became discoloured and dry.The vet said this could happen. I then got her groomed and the groomer removed all the hair which had grown fuzzy and dry and now she looks great again. Her temperment stayed the same, mad as ever !!!

This does happen and i have seen it happen to a 4 year old. Its also something that we do not say in a vet unless asked. The coat underneath is fine though .