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Had to take Tucker into the vet today for a shot. While I was there I inquired about getting my pup chipped. They said they usually chip a dog at the same time they neuter them though they can do it now but, its a little painful. I ask when could they neuter him, thinking at about 6 months, but she said we usually do it at 16 weeks old. Is this kind of young for a puppy or is this the standard now?:blink:

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Age for neutering -- and even whether castration, as opposed to vasectomy, is optimal -- has been discussed here pretty regularly. You may want to do a keyword search.

I'm sure your vet will do it whenever you want them too, but IMO anything younger than a minimum of a year is too young.

You can wait to have the chip implanted whenever you neuter, or do it sooner. It is a larger needle so more painful for an instant, but in my experience dogs and even pups shrug it off very quickly.

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My cat was chipped at the shelter before I brought him home. He was a teeny-tiny little thing, barely six weeks old, if that. His entire body fit on the palm of my hand with room left over.  He winced a little when the needle went in, and was fine as soon as it came out. I have chipped a few dogs myself. It doesn't appear to be  any more painful than a vaccination and I don't know why your vet would say that, but it might make me want to get the dog chipped elsewhere because perhaps the vet is not skilled at doing it if it hurts the animals.

 My suggestion would be get him chipped now, for safety, but wait until he is over a year to neuter.

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In South Australia, where I live, it is now compulsory to chip dogs and cats within a few weeks of being purchased, if not before they are sold as puppies.  It is also compulsory to desex your dog by 6 months, but as I am a member of our local dog association (for agility) I am exempt from that requirement.  Two of our dogs had been chipped before we bought them at eight weeks. One we got at eleven months already chipped and desexed, the other we got at 20 weeks and we had him chipped when he had his second vaccination a week after we got him, but did not desex until 12 months, when his floppy rear dew claws were also removed.

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Agree with waiting on neutering until at least one year of age. Microchip now for safety reasons. IME  (I have personally microchipped over 100 livestock animals, and have been present when my cats and dogs are chipped), the big needle may sting when penetrating the skin, but once in, they tend to relax. My vet  has her tech apply a thin layer of peanut butter on the examining table to distract the dog during insertion of microchip. Note: YMMV depending on the skill of the vet.

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Well I am so glad I question neutering my pup at 16 weeks! It did seem early but I did not know I should wait until at least one year. I do no as part of purchasing my puppy it is required to have him neutered or pay an extra $500.00 to keep him in tack. What I don't know is in the paper work what it states for a time frame to have it done. I will make an appointment to have him chipped immediately. Again.... thank you everyone for the education!  

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Where I am puppies are often microchipped at 8 weeks when they have their first vaccination but our vet did our puppy at the second vaccination at 12 weeks as she felt it was nicer to wait until he was a bit bigger.

I've been advised that de-sexing happens from six months old here. What age do (male) puppies start displaying the sort of adult dog behaviour that we'd want to avoid in a non-working, house living dog that has to be able to socialise politely with other dogs on his walks?

Thinking back, I'm not sure my last dog ever reached sexual maturity, he always squatted to pee and never roamed. I would have had him done but it never seemed necessary.

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I've had a couple intact male border collies. They never displayed the obnoxious male dog behavior that so many people cite as a reason for castrating a dog. I've known plenty of intact males (border collies and other breeds) who socialized quite well with other dogs. There's actually some evidence that spaying & neutering can increase aggression in dogs rather than the commonly accepted belief that it decreases it.

I've never had a male neutered at younger than 9 months old (that was when I didn't know any better) but all of my neutered dogs were fine around other dogs of both sexes (with expected obsession of a bitch in heat, but still no aggression), and that one neutered at 9 months still mated and tied with the girls in heat even though he was shooting blanks.

You may be interested in taking a look at past threads for information not only about age of spay/neuter, but also the increased health risks involved and alternatives. I've come to believe that if there aren't any hormonal behavioral issues and a person is responsible and diligent enough to prevent unwanted matings, there's really not a whole lot of advantage to desexing a dog. Again, keep in mind that there are alternatives like vasectomy and ovary sparing spays that will prevent conception without depriving a dog of its hormones.

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6 hours ago, GentleLake said:

I've had a couple intact male border collies. They never displayed the obnoxious male dog behavior that so many people cite as a reason for castrating a dog.

Thanks for the info. I'll certainly keep an open mind and look through past threads, like I say my last dog wasn't but then we were very rural and maybe living in an urban area will make a difference to my decision this time round.

I wonder if the obnoxious male dog behaviour that some people feel needs castrating out of them is more likely to show up in dogs who have enough time to themselves to get a little bit bored. Or maybe some dogs, like people, are just more obnoxious/hormone driven than others once they've reached puberty.

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22 hours ago, Lawgirl said:

In South Australia, where I live, it is now compulsory to chip dogs and cats within a few weeks of being purchased, if not before they are sold as puppies.  It is also compulsory to desex your dog by 6 months, but as I am a member of our local dog association (for agility) I am exempt from that requirement.  Two of our dogs had been chipped before we bought them at eight weeks. One we got at eleven months already chipped and desexed, the other we got at 20 weeks and we had him chipped when he had his second vaccination a week after we got him, but did not desex until 12 months, when his floppy rear dew claws were also removed.

I was interested by what you said about there being a law where dogs must be altered by 6 months of age because this is my first time to hear of something like that. What are the exemptions to that? You have to show that you have some sort of working dog?

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OK, these laws have only come into effect from 1 July 2018, so I have double checked. 

Dogs and cats must all be micro-chipped by 12 weeks of age, or before being sold, or within 28 days of coming to a new owner.  Dogs and cats must be desexed by 6 months of age or within 28 days of coming to a new owner.  Dogs which are already owned on  1 July 2018 are grandfathered, but if they transfer hands, must be desexed afterwards. Exemptions include:- greyhounds registered for racing and dogs belonging to members of our local dog association. Further exemptions have been granted to working dogs and registered breeders (who have to pay a yearly fee of about $50).  You can get an exemption also by having your vet sign a declaration saying that desexing would have a negative impact on the animals health, welfare or development.  All dogs must also be registered with local government etc.

There are also new Animal Welfare laws which make it illegal to use electronic shock collars for any reason, require minimum kennelling requirements (size, materials, sleeping facilities, cleanliness) and place limits on total number of times dogs can be breed, how frequently etc.

The theory is that this will prevent accidental pregnancies and unwanted litters. It is supposedly going to put BYBs out of business, but enforcement of welfare requirements is with local government and unlikely to actually occur.

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When it comes to spay/neuter, it's really a personal decision. I had rescue people tell me I NEEDED to spay my dog when she was 12 weeks old. Other people will say they should remain intact their whole lives. I encourage everyone to do their research, maybe talk to several different veterinarians to get different perspectives, and come to their own conclusion. Do some reading, weigh the pros and cons. Your dog, your decision. 

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My 4 y/o intact male has about the sweetest personality ever. He’s friendly or neutral to other dogs he meets. He’s a bit excitable with a bitch in heat around (duh!) but can still work and not loose his brain. He’s well mannered and, except for some occasional urine licking/chattering you wouldn’t guess that he was intact by his behavior.

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