Do I need to get my boy castrated? Really?

[MsGameandWatch]

Took him to the groomer today and she asked if I was getting him "done"? And told me how she gets all her dogs done as soon as they hit 8 months. I don't know. Obviously I have thought about but just been delaying really. He's 8 months old and a Scottish terrier. He's obedient and loving though a bit feisty.

I am going to google obviously but have a lot of respect for The Doghouse Collective opinion. So opinions please?

Our previous boy was never neutered on vet advice as he was very nervous and the vet said castration would make it worse. He died of an unrelated illness at 5. Latest dog has a retained testicle they reckon it won't come down so he needs to be done at about 1 before too much fat deposits in the abdomen just in case they need to search for the testicle - could have done without all that its a worry. But otherwise our vet and others have said normally 18 months is optimum.

Current dog is VERY humpy but we want to wait till he is the best age for the op.

Oh - You're Aussie, Maitland!

I think it may be different here in the UK. All (adult) dogs adopted from RSPCA kennels are neutered before they leave for their new homes*. As far as I am aware , puppy adopters have to undertake to neuter the pup at 6 months, but this policy may have changed. Our friend got a puppy from them and had to sign a form to get him castrated, but that was 12 years ago.

*Supposedly. I know of at least two adult male dogs who left for their new homes with their family jewels intact, even though the kennels insisted they'd been "done" and refused to believe the evidence in front of their eyes.

More worrying that an unfettered bitch may slip through their net and end up with a litter,

*unneutered, not unfettered, bfs!

*ffs, not bfs!

(and so it continues . . . )

I'm wondering about this too. I have a 2.5 year-old male pointer. The breeder said to us when we got him that if we did decide to get him done, we shouldn't do it before 2 years because he wouldn't be fully mature. If he were a problem in any way, we'd get it done. But he has not shown the slightest interest in females yet, has never mounted anything and doesn't have behaviour issues (other than pulling on the lead like a flipping train).

Off topic warning...
Eolian:
fifth photo down
What do those look like to you?

GSPs! Cool! No wonder mine can pull so well on the lead. He's only average size for a pointer but he weighs more than my (admittedly skinny) 11 y.o. dd. Pure muscle.

Those faces!

Those mad eyes!!

Those floppy tongues!!!

Those dogs are LOVING IT!!!!!

I love GSPs.

So do I, except when they hog the sofa... Here is mine. He's not going to be allowed on the new sofas (yeah, right).

Hahahaha!

What a tart he is!

Castration makes your dog less likely to be stolen (for breeding)

Castration prevents all kinds of cancers

Castration prevents unwanted pregnancies

Castration calms down aggressive/antisocial behaviour

Your dog IS less likely to be stolen for breeding - if he is a breed which is short-haired. In long-haired breeds, the lack of knackers is not always apparent. (And dogs are often stolen just to be sold on or as fighting dog bait - having no testicles makes no difference here)

Castration means no chance of testicular cancer, but it can cause problems with hints, and increases the likelihood of other types of cancer journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0102241.

Spaying a bitch prevents unwanted pregnancies - but castrating a dog means it is less likely to wander looking for luuurve!

Castration calms down sex-linked aggression. It has no effect on dominance aggression or fear aggression. In some dogs it actually makes them less confident and therefore more likely to behave aggressively (to many dogs "attack is the best means of defence")

I write as someone who has automatically had my dogs neutered for the last 40 years. I have read a lot over that time, and spoke to many very knowledgeable people, and now I would thin very carefully before having a male dog neutered. The cons seem to far outweigh the pros in a lot of cases.

*joints - not hints1

www.associationofanimalbehaviorprofessionals.com/effects_of_neutering.html

I'm not keen on getting my two year old lab neutered. He's got a lovely temperament and is very well behaved. He doesn't hump or chase females. The only thing I would say is he can be a little nervy and I wouldn't want to exacerbate that.

Our dog was a rescue at 17 months. A large cross breed. He hadn't been neutered and we discovered why at several vet checks. He had an undecended testical which involved a large operation as it was tucked up behind his kidney. Although this was done for medical reasons I don't think I would have considered this otherwise. He was a big softy and although I had a previous dog 'done' as he was aggressively male I felt very guilty in this case. However, he lived a long and happy life to the age of 15. Certainly wait until he has matured and then make your decision

I've never castrated any of my boys unless they have sexual behaviour problems. I had a GS and currently have a intact lab, 13 years old, no problems.

In fact only castrated one has been my yorkie, at 3 years old. He was marking everywhere and kept trying to run out the front door, humping cushions etc. All stopped once he had the snip.

If it is a highly sexed dog which humps everything and everyone it will calm him down

Our staffie was 3 and a half. He was rampant! He humped me, cushions, random kids, other dogs (whatever their sex), footballs, chair arms - you name it. He was a very strong, powerful dog - he was at risk of becoming more than a nuisance.

After his op, he gradually calmed down. He was still interested jn lady dogs but they had to be in season for him to bother with them (but he could still do "it"). However he left me, children, strangers, and inanimate objects alone. He remained a cheerful, good-natured nutcase - he had never been aggressive even in his heyday, and didn't change in that respect at all.

He still lifted his leg to wee and was in every respect a "man" except that he became more discerning in his choices of sexual partner (you could almost see the relief on the face of our son's teddy!).

Vet told me the only behaviour catrasting stops is sexual behaviour.

Thing is it's hard to know what behaviour is sexual, apart from the obvious! We took a chance and the marking, running away and humping stopped overnight! So he was obviously a frustrated little chap!

.Got our boy castrated at 14 months ( lab X). Reasons? He was the result of an accidental breeding ( bitch's first season, entire male got to her ) which resulted in 10 pups.
My mum lost her beautiful collie boy to a testosterone fed cancer.
Hasn't calmed his bouncyness down at all

If he's anxious it can make him worse - i certainly won't make him better,

Castration only changes sex-ortented behaviour - territory, anxiety, resource guarding don't improve and can get worse because he loses the confidence that his testosterone gives him.

Personally I wouldn't have him castrated, if this is the only trouble you have with him. Was he a rescue? Or did he lack early socialisation (not necessarily from you, but perhaps as far back as the breeder)? Sometimes if dogs have been bred and kept outside with very little contact with people and other dogs apart from their mother and litter mates, they do tend to be very nervous around people that they don't know on a daily basis.