Fact or fiction?
 

When TeeJay reaches 6 months I am planning to have him neutered. My boyfriend on the other hand is TOTALLY against it. The reason being that he doesnt think TeeJay should lose his "manhood" as he would call it. Well just recently he said he found out some information about neutering that will change my mind. He says that neutering TeeJay will make him gain alot weight and to also be very lazy. I dont know if he's just making that up because he's against removing his "manhood parts" (since that was his original argument). I would rather take a fat and lazy TeeJay over an unhealthy TeeJay anyday. But I want to make sure he's not making it up so my question is.. is he right?

Secondly, since TeeJay is "our" dog, should I respect his opinion and not get him neutered. I know what the consequences are if you dont get your dog neutered and it really does worry me. I've tried explaining to him what could happen if he doesnt get neutured (and so has the vet!) but he thinks it's not fair for TeeJay to lose his "manhood". He even backfired at the vet and asked if human men got their's removed, would that make them healthier and live longer? (I was sooo embarrassed) What would you guys do if you were in my position?

I would neuter him.

1) Health reasons
2) He will hump things more and lift his leg more if you don't get him neutered.
3) Chance of having puppies-if you don't want them

Baxter is neutered. He was neutered around 7-8 months old. He weighs 6.2 lbs and is by no means overweight-not even close. He is by no means lazy-he is active.

This does not cause them to be overweight. That is caused by not getting exercise and eating too much or too much table food.

It's my opinion, but I feel that dogs should be neutered or spayed unless you plan to breed. There really is no reason not to have it done. But, that's my opinion.

When we "did" Baxter, I was kind of hesitant only because I felt like I was taking away his "man hood." But, after it was done, I felt good about it. I wish I hadn't waited as long as I did.

Neutering him will also cut down the chance that he will mark in your house.

I agree, neutering him keeps him healthier, happier, and supposedly they stay playful puppies longer.

Sully was neutered at 6 months of age....and TRUST me, he has his "manhood parts" and he's just as much ALL BOY as he ever was!

Just because a boy dog can't reproduce doesn't mean he's any less of a "man" ;)

Neutered ones that gained weight are those who don't have exercize and eat poor quality food .

Thanks guys. I should have my boyfriend read this thread so he might change his mind about neutering. I guess someone told him that dogs are less hyper when they're neutered, so that's why he thinks they get fat and lazy.

Good luck because it is a taboo that is hard to take out of peoples mind .

My Gioia have been spayed and she is the same as she was . She didn't gaine an ounce .

Chachi is right. I didn't neuter Baxter when I could have-I waited (kind of for the same reason that your bf doesn't want this done). Anyway, Baxter started to mark in my house!!! :mad: I was mad. So, I had him neutered. He has not marked in the house since!

It honestly is the best thing to do for so many reasons.

Jade and Choulita are spayed and they never ever gained weight . Of course , they are calmer . Most gain of weight in males or females are due to lack of exercize and bad food .

Archie is neutered but I know a lot of dogs in my neighborhood that aren't neutered and are just fine. I've spoken to them and they told me that their vets said it's OK not to neuter, but usually, it turns on whether they plan to breed or not. Plus, keep in mind that most show dogs aren't neutered. My take on the situation:

The weight thing is a myth. People say that neutering stops the dog from humping...not true! It's a dominance thing, so they might still do it to exert dominance. Also, it doesn't stop them from marking. That's a territorial thing. And as for the testicular cancer thing, yes, having no testicles will reduce the chance of testicular cancer, but on the other hand, having no skin could reduce the chance of skin cancer...

I'd say talk to a vet and get the facts. A lot of animal shelters do neuter to keep the animal population down, and they encourage it. But I think it's best to balance...will you breed your dog? will you show your dog? is your dog a pet? do you let your dog loose a lot? are there lots of other dogs in the neighborhood? what does your vet think? what are the risks of neutering and not neutering?

For me, personally, I had Archie neutered because 1) I didn't plan to breed him, 2) I live in a city where there's a lot of traffic, etc. and I didn't want Archie to run if there was a female dog across the street, 3) I live in a place where everyone seems to have a dog, and I take him to dog parks, etc., so I wanted to minimize the chance of Archie becoming every dog's baby daddy.

Nuetering is a good idea unless you plan to breed. First, it helps curb undesirable behavior such as agression, marking, and humping. Second, it eliminates the risk of testicular cancer and other hormone related illnesses. Third, the possible risks are negligible in comparrison with the benefits. I had Bruce nuetered as early as possible at 4 months, he is still extremely energetic even hyper and is not overweight!

I did not have my toy poodle neutered and really paid the price! He marked in the house quite frequently. It was a never ending battle. Of course it got worse after we studded him out just one time. Wish I would have known that doing that would cause the problem to worsen. He marked at my mom's house because she had an inside dog and after a few times, was not allowed back over there. I totally understood her reasoning but was sad that I couldn't take him to visit or use them to dogsit. He never did get testicular cancer though but that is a very strong argument also FOR neutering in my opinion.

Firstly, neutering does not cause weight gain. It's up to you to keep your dog in good shape. Every pet has the potential to become overweight, and some are more prone than others.
Secondly, and most importantly, your dog will be many many times more likely to develop testicular cancer if he is not neutered. You would be doing your dog a service to neuter him. There are several good sites on the internet devoted to this topic.
I believe your boyfriend needs to do his research rather than making a decision based on emotions and lack of info. Just my opinion. Good luck! :)