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Castration what are the advantages

23 replies

slushy06 · 22/12/2009 16:58

Just wondered advantages and disadvantages.

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HuwEdwards · 22/12/2009 17:03

well he's not always pestering you for sex

ah, sorry just noticed this is posted under pets.

slushy06 · 22/12/2009 17:08

rofl don't think dp would consent sadly and I believe doctors need his consent to perform the op

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LuckySalem · 22/12/2009 17:22

Well......... lol

It stops pregnancy and all complications that come along with it. I work with rescues and am fed up of hearing the sob stories about how their dog/cat got out and got pregnant and now we can't afford to keep them please help.

Also - It'll stop roaming. Alot of dogs, my mums 2 bitches were best at it, escape in order to go get pregnant or get a girl pregnant. They are driven by urges.

There may be a link between "Full" animals and ovarian cancer - i'm not sure how true that is.

Basically ask yourself this. Do you want to breed from your animal? If yes, and you are prepared to do it responsibly - ie: health checks etc then don't castrate. If you aren't get em done.

HugeBaublesWhatDidISayRoy · 22/12/2009 17:27

stops alot of the pissing/marking of territory. and also stops aggression. (apart from when you get to the vet to pick 'em up after when they are so fucking angry at you for putting them there!!)

slushy06 · 22/12/2009 17:29

I am unsure whether I wanted to breed from him as he has a great temperament and his parents had wonderful scores and he is from a line of show dogs So he would make a good dog to breed from responsibly when he is older with much reasearch.

But on the other hand I don't want him humping all and sundry or dying of cancer Which are the only benefits I know of.

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slushy06 · 22/12/2009 17:30

x posted does it really stop aggression.

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HugeBaublesWhatDidISayRoy · 22/12/2009 17:30

what breed is he out of interest?

LuckySalem · 22/12/2009 17:32

I can stop agression but it partly depends on the breed and partly on the dog and partly on when you get them done.

slushy06 · 22/12/2009 17:35

He is 3 month Labrador but I really want to take my time and think about this because to be honest I had a litter of kittens one was done one wasn't and the one who was done seemed lazy and to have less personality.

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LuckySalem · 22/12/2009 17:37

I wuoldnt say that. Both my cats are done nad they're nuts!! lol.

I'm getting my 6 month old bitch done next month when I have the cash. I dont want to breed from her (in fact she's rescue and I have signed a contract saying I wont breed from her) and I dont want to worry about her getting out/pregnant/cancer.

With Labs I think the advice is to get them done from 6months.

slushy06 · 22/12/2009 17:42

It is 6 months and I wouldn't breed from a bitch but for some reason I cant think why it would not bother me from a dog. Perhaps I don't want puppies running round my house.

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LuckySalem · 22/12/2009 17:45

It could be do you have kids? After having DD I KNOW I wouldnt want any puppies running around the house!! lol

Its obviously upto you, read up on EVERYTHING, speak to vets etc and then make your decision. Personally I'd never breed - there's too many dogs in rescues that are being PTS everyday so that prays on my mind. However, I have nothing against responsible breeders else dogs will become extinct

slushy06 · 22/12/2009 17:51

Two dc I don't really think I want to breed I just seem to feel uncomfortable with putting him through a op and I illogically feel like I have no right to take a dogs fertility.

I think I will definitely do lots of research and probably end up castrating him. I think I am being a little silly not castrating him when it is beneficial and not really wanting to breed from him.

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BellasSparklyBaubles · 22/12/2009 18:33

Slushy - I was in a similar position to you a year ago. I too have a lab from parents with great hip scores and an excellent show pedigree. Basically, what it comes down to is whether you're willing to show him - without any showing wins under his belt, he's not worth anything as a stud dog. And there are hundreds of labs out there that do have the wins and are being used as stud dogs.

I also had to consider my lab's health - castrating him removes the risk of testicular and similar tumours, and of course helps stop them roaming.

I got flamed very badly when I put up a similar quiestion to yours at the time, but one of my harshest critics is now a very dear friend

I like to think my lab is healthier and happier with my decision to have him as a castrated pet, and not as an entire show dog.

FWIW I held off doing my boy till he was 15 months, just to be extra careful with his joints.

Good luck whatever you decide.

BellasSparklyBaubles · 22/12/2009 18:33

rofl at Huw Edwards, btw

slushy06 · 22/12/2009 19:11

I did want to show him but now I am thinking on it I am not sure I could breed him as I would have no control over who the puppies go to and I think I would worry about them ending up in rescue or worse. I wish there was a easy answer I have a check up with the vet after Christmas I think I will ask her lots of questions and see what she has to say.

I can't believe I could have got flamed for this I didn't realize I had posted such a controversial topic . Although having started research am leaning more towards castrating. Thanks for all the advice given I shall take it all into consideration and I am very grateful for not being flamed.

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BellasSparklyBaubles · 22/12/2009 19:43

lol - yes, one of the main reasons I don't breed is that I'm not sure I could find owners good enough for my pups

LuckySalem · 22/12/2009 20:06

How can you get flamed for this topic? LOL

BellasSparklyBaubles · 22/12/2009 20:31

It's true - I got completely roasted for suggesting I might leave his nads on or even breed from him.
My dear friend still comes on here sometimes and I am sure she would agree that she did more than her fair share of the flaming
That was the start of our friendship really - I admired her balls ( pardon the pun) in standing up so vigorously for what she believes in

LuckySalem · 22/12/2009 20:36

Gosh - I fully believe that if your not planning to breed "responsibly" from your pet then they should be done.

BUT I'd never attack someone for not doing it.

VicarInaTinselTuTu · 22/12/2009 21:13

id say its more worthy in of a bitch than a dog as long as your careful, i wasnt going to have my dog done but then we got a bitch so had to have em both done.

with bitches is stops the risk of infection and also obviously unwanted pregnancies. id always have a bitch done without question.

with dogs it really depends, but you have to be careful that they dont find a bitch on heat! my dog wasnt gonna get done but he was no bother at all until we got the bitch, then he humped anything that moved (or didnt move fast enough!)

he has put on weight since being done, but no other changes in his personality or anything.

midori1999 · 23/12/2009 12:14

There are not so many benefits to castrating a dog as there are to spaying a bitch. If you do decide to neuter, personally I would wait until your dog is mature, around 2 years old, as he will then have finished growing and maturing mentally. Dogs that are neutered early can exhibit 'puppy like' behaviour for their entire lives, which can be tiring for the owner. They can also become very tall and gangly, and ther eis also some evidence to show early neutering can exaccerbate any hip/joint problems that are underlying, due to the effect of neutering on the closure of the growth plates. (neutering delays the closure of the growth plates)

Neutering obviously elimates completely the risk of testicular cancer, but can increase the risk of prostate cancer, something much harder to treat. Early neutering can also increase the risk of bone cancers.

Although neutering means your dog cannot successfully mate a bitch, responsible ownership also does that, and scent marking/roaming are behaviour issues or can be controlled environmentally. (eg, better fencing, closing gates, proper training etc will prevent roaming)

With regard to breeding from your dog... unless you are prepared to show him, and do well in the ring (something very hard with a prolific breed like a lab) then it is unlikely you'd get any responsible bitch owners who wanted to use him at stud. Also, you really need ot be prepared to be as equally responsible for the puppies produced as the bitch owner, and be prepared to take them on if their owner or the bitch owner can no longer keep them. Breeding is also risky health wise to your dog. Also, your dog will probably have endorsements on his papers if his parents are from a decent breeder with show dogs themselves, which means you cannot breed from him and register the puppies unless the breeder agrees to lift those endorsements, which may well be subject to a good show career.

If you think you might want to breed/show, why not ask your puppies breeder about a ringcraft class near you? It is kin dof like atraining class, and will teach your puppy to stand and be felt all over and have his mouth lookd in by a 'judge', which, even if you decide showing isn't for you, will mean your dog will be easy for the vet to handle in the future. It si also really good to get your puppy socialised with lots of different breeds of dog of all ages in a 'safe' enviroment. (all dogs will be on leads)

I hope this helps.

slushy06 · 23/12/2009 13:19

It really helps I really am unsure about what I intend to do.

If there were any problems with puppies I would gladly take them in but the only problem is I am not sure I would let them go. I had a litter of kittens and I was 15 one was very small and I had to feed him after the mum because he could not attach effectively and it broke my heart to let them go the only reason I did was because I had two friends who had just lost cats at a ripe old age and took two kittens each so they went in paires and to people I knew but it is alot harder finding homes for ten puppies than 4 kittens.

So I really don't know I think I need to think about this alot I am not sure I could go through giving puppies away again

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