To Neuter or not to neuter??
 

I have a 5 month old male Yorkie and the vet keeps asking if I am ready to neuter him. I have heard different things about this since he is a male people tell me you really don't have to do it since he is inside and on a harness when outside, it's not necessary to make him go through procedure. I don't know what to do? Is it bad if we don't get it done for a male?

As long as he passes the pre-op blood work and there are no health concerns about him having the procedure its better for his longer term over all health and temperment to have him neutered.

I definitely wouldn't do it at 5 months. I prefer to wait until at LEAST 8 months. Jackson was 7 1/2 months, and is fine, he was already pretty much full grown at that point, but if I got a boy in the future, I'd wait a bit longer for those growth plates to close.

IMO, if you are a VERY responsible owner, there is nothing wrong with not neutering your dog. For my own sake, I prefer a neutered male, but as far as health risks vs. benefits, I really feel they are equal on both sides (as far as males go).

Here is some great reads, pretty unbiased:

http://www.naiaonline.org/pdfs/LongT...uterInDogs.pdf

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[QUOTE=Britster;3998538 but if I got a boy in the future, I'd wait a bit longer for those growth plates to close.

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I have a question. I've always read they are get bigger if neutered early because the bones fuse a little later . Not much fraction of an inch. But on a muscular dog you want to wait till they are older over a year so they will get more muscular. So on a Yorkie it doesn't matter much?? I know alot of ppl who get theres at/before 6mo so they don't mark. I'm just asking to see if there different information out there

I am for spaying and neutering and I think its the responsible thing to do. Male dogs can be more aggressive when not neutered with other male dogs. I have heard some crazy stories about what some males will do to get to a female in heat and they are scary. Also yorkies are getting stolen a lot lately what if someone takes your dog if hes not fixed he could very well be sold into a puppy mill. I am not sure about the best age to fix males.

I say neuter! As some have said...males will do ANYTHING to get to a female in heat...I had a male dog rip the dryer vent off my house and rip the screen off my window trying to get at my female when she was in heat...this was many years ago..I had my male done at 11 months old..

I just got my old yorkie snipped, I dont know know his exact age, but he is older than ten years.

I asked two different vets, who agreed that it was still quite a good idea. I am pro-neuturing generally.

He wasn't agressive, didn't spray inside, but I still feel the benefits were worth it for me.

We had Laddy neutered in April at 3 years old. He has done great. Hasn't gained an ounce yet. He healed really quickly and was back to his old self in a week. Good luck with your decision. We had Laddy done as we have a tiny female who is 9 months old and couldn't risk her going into heat before she gets a little older to be spayed. Good luck with your decision and welcome to YT.

i say neuter we waited until cedric was 9 months and close to 5 pounds. he also had some baby teeth extracted at the sametime.

+1

They can pick up the scent of a female in heat from over a mile. Every time that happens, your boy is going to be miserable, wanting something that he can't get to. Poor guy, don't make him go through that!

They likely can pick up the scent, but my un-neutered males are truly only "miserable" if I have a bitch in heat in the house; and that only for the 2-4 days of standing heat.

I show dogs, and the male dogs are frequently in the ring with females that are in season. Trust me the males can still focus on the job at hand.. which is to obey their handler and be shown.

Each person needs to review the literature and talk it over with their vet as to the specific benefits/risks associated with their dog.

How-ever I will say very clearly if you as the pet owner keep a dog intact, it is incumbant upon you to be very responsible in terms of insuring your dog is not inadvertently bred. You do not want to contribute to irresponsible breeding.

Going to be getting my Jaxson neutered when he turns 8 months. He's five months old now & weighs 5lbs. :) Good luck in whatever you choose to do.

I had Copper neutered at 5 months. I wanted to do it before he learned marking and lifting. He is now 2.8 years old and he does lift his leg when we go for a walk. He has never marked in the house. He currently weighs 4 lbs. so he was a little guy when I had him neutered. It has worked out well for us and Copper is sweet and loving. I say, go for it if you do not plan to use him as a stud.:aimeeyork

Actually not so much "bigger" as taller. The dogs appear elongated with often times less bone density. And that is a problem,higher risk of breakage with "light bones". Also the head shape is different as well. A jaw which should be broad is narrorwer, skull is narrower and higher.

In the terms of Yorkies anatomically speaking it is important. The tibia or shinbone is the last bone to finish growing. When you neuter prior to growth plate closure, the boney length relationship and the articulations of the bones are negatively impacted. In the case of Yorkies, with high incidence of LP, the relationship of the angle of the femur, to the head of the tibia, and the tibial groove is important for correct tracking of the patella or kneecap. Furthermore I do wonder about ligamentous differences as well - in strength/length and positioning on the boney surfaces.

The stifle can be negatively impacted as well.

For small breed dogs anywhere from 12-14 months - for large to giant breeds it is a lot longer anywhere from 18-30 mths old. I should post some comparison pictures of my large male. The difference in him from 2 to 3yrs old was incredible.

So for me in particular with a male there is just no overwhelming health reason to neuter early, and truly to neuter at all. Having said that, there is much more responsibility for the pet owner to keep an intact dog. There are some practical disadvantages to; like many boarding places won't take an intact dog. Some groomers won't either.

I don't believe that the research I've seen validates a causal relationship of "early neutering" to marking. Sometimes yes a dog will not mark (inside) - which is what most owners worry about, but there is no guarantee early neutering will prevent all marking.

And contrary to popular opinion - neutering does NOT curb aggressiveness in male dogs. In fact the contrary appears true.

At a seminar I attended last year - it was for performance dog athletes, and we were learning about training techniques, muscle building, stretches etc, the instructor Dr J Dodds - asked the group a question. It was how many here have had problems in dog parks or events with a dog being aggressive towards yours? Fully 80% of us raised our hands, then she asked how many of those dogs that were aggressive were neutered. Most of the hands stayed up.

Now I have of course experienced dog aggression from believe it or not an intact female bulldog. :eek::eek: And this was towards my intact young 18mth old male BRT. It made a lasting impression on Magic. He now dislikes Bulldogs (a lot). Thankfully they are not so common where I live.

There is always different information out there. Many vets have strong opinions one way or the other. Not all vets keep up on current research, and there is the ever present pet overpopulation problem.

Sadly we lack any solid information on the 20 yr or more encouragement to neuter/spay all pet dogs and how it has or has not impacted the volumne of shelter dogs 10 yrs later - 15 - 20 yrs later.

I find it interesting that most pet dogs I meet out and about are not Intact, yet shelters still seem to be overflowing. Where do all these dogs come from?
A back way into some interesting statistics would be, a comparative chart of say 20 years - on average the shelter intook 4000 annually and had to spay/neuter X number of adult dogs. 10 years ago the shelter intook 8000 dogs and had to spay/neuter Y number of dogs. This would at least provide some stats on how many folks are actually neutering etc their pets.

Just wondering. Because my Vet breeds Yorkies and can't find literature to prove early neutering is as harmful as it's being said here. Basic big dog want's to neuter later so they can get more muscle. The aggression that comes from male dogs when they want a bitch in heat. Neutered dogs can still be aggressive they just don't search for females. I don't know my self I've always neutered later vs early. Just curious about the information??

IronMike I have posted the link several times which references the research. Here is the list of references from the article Early Spay Neuter Considerations for the Canine Athlete

References

Salmeri KR, Bloomberg MS, Scruggs SL, Shille V.. Gonadectomy in immature dogs: effects on skeletal, physical, and behavioral development. JAVMA 1991;198:1193-1203
http://www.grca.org/healthsurvey.pdf
Grumbach MM. Estrogen, bone, growth and sex: a sea change in conventional wisdom. J Pediatr Endocrinol Metab. 2000;13 Suppl 6:1439-55.
Gilsanz V, Roe TF, Gibbens DT, Schulz EE, Carlson ME, Gonzalez O, Boechat MI. Effect of sex steroids on peak bone density of growing rabbits. Am J Physiol. 1988 Oct;255(4 Pt 1):E416-21.
Slauterbeck JR, Pankratz K, Xu KT, Bozeman SC, Hardy DM. Canine ovariohysterectomy and orchiectomy increases the prevalence of ACL injury. Clin Orthop Relat Res. 2004 Dec;(429):301-5.
Spain CV, Scarlett JM, Houpt KA. Long-term risks and benefits of early-age gonadectomy in dogs. JAVMA 2004;224:380-387.
Ware WA, Hopper DL. Cardiac tumors in dogs: 1982-1995. J Vet Intern Med 1999 Mar-Apr;13(2):95-103
Cooley DM, Beranek BC, Schlittler DL, Glickman NW, Glickman LT, Waters D, Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2002 Nov;11(11):1434-40
Ru G, Terracini B, Glickman LT. Host related risk factors for canine osteosarcoma. Vet J. 1998 Jul;156(1):31-9.
Obradovich J, Walshaw R, Goullaud E. The influence of castration on the development of prostatic carcinoma in the dog. 43 cases (1978-1985). J Vet Intern Med 1987 Oct-Dec;1(4):183-7
http://www.akcchf.org/pdfs/whitepapers/Biennial_National_Parent_Club_Canine_Health_Confer ence.pdf
Meuten DJ. Tumors in Domestic Animals. 4th Edn. Iowa State Press, Blackwell Publishing Company, Ames, Iowa, p. 575

As far as I am aware there are no extant studies on Yorkies alone, for spay/neuter breed specific risks.

My opinion is if waiting (does no harm), but early spaying results in boney abnormalities then wait to spay/neuter.

Again Mike as a breeder of BIG Dogs, it is not just about getting "more" muscle it is about lowering the incidence of HD, and about getting optimum bone density, and good very good skeletal structure.

An analogy is that the bones are the scaffolding- or the frame of your house, weak frame, offset joints of the house ---- WEAK HOUSE. The muscles attach to the bones, and move the joints through space. Weak bones, improper angulations, and you set up the dog for problems later on in life.

I neuter later ~8-9mo or when I can have the baby teeth taken out. But for every reference I find
Canine Sports Productions: Early Spay-Neuter Considerations for the Canine Athlete
I find another Early Spay/neuter
That says there's really not much difference? I'm not worried about my Yorkie. But my Uncle breeds American Bulldogs and I don't see any difference between the fixed and the Studs. I'm just curious not trying to argue. The dogs that get fixed are younger than normal. I tell him he should wait a year but he says he need to do it early..for whatever reason

This wasn't my male...was a neighbors...and it was a st. bernard!! my female was a cocker spaniel!! :eek: The male I am talking about that I got neutered at 11 months old is my new little man Bentley! I re read my post...should have been more specific..

In a brief review of the article Early Spay Neuter - none appeared to look at the long term effect of very early spay and neuter. And I re-iterate growing" taller" is not in any way better. Is it "easier" with the tools we have today to spay/neuter at 8wks old or so .... I would think so. But ease of veterinarian operation, doesn't mean in the long run it is best for the dog. They could just as easily do vasectomies and tubal ligations, thus keeping the hormones and their apparent benefit intact.

In terms of Bulldogs, I don't know enough about that particular breed to offer an opinion one way or the other. I don't know why he needs to spay early and just what early means.