what age does a dog need to be neutered?

Question

I am getting a male maltipoo in a couple of weeks and I know I don't need to have him neutered right away but I have always heard that if you get the procedure done it will calm the dog down. Is that true

Answer 1

Alrightyy, why are they waiting so long to neuter your rabbit??? They reach sexual maturity long before 6 months. Waiting that long might cause aggression problems that you don't want. Rabbits are amazingly hardy/resilient when it comes to anesthesia, too....so that's not an issue.

As to dogs, people keep getting the size thing exactly backwards. It has NOTHING to do with the anesthesia. Anesthesia safety is related to age, not weight....and with the advent of the newer inhalants, age is not even really all that much of an issue anymore. (We use the same gases that they use on premature and newborn human infants for surgery....who have to be asleep for much longer procedures.) We can...and I do...anesthetize dogs and cats weighing less than a pound or two routinely. Safety of doing so is not at all dependant upon size, unless your DVM is using one of the older or very concentrated induction agents. Even if that's the case, they can easily be diluted to the proper dosage for any size animal. It's done all the time, and there are no more deaths from anesthesia in tiny animals than in 100# Great Danes, as long as body temperature and glucose are monitored correctly....which is not at all hard to do with the special warming blankets and internally heated surgery tables, etc. that we use. I just spayed a 3.4# chihuahua and neutered a 3.8# Yorkie on Monday. The 10# thing is totally arbitrary and makes no sense, since so many dogs never even reach 5-7# as fully grown adults. What do they do....just not *ever* spay or neuter them??? I just checked my surgery log....and of the 18 dogs and cats I spayed and neutered on Wednesday, 11 were less than 10#. 5 of those were less than 6#. They're all alive and doing great. :-)

Going back to my 'backwards' comment.....

The actual truth is that (as we all know), smaller dogs reach puberty and physical maturity at much younger ages than do large and giant breeds. The 'right' age for neutering relates to where each dog is in hormonal development, which is dependent upon breed/size. The larger breeds need those hormones for their bones to develop correctly, therefore it makes more sense to do their surgeries at older ages. The trick is to catch them just before they hit puberty. That's why we often neuter male pups at 3-4 months of age for small breeds, and 8-10 months of age for the large breeds. (For males, it's not *always* as big of a deal if they hit puberty before the surgery, like it is for females.)

For females, having the surgery done younger is of benefit, no matter what the size. I'd much rather spay a 4 month old Great Pyrenees than to wait until she's 10 months old and weighs 80#.

Everyone totally confused now??? LOL

Summary: There are just too many potential variables to pick a single 'correct' age for all dogs across the board. The proper age should be determined on an individual basis, taking into account all of those factors. The problem is, we have found that the public doesn't like that answer when they're calling around to phone-shop prices. They often don't want to come in for a proper examination where it can be discussed in person for each patient...which is what I encourage all of you to do. They want a pat answer in advance of the first visit. So, some vets had to come up with one.

Answer 2

If you want your dog to mature into a really good strong male dog then I agree with what your vet advises. Dogs that are neutered too early do not have the bone and substance of an entire male dog. Sometimes they even resemble a female dog rather than male. A goldie does not fully mature until about 2 years old and is still developing mentally and physically. I am not a fan of castrating a dog for no particular reason and on the excuse that its best for the dogs health. My two males are entire and well grown and no problems and i would not have their balls cut off unless it was essential and life threatening or if they were grossly oversexed. Also castration is not a miracle cure for bad habits as some people seem to think. Its nice to know there ARE some vets that are not obsessed with telling folk to neuter their dogs before they are hardly grown. jmo. Ps. just saw aditional info. Get the female spayed is the best solution. No more messy heats and no worries about her getting pregnant or getting womb troubles in later life.

Answer 3

There are two factors in getting a dog neutered. There is age and there weight. My first dog (boxer mix) was 10 lbs when he left the pound. Before they sent him home with me they had him neutered. He was about 10-12 weeks old. In talking with the vet, on larger dogs you can do it at about 10-12 weeks as long as they are 10+ lbs.

We just got a Westie mix. He is 10 weeks old today, but weighs 5 lbs. In talking with the vet earlier this week for his checkup, they vet said on a dog this size they like to wait unti 8 months. It is a size thing, they do not like putting dogs under if they are not big enough. He said if we were getting aggression, marking, or humping issues he would consider doing it earlier, but if not wait until then.

Neutering will not calm a dog down per say. They do not freak out when a dog is in heat, and it will take a lot of the dog's desire to hump out. They are also less likely to mark and be aggressive to other male dogs. A puppy will still be a puppy neutered or not. They will still run, play, chew, bark. It is just part of being a puppy. So I guess if they will calm down is a matter of what you mean by calm down. If I remember correct, a maltipoo should be a medium sized dog, so at about 6 months you may be able to do it. Check with your vet after you get him, and let him tell you what he thinks.

Answer 4

Neutering can be done at 8 weeks of age. I firmly believe it should be done by four months of age, before puberty hits. Getting that big bolt of testosterone can lead to behavior problems.

Neutering at 8 or 10 weeks *might* (but not likely) prevent your pup from getting a truly masculine look but, frankly, do you care? This is a small, fuzzy dog that isn't known for looking macho. And he is a mix, so you won't be showing him, which would require getting him as close to standard as possible.

I have never seen a study that indicated that early neuter lead to behavior problems. If the previous poster could cite a study, I would greatly appreciate it.

Answer 5

Yes, neutering will calm a dog down. Our vet offers spay and neuter at the age of 4 months. I think it varies from vet to vet, and it used to be 6 months some years ago. I think you can safely wait until 6 months, but not too long after.

Answer 6

While many advocate doing it at as young as 8 weeks, it is best to wait until they hit adolesence. That lets males get the body bone mass that they should have as males and don't look like a guy with a girl's head. In giant breeds, adolesence is 15 -24 months. In the little breeds that is usually 8-10 months.

The hormones do play a large part in the development of the body before they hit puberty and figure out what it is.

Neutering prevents:

Dog aggression

Trying to escape or bolt to run after eau de girl dog in heat (and disastorus encounters with cars; getting dogs fights over the female, getting lost)

Marking his territory all over your home - inside and out

Testicular and prostate cancer (major killer in unneutered males.)

Answer 7

There are health benefits to having him neutered besides reducing aggresion. Plus if neutered early enough most of the time males do not start marking (peeing all over the house) Usually around 4 months is good but talk to your vet.

Answer 8

the best thing to do is ring yur local vets to ask them. before i got my rabbit i rang both my local ones and asked how much it would be and what age they would do the neuter from. it varies from each practise. but id get it done as soon as your dog was old enough for it. i cant get my bunny neutered until hes 6 months old and hes only 12 weeks now

Answer 9

6 months is best. Neutering too early can cause behavor issues later on in life. Neutering will keep the dog from trying to roam to look for females. And please don't adopt a dog under the age of 10 weeks old.

Answer 10

My vet recommends between 4 to 5 months of age.