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Originally Posted by gemy  Somewhere between 8mths to one year old - and maybe earlier the growth plates will close. You are essentially right on the cusp with your puppy at this point in time.
If the marking behaviour is already under control a couple of more months won't hurt .. again in my opinion.
I have no behavourial problems with my intact Yorkie. But then again I am breeder (although not of Yorkies), he is not aggressive, he does not roam, he does not hump pillows other dogs human legs, etc. How-ever he will mark in the house when I have a female in heat. Belly bands help with this. And BTW he is my only male that will mark in the house.
In my opinion there is little downside to waiting until he is more mature.
Owning an intact dog is a responsibility that you need to be up for, should you decide not to neuter him. That means making sure he does not mate, inadvertently or not. If he does mate with the pretty gal next door, it is your responsibility to financially and otherwise take care of that litter. Again in my opinion.
There is one other thing I have noticed and experienced, often times intact dogs can become the target of neutered males. Keep that one in mind.
If this was my dog I would wait longer until one year old for neutering. |
There have been countless research and studies by reputable vet s and vet schools, oncologists, reproduction specialists, behavioral specialists, etc that all point to the bottom line:
"Research published in 2000 in the Journal of Pediatric Endocrinology and Metabolism may explain why dogs sterilized before puberty are inclined to grow abnormally:
"At puberty, estrogen promotes skeletal maturation and the gradual, progressive closure of the epiphyseal growth plate, possibly as a consequence of both estrogen-induced vascular and osteoblastic invasion and the termination of chondrogenesis.In addition, during puberty and into the third decade, estrogen has an anabolic effect on the osteoblast and an apoptotic effect on the osteoclast, increasing bone mineral acquisition in axial and appendicular bone.
It appears the removal of estrogen-producing organs in immature dogs, female and male, can cause growth plates to remain open. These animals continue to grow and wind up with abnormal growth patterns and bone structure. This results in irregular body proportions."
As a breeder, I sell only on a spay/neuter contract. I whole heartedly encourage spaying and neutering our pets. All the research results I have sifted through indicate 8 months to 1 year old for small breed dogs, usually allows for the necessary time needed to allow for completion of growth in the growth plates. Large breed dogs may take up to 2 years to complete their growth. I encourage my owners to have their pups spayed/neutered between 8 months to a year old. More recent studies have indicated it is not a bad idea to allow a female to go through one heat cycle before spaying.....that used to be considered "an old wife's tale", but it seems there may be some validation to that thought process. The unfortunate thing is, many pet owners are not responsible enough to keep an intact female from getting bred.....and THAT is detrimental to her health as well. Males start to mark as their hormones begin to "flow"....most owners do not want to deal with that and getting a male neutered when you notice him beginning to mark, will usually halt this marking behavior....that usually starts around 8 months of age....if you have his marking under control, if you can wait a couple more months it will benefit him I believe, based on all the studies and research I have read. I had a little male that I thought I may want to sell to a show home.....I wanted to wait until I could see him develop as much as possible....he started marking, he even started trying to hump on some of his stuffed toys....I ended up neutering him and he stopped marking behaviors, pees like a little girl, and has not humped any toys since the surgery.....he is a little over a year old.....so I think you can wait on your neutering until he is closer to a year old.....at least 8 months old......