Pros & cons of neutering

[aperolspritzbasicbitch]

Is anyone able to point me in the direction of some good independent studies on the pros & cons of neutering please?

I've just booked my medium/large cross in to be done when he turns 18 months, and now all I can do is worry that it will have a negative impact on him 😬

Our vet gave us advice on whether to have our boxer dog neutered. He said that, in very basic terms, that because he was such a calm dog with a great personality that it would be better not to do it as the change in hormones can affect their personality. So we didn't get it done and just were responsible his whole life (nearly 15 years of it!)
Have you spoken to your vet? They should know your dog well enough to give you personal advice if that helps? I know its not exactly what you asked but I just thought it was worth a mention

There are very heated debates about this. Best advice is not to listen to anonymous people on forums. Speak to your vet for qualified advice and fully express your concerns.

I agree - speak to a few individuals who know your dog well and you trust their opinion (vet/trainer etc) - my opinion on it varies a lot depending on the dog and whilst I think it can have a big positive effect on some dogs a lot of people castrate for the sake of it with no behavioural advantage. A good way to see the effect it may have your dog without it being permanent is chemical castration but you can't guarantee the effect on behaviour will be exactly the same (although in my experience it is)

Hart et al, Assisting Decision Making on Age of Neutering for Mixed Breed Dogs of Five Weight Categories: Associated Joint Disorders and Cancers, 2020 is a good place to start. There is a companion paper which looks at 35 breeds

Aside from health, also consider mental maturity. I have a notoriously late maturing breed and wait till they are 3 or 4 to let them grow up a bit. Even then, it's only really concern about pyometra that bothers me, though DH would rather not have the worry of an in-season bitch about the place.

I wouldn’t neuter any dog until mature. With girls it stops the risk of pyometra. But I haven’t neutered since it increases the risk of bone cancer in wolfhounds.
With boys I can’t really see a huge benefit. I’m sure they can get testicular tumours but unless you have entire males and females together then I’m not sure why you would.
IMO too many people neuter young with no thought. But then I show and have giant dogs. Both reasons why people don’t neuter or do it late.
Why do you plan to neuter?
And have you considered the implant?

I have a large chonk. We were going to neuter him as we always did before and it was the done thing. This chonk was an absolute dick and the vet advised to wait until maturity otherwise he would locked into his dickishness. By the time he was mature and covid passed, I didn't want to put him through such a massive surgery and pain for a non-essential reason. He is very sensitive and it would have had such a negative effect on him. Add to that the research that suggests it can cause or increase certain health issues, I thought why bother? The cost was significant. He is not an off lead breed so there is no risk around females in season and displays no associated negative behaviour.

The only issue is that kennels and doggy day care won't take him but I wouldn't do that anyway.

We neutered our beagle and in hindsight I wish we hadn't.

He's an amazing dog at home but after being attacked a couple of times on walks he's terrified of being approached by off-lead dogs and I do wonder whether keeping his balls would have given him more confidence.

He's not aggressive and has never even tried to bite another dog but he panics and would definitely bolt off if he slipped his lead or something. It's done now but I won't be neutering our next male unless medically necessary.

Our vet does not recommend neutering males unless medically or behaviourally necessary.

Females after at least one season for small dogs and two or three for larger.

Our pup was booked in to be spayed after her first season BUT then adolescence hit and after a discussion with the vet, and other trainers I know, we’ve decided to wait until after her second where she should be through adolescence and more emotionally stable. She will be around 18 months old then (she is a small terrier).

I dont castrate male dogs unless there is a clear need to.

I have 6 male dogs at the moment, 2 had a bollock removed as it was undescended (but removed at age 3). Others still have both intact.

I will spay females as there are major health benefits but wait until the bitches are mature and after several seasons.

There is a quite a lot of evidence around to help advise you but the advice is now pretty consistent from the medics.

All my male dogs are neutered as they run around (Zoomies) and I didn't want the distress of bollocks being ripped or torn in brambles etc

Our lab is booked in next week. Must admit, am nervous about it. However, various trainers and vets have advised it. He is a very lively lab and wees on every lamppost going. He’s a lovely natured lab so hope his personality doesn’t change, apart from stopping weeing, and maybe becoming a little calmer.

I've had two rescues, both male. The first one wasn't neutered until he was 9 or 10, and for medical reasons.

The latest one has been neutered at two and a half. Several reasons. Calm him down a bit, stop him weeing over every lamp post (he does it every other lamp post now), but mainly as the day care / boarding won't take complete dogs.

The only downside so far is that having shown no aggression to other dogs prior to op, he is now a little growly towards complete dogs. Apparently this is quite common.

I believe there is an implant available which mimics castration, to see how your dog would react to being castrated, it’s reversible, so likely a better option at 18 months than fully castrating him, and if he has negative effects you’ll know it’s either not the right time/not right at all for your dog, based on how he reacts.

IMO the 'neuter everything' culture we have is a bit of a throwback to the time when dogs roamed unsupervised, overpopulation was a big problem and drowning a bag of puppies or kittens was often the 'solution'.

I'd spay a female due to the risk of pyometra, but I'm not sure I'd routinely castrate males. In one of the Scandinavian countries it's actually illegal to neuter unless medically necessary.

My intact year old dog is starting to get aggressive with occasional dogs he encounters. It's always a young intact male like himself, especially if there's any female dogs around. Am I right to think neutering would solve this? He's mostly really friendly with dogs he meets and wants to play. He's quite confident with other dogs, often approaching first and instigating play. But recently we've had a few growly snappy encounters...which have escalated quickly into a noisy fight.

It won’t necessarily stop weeing, they still like to mark, we call it texting!
Some vets want to do it too young, they need to be mature, the growth plates need to have closed & there’s no guarantee as to effect on temperament, as lots have already said. There are various opinions & published papers on incidence of cancer etc.
I don’t neuter unless for a medical reason & have only had two cases of pyometra in over forty years of multiple dogs & both of them recovered quickly & fully after the op. If you have a long coated or silky coated breed it does alter the coat quite markedly. Of course if you have a pedigree & want to try showing then they must be entire under Kennel Club rules unless you’ve obtained a special dispensation on medical grounds.

Not sure, but I think neutering can aggravate aggressiveness. I

(May be worth googling this, as I’m not sure on this)

What breed? At his age, I don't think it would help. The vet told me it locks them in this behaviour so you wait for it to pass/train it out of them.

I've 5 dogs, I've never considered neutering any.

Personally I would always neuter any dog I had as I don't want to have to worry about them off lead around other dogs. A well adjusted dog should not be affected by neutering (according to PDSA).

Neutering can make an already anxious dog more anxious as confidence comes from testosterone. But if you have an anxious dog then you really need to ask yourself why and be working on the issue. To many people buy puppies from puppy farms and back street breeders and then wonder why they don't have a well adjusted dog.

@itsmyp4rty
My pup came from a well researched, visited multiple times breeder who did loads of socialising/ interaction with their pups. We met his mum on numerous occasions. All his siblings are very confident friendly dogs. He's always been a bit flighty and nervous. I've no idea why, he was not obviously like this when we chose him, and he's been socialised, puppy training etc , exactly the same as my previous dogs have been.

Neutering can make an already anxious dog more anxious as confidence comes from testosterone. But if you have an anxious dog then you really need to ask yourself why and be working on the issue. To many people buy puppies from puppy farms and back street breeders and then wonder why they don't have a well adjusted dog.

My dog is anxious/fearful because he's been pinned down, bitten and attacked multiple times while out on walks. He was on the lead every single time so it's not like he approached these dogs and got told to "piss off". Once, he was just minding his own business sniffing when a terrier ran over and bit him on the neck.

Any dog can become fearful and reactive, no matter how "well adjusted" they were as puppies, and no matter how good the breeder is.