Should I go ahead and get my dog nuetered?

Question

I have two Toy Yorkies, one named Tigger, and the other named Roo. They are notorious for peeing EVERYWHERE. Their vet told me that by being nuetered, they will smell less, be less possessive (Tigger does not like being touched by strangers) , and stop peeing so much. Roo has to be neutered because he is getting surgery down there anyway for other problems that could be cancerous. But for Tigger, I have always felt...guilt? by nuetering a dog? Tigger is a very energetic happy dog with so much personality, but I know a piece of that dissappears once they have been neutered. On the other hand, them peeing is a huge problem. They are already a year old. What are your thoughts?

One more side question to this, if I went ahead and had him neutered, what are some good pee stain removers for tile/carpet?

Answer 1

I believe that all dogs should be neutered unless you are a serious breeder who shows or competes your dog and is breeding to the breed standard to improve the breed. There are too many unwanted pets in the world. Definitely get them neutered - they will be calmer, less dominant, and have no risk of testicular cancer! Animals do not think like we do - your dog will not know what is "missing." His personality will not completely change, he will just be calmer and listen better and be less likely to mark. You know the peeing is actually marking behavior which unneutered males do a lot of? Don't feel guilty for making a responsible decision. You'll also be making sure there are no "accidents" with resulting puppies being born that may not be able to find good homes.

Answer 2

>>>Tigger is a very energetic happy dog with so much personality, but I know a piece of that dissappears<<<

Having had several dogs neutered at various ages, I have never noticed a change in their personality, so don't worry about that aspect of it. The only reason his energy level might decline is simply because he's growing up and settling down.

Answer 3

By neutering Tigger you are not going to be changing his basic personality one bit! He's still going to be an energetic, happy dog - that does not change!!!

I don't believe either that he's going to like being touched by strangers any more than he does now. Again, that's part of his basic temperament and only socializing and training is going to help him overcome that problem.

Also, if they've been peeing in the house they're going to keep right on doing it unless you clean very thoroughly with a good enzyme cleaner to get every trace of the smells out.

Answer 4

I worked at a vet office for 3.5 years. The idea that a dog loses part of its personality is totally false. It is better for their health (they will live longer) if you neuter. It may, however, not solve the peeing problem (some dogs are territorial) but it will help the roaming the neighborhood in search for a female in heat problem. If he still pees on stuff, time for behavioral classes. No such thing as a bad dog, just bad owner.

Answer 5

Your dog's "personality" isn't going to change because you had him neutered. It's the responsible thing to do and your dog will be more content and healthy after he is neutered. There is nothing to feel "guilty" about, you will be doing him a favor.

Unaltered males are always going to be "looking" and wanting to "mark" their territories. If you don't believe me talk with your vet, they can answer any questions or concerns you have.

All our male dogs were neutered and none of them were any different after their surgery. Unless you consider that they were less interested in females and never marked their territory. They also lived to ripe old ages!

Good luck with your decision.

Answer 6

Definitely get him neutered. He will live a longer, healthier life. Don't feel guilty, what kind of pet is he going to be if he urinates everywhere and ruins your house?
A good pee stain remover is Nature's Miracle. You soak it into the carpet and leave it. I've never found anything that worked better on stains and smells.

Answer 7

Our emergency c-section ($2300) just barely beat out our stud fee ($2000). It was a Sunday afternoon and our mentor had spent the whole weekend at our house waiting. She had to leave Sunday morning to get back to work and her parting advice was if there was no progress by noon have her checked out at the vet (our other mentor was scheduled to come in around dinner time). Luckily our repro vet has a 24 hour emergency clinic, so our vet was already there with a skeleton staff. We brought her in for a check up and the pups heart rates were at 73 already, so we made the immediate decision to have a c-section. In less than 45 minutes we had enough techs and helpers to preform the surgery. If we had waited even until regular hours on Monday, all would have been lost. Now bear in mind, our girl continued to eat, didn't nest, wasn't panting, etc. She was presenting no symptoms of labor that would have indicated any concern on our part. In the phone call to the vet, she wasn't overly concerned either- really had her in to make us feel better I think. I am so grateful to our mentor for knowing the quirks of the breed and of transcervical AI so she gave us the info we needed to have 10 healthy pups delivered.

Answer 8

Get him neutered. A neutered dog or cat have a better disposition and I wouldn't feel guilty. It's for their benefit and yours.
And from what i have seen, their personality doesn't change, they will still be happy and energetic. A dog takes on the attitude from the owner and is happy with what you like to do, If you just want to sit in a chair, the dog will lie quietly by your side but if you're active the dog will be active.

Answer 9

We always encourage pet owners to spay/neuter their pets. It improves their longevity and protects them from various kinds of dieases.

But don't think that neutering your dog will entirely eliminate the "peeing everywhere" problem. This usually has to do with TRAINING not with physical issues.

We actually suggest that dog owners NOT train their pups to go on wee-wee pads or newspaper, because this trains the dog to eliminate inside your house instead of outside. The dog cannot distinguish between it being OK to pee on the pad, and not on any other paper or fabric on the floor...

To train a dog to go outside, you need to first put the pup on a feeding schedule. We suggest feeding the at least once a day (2x's is best) at the SAME TIME every day. This helps to "program" the dog's bowels and bladder to regular feeding and elimination times.

Don't leave food out for the dog all day. If he eats all day, he'll poop all day. But keep plenty of fresh water available to him.

Dogs usually have to potty about 10-15 minutes after they eat, when they first wake up in the morning, and when they wake up from a nap. Use these opportune times to take the dog outside. As soon as the goes potty, praise him a lot for being a good dog.

Dogs will also walk in tight circles with their nose to the ground when they have to go to potty. Whenever you see this behavior ask the dog, "potty outside?" and take him out immediately. Again, as soon as he goes potty, praise him a lot for being a good dog.

By all means, get your dog neutered, but also get him a regular training schedule. If you're consistent and vigilent with their house-training regime, your dogs should be properly house-trained in no time.

(As for the "touching" issue: it sounds like the dog was too isolated as a puppy and never learned how to react positively to strangers. This again is a training issue. We suggest taking the dog to "socialization" classes which will help it to be less fearful of and aggressive with strangers.)

Answer 10

I would recommend it, otherwise they will continue to pee and mark stuff in your house. That smell is horrible to get out if at all possible in the first place. Neutering does calm them down a little, but I just had my cat neutered and he's still just as crazy as ever.