The Medical Benefits and Risks of Neutering
 

"neutering here meaning spay or castration"

Another member of YT (which hopefully will see this thread) and I have been talking a bit about the benefits vs. risks of neutering dogs.

Now there are reasons cited like population controls/shelter overcrowding, marking, running away, getting injured due to restlessness, inconvience for owner and slight discomfort of being in heat for the dogs, etc. This isn't what we're talking about. What I would like to get to the bottom of is the "medical" benefits vs. risks of s/c, and if there are more benefits than risks, what is the best age to do it and does that age vary by breed.

On the benefit side, we have huge reduction/almost total elimination of mammary cancer if done in time and threat of pyometra taken care of. We also eliminate testicular tumors, etc., etc., etc. Hopefully the exact numbers for all of these things can be posted as this thread grows.

Then on the risk side we have increases in osteosarcoma and hemangiosarcome, urinary incontinence, possible bone issues, and the list goes on. There was a study done on rotties (haven't figured out who did it yet) that is a bit concerning.

So if you have an information, for or against, that is based off of research (don't mean one vet's or person's opinion...), then please post it. :)

Here are some of the articles in my file base that I found interesting and applicable to your queries.The first one on Rotties is the one I believe you are speaking of.


Rottweiler study links ovaries with exceptional longevity


Early Spay/Neuter: An Overview

of early-age gonadectomy in dogs

A population study of neutering status as a risk factor for canine prostate cancer

The following was taken out of the text of a Rutgers University Masters Thesis under the doctrine of Animal Sciences, by Ms L J Sanborn:

On the positive side, neutering male dogs

eliminates the small risk (probably <1%) of dying from testicular cancer

reduces the risk of non-cancerous prostate disorders

reduces the risk of perianal fistulas

may possibly reduce the risk of diabetes (data inconclusive)



On the negative side, neutering male dogs


if done before 1 year of age, significantly increases the risk of osteosarcoma (bone cancer); this is a

common cancer in medium/large and larger breeds with a poor prognosis.

increases the risk of cardiac hemangiosarcoma by a factor of 1.6

triples the risk of hypothyroidism

increases the risk of progressive geriatric cognitive impairment

triples the risk of obesity, a common health problem in dogs with many associated health problems

quadruples the small risk (<0.6%) of prostate cancer

doubles the small risk (<1%) of urinary tract cancers•

increases the risk of orthopedic disorders

increases the risk of adverse reactions to vaccinations

On the positive side, spaying female dogs
if done before 2.5 years of age, greatly reduces the risk of mammary tumors, the most common
malignant tumors in female dogs
nearly eliminates the risk of pyometra, which otherwise would affect about 23% of intact female
dogs; pyometra kills about 1% of intact female dogs
reduces the risk of perianal fistulas

removes the very small risk (
0.5%) from uterine, cervical, and ovarian tumors

On the negative side, spaying female dogs

if done before 1 year of age, significantly increases the risk of osteosarcoma (bone cancer); this is a
common cancer in larger breeds with a poor prognosis
increases the risk of splenic hemangiosarcoma by a factor of 2.2 and cardiac hemangiosarcoma by
a factor of >5; this is a common cancer and major cause of death in some breeds
triples the risk of hypothyroidism

increases the risk of obesity by a factor of 1.6-2, a common health problem in dogs with many

associated health problems

causes urinary “spay incontinence” in 4-20% of female dogs
increases the risk of persistent or recurring urinary tract infections by a factor of 3-4
increases the risk of recessed vulva, vaginal dermatitis, and vaginitis, especially for
female dogs
spayed before puberty
doubles the small risk (<1%) of urinary tract tumors
increases the risk of orthopedic disorders

increases the risk of adverse reactions to vaccinations


Hope this gives you some additional research.

I sent you an article, but I don't think it contains any actual research info - it's' similar to what you captured in your first post though, and is very interesting :). I will see if I can find more too, this is such an interesting subject.

My sister cannot bring herself to neuter her 1.5 yr old male dog. She is a physician, and the more she thought about it and how important hormones are to our bodies, she just could not bring herself to do it. Luckily, he does not mark *at all*.

Interesting on the risk of inc. hypothyroid...bc Wylie is hypothyroid.

My 7-month old Sandy has started marking this week. I'd really like him to be neutered. He's around 3.3lbs and I'm so worried about him under anaesthesia.

This is exactly what I was looking for. :)
I find it very interesting that thes:confused:e things aren't talked about when making the decision to s/c. Wondering if there are any studies underway now and if dogs are really better off altered.

I have also wondered that about Wylie. It's certainly possible. So then, is it really worth it? All so hard to figure out. I know if Ellie got long-term spay incontinence or something, it would not have been worth it for us. Hmmm.

Anesthesia is generally pretty safe if done by a qualified vet using a good protocol and the right preop testing has been done. You can read more about it in the YT Library. :)

Thx for posting the info, very interesting. However I don't think I'll ever own a dog unaltered.

Yup...and even though they don't mention it...I wonder about Atypical Cushings as well.

Cushings is thought to be genetic (and is now common to yorkies, btw :() - but what is the trigger? Atypical Cushings has to do w/ the intermediate sex steroids, so one can't help but wonder if somehow, neutering and the hormone alteration triggers an imbalance in the entire system that can later unlock the genetic vulnerability that was sitting there all along in the genetic code....