YorkieTalk.com Forums - Yorkshire Terrier Community - View Single Post - I'm totally undecided about having Riley neutered.

hunniebunnie · 01-23-2006, 08:31 PM

i had the same second thoughts earlier this month when i made the appointment for bunjee's neutering. i feel so badly for him every time he's sore from his shots. i didn't know how he will react to surgery. he has such a sweet temperament. i would love to have more little bunjees around as well as my parents and my in-laws. for a while i was toying with the idea... maybe just one litter...

but i think the key is "i am not a breeder". i wouldn't know the first thing about breeding a healthy litter. pet ownership is a big responsibility. whelping a litter will be an even bigger responsibility with more financial investment and time commitment. realistically, i'm not sure that's something i can handle.

i weighed the health benefits of testicular cancer prevention; behavior benefits if he never developes behaviors such as leg lifting, marking, roaming, and fighting; safety benefits by being more responsive to commands and less likely to run away in search of females in heat; social benefits because i wouldn't be too afraid of taking him to visit other people in their homes, behaviors such as marking, once it becomes a habit, it may decrease but not unlearned and he may exhibit the behavior out of habit rather than testosterone need. my friend brought her 2 yr old shih-tzu over once. he's neutered before he was adopted at the shelter when he was about a year and a half. he wanted to mark everything. he nearly pee'd on me.

so, cutting to the chase, bunjee went in for his neutering this morning. he got home a few hours ago. he's sleeping right now but otherwise he's recovering wonderfully. i am confident i made the right decision.

you'll have to make the decision for riley on your own. i'm sure you'll make the right one for both you and riley! good luck!

01-23-2006, 08:31 PM	#6
hunniebunnie Follower of Yorkietology Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Cali-fo-nee-ya Posts: 1,325	i had the same second thoughts earlier this month when i made the appointment for bunjee's neutering. i feel so badly for him every time he's sore from his shots. i didn't know how he will react to surgery. he has such a sweet temperament. i would love to have more little bunjees around as well as my parents and my in-laws. for a while i was toying with the idea... maybe just one litter... but i think the key is "i am not a breeder". i wouldn't know the first thing about breeding a healthy litter. pet ownership is a big responsibility. whelping a litter will be an even bigger responsibility with more financial investment and time commitment. realistically, i'm not sure that's something i can handle. i weighed the health benefits of testicular cancer prevention; behavior benefits if he never developes behaviors such as leg lifting, marking, roaming, and fighting; safety benefits by being more responsive to commands and less likely to run away in search of females in heat; social benefits because i wouldn't be too afraid of taking him to visit other people in their homes, behaviors such as marking, once it becomes a habit, it may decrease but not unlearned and he may exhibit the behavior out of habit rather than testosterone need. my friend brought her 2 yr old shih-tzu over once. he's neutered before he was adopted at the shelter when he was about a year and a half. he wanted to mark everything. he nearly pee'd on me. so, cutting to the chase, bunjee went in for his neutering this morning. he got home a few hours ago. he's sleeping right now but otherwise he's recovering wonderfully. i am confident i made the right decision. you'll have to make the decision for riley on your own. i'm sure you'll make the right one for both you and riley! good luck!