Neutering because of aggression from other dogs

[MyDuvetDay]

Has anyone neutered a dog to prevent him being subject to aggression by other dogs?

Ive just had yet another incident where my dog (friendly) was saying “hello” to another dog while on our usual walk and the other dog suddenly flipped and went after mine snarling/biting aggressively. It was so terrifying for me and my dog, and his snout must have got scraped/grazed because there was a small amount of blood. The owner of the other dog was very defensive and basically said it happened because my dog is intact, as if her dog’s behaviour was justified on that basis.

this isn’t the first time I’ve heard this from other dog owners when their dog has snarled or had a go at mine. Mine was bitten by another male dog last year.

so while we weren’t planning to neuter our dog, I’m wondering if doing so would help protect him from this kind of aggression. Has anyone had a similar experience or have any advice?

Thank you. I’d personally never neuter a boy again unless for individual medical reasons as I can’t see a clear benefit and medical opinion seems much less mixed but as you say, it’s a very personal choice . I lost mine to osteosarcoma, which wasn’t studied in this paper specifically but as you say, was bloody awful.
New girl (11 months now) will have 2 seasons for sure, then I’ll assess based on how she copes hormonally and how easy managing a high drive working lines dog in season in a very suburban area becomes! Not because of my ability to manage her, but because other people don’t have control over their dogs which rules out all off lead opportunities for her safety- unless I can find a hire field which allows girls in season!

Thankfully we have lots of safe spaces near us where in season bitches are allowed. I wouldn’t risk an in season girl off lead around any other dogs. It’s not about training but instinct. Both of mine are in season and one was driving the other a bit nuts the other day!

You misunderstand me (I worded it badly)
I don’t have anywhere I could take her where I could have enough space to ensure we were far away from other dogs
Not a bloody chance I’d have her off lead around others - or even on lead where we might come across those off lead

And restriction to on lead road walks and my small garden for 3+ weeks at a time may prove impractical

We are so lucky with our secure fields. I have access to an awesome one. Fenced well and nearly 10 acres. It’s not a cheap way to exercise them but on lead for weeks isn’t fun and my garden is tiny!!

Try an implant ‘Suprelorin’ which mimics castration and lasts for 6 months (12month also available). It will enable you to see how castration affects him and the behaviour of other dogs towards him. I suspect it’s your dog’s attitude that is drawing the aggression to him. It’s worth getting a behaviourist in to advise.
Castration can adversely affect a dog so it’s definitely worth a test run.

Speaking as said behaviourist this is my take on chemical implants

The implant (Suprelorin) is reversible physically, but it can temporarily change a dog’s hormones and behaviour enough that they learn new aggressive habits, and those habits can stick even after the drug wears off.

No drug is without potential side effects and I have seen first hand more than one dog become permanently reactive due to the testosterone surge that is initially experienced with this drug. Some vets now recommend a second jab to blunt that surge alongside Suprelorin
In short, use with caution, do your research and if possible ask your vet about the second jab. Careful management during the period of hormonal flux is highly recommended to reduce the chance of issues

I did end up neutering my dog for opposite reasons: he was quite aggressive towards other dogs 😆

If you do end up considering this, highly recommend speaking with the vet first to discuss best options. Given the costs of vet visits these days, would recommend shopping around. Price comparison sites like vetnear.co.uk can help you find the fairest price.

How miserable.

My dog doesn’t approach others, just bumbles along. He has been snarled at/attacked by dogs and that is the other owner’s problem . My dog, off-lead or on, is walking past you minding his own business. (He plays with known quantities!)

If you have a “reactive” (what is this new parlance?) dog then that is unfortunate but it is for you to deal with. Hire a private field. Demanding others accommodate you is unreasonable.

I’ve had people squealing that their dog is in season (my dog isn’t interested but why are you even in a dog park?!) and one nice woman roaring that my dog was giving off vibes that made her dog go for him.

A few of my observations:

I currently have an entire ridgeback, two neutered labs, and a neutered husky in for day care. We will walk later with an entire Portuguese waterdog, and an entire German shepherd. I rarely have issues caused by a dog being entire / neutered. I do have issues where the owner is anxious and the dog picks up on it. I also have issues where the dogs haven't been taught manners. If dog A runs up to dog B, the likelihood is that dog B will consider dog A to be rude and may well tell it off. This often looks like aggression.

Dogs do not need to interact with every other dog they meet. Sure, they enjoy playing with each other, but this (as with pretty much all dog behaviour) should be supervised and not left to the dog to manage.

Walking a dog on lead all the time is actually illegal as it contravenes the animal welfare act of 2006 (section 9 if anyone is interested). The specific wording is that an animal kept in captivity must be given the opportunity to exhibit its normal behaviour patterns. Obviously, if the dog is given such an opportunity elsewhere, then lead walking is fine.

I would say that in 99% of cases I deal with / dogs I look after, the cause is the owner. I get that this is probably controversial, but people don't know what they don't know, and for some reason the human race has reached a point where we think we can take an animal that has been specifically bred over generations to exhibit certain traits, and get them to ignore those traits because they look cute. It always amazes me. With a little education, adjustment of the owners expectations, and some effort, both owners and dogs have a much happier ongoing relationship and existence.

We neutered our lovely dog because of aggression from intact dogs. Our vet said there was no guarantee that he would get attacked less often but that it might help. And it really did. Intact dogs completely ignore him now.

I agree. My dog will approach all dogs if I let him to play with them but am trying my hardest to train him not to and on the odd occasion we have had a slip up I always apologise! He hasn’t got a nasty bone in his body.

I’ve also had people tell me to castrate him because their dog doesn’t like entire males and even had one shout “she doesn’t like black dogs!” when his dog was lunging barking and snarling at my on-lead dog who was just ignoring her. Not sure there’s a way to change his coat colour 🙄

@VanGoSunflowers glove punch in sympathy. I’m not mutilating my dog for your benefit! Idiots.

That being said my dog has had the implant. He has never bothered another dog and never once humped, but he started manically following scents and his recall disappeared. When he suddenly charged across a main road and I apprehended him in a Tesco Express I had to take action. Normal service - and great recall - resumed!

Yep!

Totally different story in my opinion, you’re neutering for your dog’s benefit/safety! Mine is only 15 months old, he doesn’t hump, shows zero aggression and has such a lovely temperament that I don’t want to mess with that! Glad normal service resumed for you 😊

I have a nearly 3 year old male lab. When he was about 4 months old I rang the vet to book neutering op believing it still took place at around 6 months old only be informed thats no longer the case and they now only do it from 18 months old. At the time my inward reaction was "Whaaaaaaaaat?" I couldn't believe it and expected to have to manage a completely unmanageable rougue. Turned out that wasn't the case either. The more time passed the more I.questioned whether he needed it at all.

Now I no longer want him neutered unless theres a clear reason to that benefits him and me. I may be forced to as I believe our local council only licenses dog day care and dog boarding for neutered dogs, and sooner or later I might need to use these. I think I'd prefer the chemical route for him if needed.
In terms of aggression from other male dogs he's been snapped, snarled at or bitten by at least 3 different male dogs.(chased and bitten in one incident).
In every case the perpetrators have been rescues who'd spent their early years very under socialised. So I've tended to blame the perpetrators historic lack of socialisation rather than the fact my dog is unneutered. That said, he's certainly been snarled or snapped at more often that I ever would have expected for such a friendly good natured dog. When these incidents have happened my dogs never reacted with the slightest trace of agression. Hes literally never growled, snapped, snarled or postured at anothrt dog in his life since I got him at 2 months old. In every case the most hes done is move away and look bewildered.
So maybe his unneutered status is a factor. I don't know how to tell one way or another. If I believed it were I probably would get the op.done for his sake. Buy I think another poster made a good point that in countries where the ops illegal there aren't necessarily more dog problems.

Oh. I just read this. That's concerning. I.didnt like the idea of the testosterone surge but hadn't imagined it could lead to reactivity. Thanks for sharing. It's given me more pause for thought.

My dog is entire and has been attacked a few times, always neutered dogs. I've also heard that it's because he smells unusual because he's entire.

It's got better as he's got older, he's 6 now and it definitely happens less. Maybe because I'm more cautious, maybe because he's more confident, I'm not sure.

He's not bothered about meeting other dogs, male or female, so I tend to just scoot him around others.

I have an intact Weimaraner who’s three years old. Poor boy has met so many dogs that react to him that he doesn’t know where to turn.
we go by the fact that it really isn’t essential for dogs to socialise.
were fortunate that we walk him in fields, if I see a dog in the distance I will put him on the lead.
invariably a dog will come bounding toward him with the owner not insight.
they’ll give him a sniff and he’ll be polite enough to stand steady for a minute or two, but then will have had enough.
still no owner insight.
my poor boy who has shown real tolerance then gets in to fight or flight mode.
Nothing to do with him being intact but more a useless owner letting their dog approach all and sundry. Usually spaniel owners where I live.
I know my dog, he has some dogs he is allowed off with.
but people that allow their dogs to approach my dog are idiots.
im not going to neuter him because he ‘might’ be more friendly to your dog.

he’s fine as he is.
I think it’s neutered dogs that are more of a problem in my experience.

I 100% agree with this. There is one dog in our local park that goes for my dog and the owner says its because hes entire. I see it going for other dogs both castrated and female. No way im getting my dog unnecessarily castrated because people cant train their dogs and use that as an excuse.

We were advised not to have our dog neutered as he was already quite anxious and vet thought it would make him worse.

He is no longer with us. I have another unneutered male. We didn't neuter him because we had both dogs until receand vets thought it could change the dynamic if we neutered him.

Both are/were bernese mountain dogs, so big creatures. We know which dogs to avoid and my current boy wears an adaptil collar to help with any anxiety.