Anyone heard of this?

[Nicola]

. I guess we all have to weigh up the potential pros and cons and then make our own individual decisions.

Totally agree. This is just one report, you could go out and find others which have totally opposing views but which sound just as convincing. I don't think anyone should make a decision or panic based on reading this one report which is fairly biased (not saying that it is right or wrong). All you can do is try to get a balance of facts and make the best decision you can.

[Colin]

To be honest I didn't get the impression that report was biased - just saying that there needs to be more studies done as the topic isn't as black and white as some sources claim. Some of the study groups were quite large too - certainly larger than the study that vets quote re mammary cancer - that's rumoured to be based on a 60 dog study that was done decades ago.

I also read an interesting article about how dogs that have been neutered at a very early age can have difficulties with other dogs - the claim was that they have the appearance of an adult dog but can exhibit the behaviour patterns of puppies, which can send out confusing signals. Again I'm not sure how true it is but it's an interesting theory - unfortunatley I can't find the link now.

[LurcherGirl]

Here in the UK, thousands of dogs are put to sleep every year because they have no homes, many of these being puppies too! In America though, we are not "just" talking thousands of dogs, but MILLIONS... all because of unwanted and accidental litters as well as puppy farm and BYB... And no, personally I don't really agree with early neutering, but if it saves just some of the misery that dumped dogs go through, then I am all for it! So, although personally I would not do it, I would never blame anyone for neutering pups before going to their new homes... least of all rescue organisations! Yes, it probably is disgusting, but having perfectly healthy and innocent dogs and puppies put to sleep is a thousand times more disgusting!!!

Vera