To neuter or not to neuter?? Any advice would help please.

[Cheryl13]

I've booked my beautiful 7 month old Cocker Spaniel male in to be castrated next month. I'm left feeling very guilty and not sure if I'm doing the right thing for him.
Please if anybody has any experiences or views on this matter please could you get back to me.
He's a much loved part of our family and I just want to make sure I'm doing the right thing for him.
Thank you

[Geordietyke]

Hi there and welcome to COL!

I only had my Archie castrated at 13 months old, because both his testicles hadn't descended and there is a much higher risk of cancer etc happening if left, otherwise I'd have left him entire.  It's a personal choice and there lots of threads on here discussing the matter if you want to take a look.  It is generally considered better to leave them as late as possible before castrating so it gives them time to mature. 

My previous cocker was entire, he had no behavioural or humping problems so I didn't want to put him through the op for no valid reason.  Lesley

[phoenix]

From what I have read and on the previous threads here which quote scientific research,  leave it til they are older. There are more cases of cruciate and other ligament problems in neutered puppies due to its effects on the leg bone growth plates.  Also, if left to mature longer he will develop the love kelt broad male head and neck,
Bob  now 8 years old. isn't neutered, no humping problems, no entire bitches for miles, and is very friendly with all dogs and has never been aggressive with any.    Human perverts ought to be castrated though!
The literature on prostate cancer is also debatable. Personally I have never come across it in anyone's pet.  other debilitating conditions like Cushings,  Addisons, pancreatitis, auto immune  diseases etc  see far more common.
Do a Search to read up other threads.

[rubybella]

I wouldn't see any reason to get him castrated at 7 months. I only have girls and neither were spayed until until around 15 months. If I had a boy I wouldn't be bothering until 2 at the earliest, and only then if he showed a big interest in the girls!

I suspect you have been encouraged by your vet to do it at this early age, not sure why they keep persuading puppy owners to do it so early, when most vets don't follow the same guidelines!!!

[zenon_bass]

Interesting...
http://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/three-reasons-to-reconsider-spayneuter 
Worth reading right to the end where other options are suggested...

[Jan D]

I would not neuter at 7 months..too early.

My dog Bobby is still entire but I had an episode recently where he was constantly 'humping' my friend's dog (male). It seems that the reason he was doing this was that the other dog was neutered early (7 months) and they sometimes give off the same smell as a female in season.

If you are having no issues with your boy I certainly wouldn't get it done yet...maybe re-evaluate once he is over a year old and fully mature.

[Emilyoliver]

Neither of my male dogs have been castrated. No behavioural/health issues, so I don't see the point in having it done. Perhaps wait, do some more research and see how you feel in say a year's time.

[Nate]

Please let your dog grow out first, it is just a puppy at this age! Think about his coat, it will be damaged for the rest of his life...

[elaine.e]

I'm another one in the don't neuter unless you need to camp . But if you decide to neuter please consider waiting until your boy is at least 12 months old.

This is a link to an objective article that pulls together the results of a lot of scientific studies into the effects of neutering. I think it makes a strong case for not castrating dogs unless there's a medical reason, or if the decision is taken to castrate, to wait until the dog has reached maturity. http://www.naiaonline.org/pdfs/LongTermHealthEffectsOfSpayNeuterInDogs.pdf

There's no hurry at 7 months, so take some time to do some research and decide what's best for your dog and you

[Cheryl13]

Thank you so much for all your replies, They're all very much appreciated. Winston's appointment will be cancelled tomorrow. He's a very good boy.  My fears were that he hasn't grown enough, but the vets insisted he should have them done and I was being a responsible dog owner. My biggest  reason was because he spends a lot of time off the lead as he is so good and I just worry that the scent of a female will make him run off and I couldn't bare losing him. He really is my baby!
Thank you again 

[elaine.e]

In a month or so he'll probably start adolescence. I always joke it's when they run off and come back with tattoos and piercings but it can be a tricky time.

Adolescent male dogs apparently have 4 times as much testosterone rampaging about their bodies as adult dogs do, so it's no surprise that everything they've learned sometimes goes out of the window for a few months (maybe several). But the good news is that with patience and extra training they come through it and turn into lovely adult dogs.

The reason I'm saying this is that adolescence is often the time when dog owners decided on castration, thinking their dog has behavioural problems and that castration is needed to solve them. But while I've had adolescents that became serial humpers for a while and whose recall went from fairly reliable to virtually non existent, they've all come through it and settled down

[BobnDot]

We struggled with this decision as there are equally valid reasons in favour of, and against, neutering.

Having made the decision, Chaz, our worker, was neutered at 14 months old and, if you decide to neuter, I'd certainly recommend waiting until he's at least a year old. Our breeder suggested waiting until he'd started to cock his leg and then give it another month or so.

Bob.

[Ben's mum]

I agree 7 months is too young, well done for changing your mind. We had Ben done at 6 months, after being told by the vet it was what boys needed and because he might become aggressive. It was 11 years ago hopefully thinking has changed since then. I suspect it's just one of a number of reasons Ben is fear aggressive with some dogs. I wish we had waited until he was mature.

[Ernies mum]

I think everyone has differing opinions and some dogs seem to react differently as they reach sexual maturity .We had Ernie neutered at 7months , mainly for the sake of our other dog ( Josie a spayed 8 year old terrier ) as once ernies hormones kicked in he wouldn't leave her alone and she was understandably getting very fed up with him !
Ernie didn't have any ill effects from the neutering and harmony was restored in the household as he no longer made constant advances towards Josie 

[sue33]

Hello there, our two boys are now 5 months and I had this conversation with the vet this morning, I was there buying advocate and wormer.  She suggested they should be castrated at around 6 - 12 months, while they were in adolescence ... I'm still undecided but will probably get them done nearer to 12 months....