Castration Date Approaching really worried cant sleep !!!

[mel1961red]

Hi all

I am looking for support from you all as this time next week my 8 month old goes in for his castration op. I am so worried about lots of things the first being having to leave him at the vets as I know he will criy and cry, secondley as I previously mentioned on his check up a couple of weeks ago they picked up that he may have and only may a light heart murmur so they are going to listen more when hes under the knie (hate saying that) so Im worried what they may find, and thirdly I am worried about him picking at his stitches and them coming out I know he will have a collar but at night he is caged and wont proably fit in to it very well with a big collar on, and last but not least is the fact he wont be allowed out as he loves his two walks a day and will be climbing the walls (and so will I) if he cant go out. My OH says why did I ever get him as I constantly worry about him but I cant help it Im sure Im not the only one

[vixen]

Is there a medical or personal reason you are having him castrated?  I only ask as when I have owned male dogs they were left entire and I didn't have a problem with them at all.
I find nowadays some vet practices do encourage clients to have their males neutered at an early age. I think this is more to do with getting your money than the health benefits to the dog.
My own vet always says wait and see how the male dogs react to their sexuality before taking the decision.
Some entire dogs can be a real pain with wandering, humping, aggression etc but not all.  I have never had any of these problems with the male dogs I have owned.
There was a similar posting to yours a few months back, a lot of COLers have entire male cockers.  You may not have to have him 'done' and if it causing you so much worry perhaps you should leave it for a while and consider your options.
If you do decide to go ahead you will be very surprised how quickly dogs get over their operations.
All the best  
 http://www.cockersonline.co.uk/discuss/index.php?topic=68139.0

[PennyB]

Vets are often very used to doing this op and very successfully - we have a lot of rescue dogs that are neutered by my vet and they recover very quickly.

[Nicola]

I have an unneutered boy just now but I've also had another male dog castrated and it was very straightforward, I don't think he even noticed he'd had anything done. He was a bit dozy that night but was raring to go again the next day so we went pretty much straight back into his normal routine, he only had a tiny wound with one stitch and didn't need a buster collar.

[SusieY]

We had Barney castrated mid Jan when he was almost 12 months old.  Like you I was really worried and came on COL beforehand looking for reassurance that we were doing the right thing.  He was absolutely fine.  I took him to morning surgery where he had his pre-op and stayed with him until he was almost asleep so he hardly noticed me leaving and didn't cry at all.  Not sure if all vets do this but it was standard practice at ours.  He was a bit quiet for a day or two but soon bounced back and is now back to his normal self.  He had two sets of stitches as one testicle hadn't come down but didn't pick at them and didn't need a collar.

Hope this helps

[mel1961red]

Thanks everyone he really needs to be castrated as all he wants to do is hump everything he sees at the moment to be honest
so think he will probably settel down a bit afterwards hopefully it will be straightforward they wont find any heart mumur and he will be back to his naughty self in no time

[Rats and Dogs]

I've seen dogs being neutered practically every day for the past 4 years, and have never seen anything go wrong, bar one dog who got an infection through biting his stitches constantly and no one noticing him doing it.

You are worried that Bailey will cry and cry - he probably won't, as most dogs are fine once their owners leave, plus they get lots of cuddles from the staff.

You are also worried about his possible heart murmur - he may not have one at all, or it may just be very minor, and there are excellent medications available nowadays.

You are worried about him biting his stitches, and not fitting in his crate with a collar on - he may not bother with his stitches at all, and if he does, then just stick a pair of boys' boxers on him instead of a collar.

And lastly, you are worried about him missing his walks - try doing some light training with him at home to tire his brain, a bit of clicker work, or some hide and seek games. He can also have short lead walks, so will still see what is going on outside.

I hope I have managed to reassure you a little bit. However, I am going to be getting Duggie done soon, and am terrified! It's just natural.

[black taz]

Like Nicola, i don't think Taz noticed he had anything done.  He was wide awake when we collected him a couple of hours after his op, and the next day i had to ring the vet for advice as he was leaping around the furniture - she advised to take him for a short walk (they are not supposed to go out for a walk for 48 hours but Taz was so hyper we thought it was safer than him continuing to bounce round the furniture.