They love a bit of him (Podlife)

[HangingOver]

Hello my fabulous Podsquad, here is Podcast Thread III.

For anyone that is new to this thread, it's about my rescue dog, known as Pod.

Here is thread No. 2 https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/the_doghouse/5197068-the-pod-cast?page=39&reply=141216881

And thread No 1 https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/the_doghouse/5177112-oh-my-giddy-god?page=1

for if anyone would like to go back and see how astonishingly naïve and traumatised I was by taking on a fully grown, teenaged pointy dog who seemed determined to destroy me and everything I love.

Theatrics over, here is the Pod in question (obviously I've edited the lead out - I'm not mental).

If anyone doesn't have is Insta handle and wants it, just DM me. A video of me and Pod doing yoga together will appear at some point soon.

Fantastic update! Fingers crossed the drop in hormones settles him down, and you no longer get humped by him.

Not sure Pod is going to share your sentiment.😙

What a day you've had @HangingOver .

Great news about the op. Will they help you as I am worried how he'll be afterwards as he seems an emotionally responsive chap?

My dog had me up four times in the night and I don't think I had two hours of consecutive sleep. Having had a very very very difficult conversation with my ex h I really need sleep. Can I be cheeky and selfish and ask for any spare vibes to be sent to me of a sleep variety for my dog please?

100% sympathise re massive randy male adolescent rescue dogs. When ours was at that age he frequently humped me and it hurt! He would grab on with his claws and I had scratches and bruises on my legs

I tried to hold out til 18 months with him but caved around 14 or so. It did 100% stop him humping people although less successful with humping other dogs. I don't care when people say it's non sexual and just excitement and neutering won't necessarily help. It did for us.

It also made him much more interested in food and therefore much much easier to train. You do have to cut back their rations and monitor weight

It did not immediately make him noticeably more reactive (he already was a bit). He has gradually got more dog selective as he got older and he is definitely reactive to large intact male dogs now but he was to some extent anyway.

I think neutering was a good decision for him and us overall.

Plus no daycare, dog walker, sitter or kennels would take him intact over a year old so that was a factor as well.

Ours also goes to kennels

• no sitters will actually have him. Once one came for an interview and he pinned her in a corner and humped her. Then she left and did not call back. I also worry they would not be safe walking him.

• home boarders will not have him either and I worry he would chew up their cushions

• he loves playing with other dogs more than anything in the world. They send me videos and he has a great time it appears

• he's quite a basic kind of dog who isn't overly attached to humans and likes lying outside in the cold by choice (although he also loves a sofa) so he doesn't hate the kennels materially

I chose the place carefully to be one where dogs can mix in selected groups with loads of land and they also take them out on walks on their private land.

It's horses for courses. It would not suit my sisters anxious and very people oriented dog but my massive over enthusiastic dog is better off in kennels I am sure.

It’s good to read people’s thoughts on kennels. My 11 month old has a habit of eating pyjamas etc if given half a chance. Although lots of friends have offered to take him I feel the risk is too great. Especially as they all have kids so really can’t assume things will be left out of reach. He also loves playing with other dogs and was raised on a farm with lots of other dogs and cats around so I think he’d be quite happy in a kennel where he could mix with the dogs during the day. No oversee holiday plans this year anyway.

@Twiglets1 There are some valid reasons for leaving it longer, for sure - MontyDons link gives you some idea.

Castration/spaying is not without potentially negative side effects, some of which are considerably worse than the much touted benefits!

For long leggity and larger breeds, castration prepubertally has a link to increase in osteosarcoma which is particularly nasty, aggressive, fast moving and tends to only be symptomatic when things are far too late, and before joint plates have closed is linked to cruciate ligament ruptures (and as that costs thousands per op and almost all dogs who do one will then do the other... and many insurance companies will exclude both if one goes, its not an insignificant issue).

This is because those hormones we remove when we castrate are involved in developing bone density and the closure of growth plates affects how straight/true a limb is. Keep one long bone growing whilst its 'pair' has stopped, and you twist the limb, putting undue force on the ligaments.

So for boys, I ideally wait as long as possible*, small breeds 12 months, larger breeds 18+. For bitches, after the first or second season as long as the long bones are done growing, growth plates closed.

*In some cases we just can't due to behavioural issues. I had my GBGV done at 12 months because his balls were driving him to be a Total Prick towards our other dogs, and it was very very clear he had no idea why he had the urges to behave the way he did. Minus balls he is a very diplomatic character but with them any hint of competition or threat and he instantly took up the challenge, could not walk away, despite I believe, dearly wanting to!

@WiddlinDiddlin What's your thoughts on the negatives of spaying? I'm convinced my girl became reactive after she was spayed. She always seemed to suffer quite badly from phantom pregnancies and I'm concerned we didn't spay at quite the right time in her cycle

@HangingOver I know you've had a rough day, but that recall was a massive win!
I had to recall mine away from a jogger I hadn't clocked recently- I literally dumped the contents of my treat pouch on the ground as she came back within grabbing distance

Yay for recall.

Good luck for Monday!

Will he have to wear a cone of shame? 😬

No data to suggest it can do that though there is some to suggest if a bitch is aggressive before spaying she is likely to be worse afterwards.

I do think the drop in hormones can leave both bitches and dogs feeling confused and anxious and as often vets do not warn people about that, it is very very easy for owners to accidentally put their dog into a situation thats too much, not realising this...

And then single event learning.. is a thing. One bad experience can affect a dogs behaviour for a long time, if that happens during a wobbly phase where they are a bit mixed up and anxious, mm!

Otherwise the negatives of spaying are only really applicable if done pre-pubertally, which is the delay in closing growth plates, likelyhood of micro-genitals (not properly developed, leading to a higher rate of infection and a higher chance of urinary incontinence in bitches), higher risk of osteosarcoma etc.

For dogs the balance is tipped toward waiting, because entire dogs get a benign prostate condition (makes them wee what looks like blood, fixed by castrating, tends not to happen until v elderly) whereas castrated dogs get prostate cancer which is... not easily detected and will spread.

For a bitch really struggling with phantom pregnancies and phantom whelpings (where they are convinced htey have had puppies, guard small objects, nest, make milk etc) then it can be nigh on impossible to spay at the 'right' time and you have to do the best you can, and spaying is better than not.

The Stick Dog was done at around 18 months as she had wild phantoms, stole remote controls to keep as puppies ( i think the rubbery buttons felt like little noses and paw pads), made milk, etc etc, whereas ideally I'd have waited until she was two and a half as long leggity, higher risk of cancer breed.

@WiddlinDiddlin That's really interesting and really helpful, thank you. She wasn't aggressive before, absolutely loved all other dogs.
The single event learning theory actually does make perfect sense. We had lots of wobbly moments around seasons, phantoms etc so no doubt hormones were all over the place after the spay too.

@2025willbemytime hope you had a better night.

Podhump count today is 8 so far. His willy even left a wet patch on my trousers so I had to resist the urge to burn them wash them 🤢

I think, although you've had a traumatic/gross/battered time of it from Pod's hormonal behaviour, it should absolutely absolve you of any feelings of guilt for booking his operation - it's in his best interests and yours 🙂

NOOOOOooooooooooo... dog jizz. 😬

The vet actually offered me a slot tomorrow but I declined because he has a playdate with his Pod pals on Friday afternoon which I didn't want him to be coned for. I should have taken it as he's basically chasing me round the house now.

Does he have his own diary, or did you tell him about his Friday fun?
Have you explained to him that he might feel a little uncomfortable in a few days time?

Thank you. She made me let her out once and barked twice more then went quiet so much better than the night before. She's had two long walks today so I'm hoping she'll return the favour and sleep through.

I walked Pod through the town centre today which I've never done before, destination Pet Shop. I was quite impressed with him! He walked mostly nicely although he was obviously extremely excited. He did absolutely lose his shit at a French Bulldog for no reason I can fathom but did some very nice passes and made friends with a beautifully Staffy called Rose. I had to remove him when he became a bit amorous.

TWO people have told me in the last 24 hours that their Mum's Cousin's Hairdresser's dog got neutered and it made no difference to their humping but I have to have faith at this stage.

I was quite impressed with him! He walked mostly nicely although he was obviously extremely excited.

Look how far you've both come! 👏👏

Well done Pod for walking so well with you 😎

Our boy was de-plumbed by the rescue just before we adopted him, he's never humped anyone 🙂 Fingers crossed it calms Pod down 😎

It may take a month or so for his hormones to regulate post balls, but ignore the naysayers and listen and take advice from your vet,

Brilliant news about a town walk! Thats a whole different experience for him, and you both handled it beautifully 🙂

Well done Pod!

Thanks. I can't go on like this. He's been humping and biting me every time I stand up since about 4pm. It's SO extreme no wonder there's bloody millions of Pods needing homes they must reproduce like rabbits.