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Neutering our male BC


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Hi

 

My family (Husband Scott and 6 year old son Liam and myself) recently bought our first purebred BC after losing our 13 year old BC/Newfoundland cross to malignant form of Cushing's disease. Archer is now 4.5 months old and we're wondering when we should have him neutered. He's been to a few private lessons with an agility coach (Linda Barton) who has mentioned how well behaved he is in particular with our son and we'd like their relationship to continue growing. We are contemplating trying him in agility as he seems pretty bright already (who knows what the future might bring...) but i've read that we shouldn't have him neutered too early if we are considering him for sports.

 

So...Archer is a pet first and foremost but we don't want to stunt his growth (dog brains are a terrible thing to waste!). We've read quite a few conflicting opinions on when to neuter and are concerned. What should we do?

 

Thanks!

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You will not stunt his mental growth, unless you are refering to the brain between his legs :rolleyes: Yes, if you want to be a top agility competitor you should wait, but if his primary job is to be a good pet and friend to your son then neutering him "young" may be the better choice. You need to decide what your priorities are and what you want out of the relationship. It really depends a lot on his temperament. If he starts to be a real pain in the butt as he becomes a teenager you might just want to snip 'em off. I would have his hips checked before he is neutered and delay neutering if there is a problem with any of his joints.

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Thanks Liz for your input but can you explain the hip thing? What does that have to do with neutering? I have never heard this before. Kodi was about 6 months when I had him neutered and Tucker was the same. But neither dog were trained for sports. Kodi was 13 when he passed away (I can't beleive it's been 5 months already! :rolleyes: ) and Tucker is almost 12 and neither had any issues with hips. But I think you're saying that if there is a predisposition to hip issues then neutering early can exacerbate that?

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Neutering young alters the way a dog's bones grow (by affecting muscle mass, the timing of when growth plates close, etc). As far as we know, you can't "cause" hip dysplasia by neutering young, but you can potentially make it worse if it is already there. There are pretty clear studies that show other orhopedic conditions are much more common in dogs neutered young (like cranial cruciate ligament ruptures).

 

However, most dogs in the USA are euthanised because of BEHAVIORAL problems (usually indirectly by being dropped off at a shelter because the owners are frustrated with the dog). So if you think about it, for most dog owners the risk of "death" by not neutering outweighs the benefits.

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You will not stunt his mental growth, unless you are refering to the brain between his legs :rolleyes: Yes, if you want to be a top agility competitor you should wait, but if his primary job is to be a good pet and friend to your son then neutering him "young" may be the better choice. You need to decide what your priorities are and what you want out of the relationship. It really depends a lot on his temperament. If he starts to be a real pain in the butt as he becomes a teenager you might just want to snip 'em off. I would have his hips checked before he is neutered and delay neutering if there is a problem with any of his joints.

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I agree, it all depends on what you're wanting out of your dog. All that is needed out of Auz is to be in a pack of dogs and know how to handle himself. Being neutered or intact had absolutely nothing to do with his job, I had no intentions or plans of breeding him, so he had his "brain surgury" at 2 years old (plenty of time for those growth plates to be closed, what can I say, I'm a bit paranoid lol)

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Thanks for the article Karen...it was very interesting. I think since Archer is primarily going to be a family pet and companion for my son, then neutering somewhat earlier than 14 months is what I will consider...but after reading that article I think we'll wait at least a year before his "brain surgery". lol. As long as his "testes" don't dominate his brain that is...I've seen some intact males exhibit some fairly annoying behaviuors so if he's okay as far as behaviuor goes, then I think we'll wait a bit yet. Thanks again for the helpful advice!

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I've seen some intact males exhibit some fairly annoying behaviuors so if he's okay as far as behaviuor goes, then I think we'll wait a bit yet. Thanks again for the helpful advice!

 

You're welcome!

 

Something I think many people overlook is that - "male behaviors" can be extinguished with "training". Hiking on whatever happens to be in reach is simply unacceptable but you can train them (after they grow brain cells!)

 

Karen

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