All those against breeding more dogs an contributing to the pet overpopulation problem.. I have a question..?

Question

Ok, first of all I am against breeding dogs because there are already enough dogs that deserve loving homes and have none. Nevertheless, I have a question... I have noticed alot of dog people bashing others for not having their pets spayed/neutered, and i have noticed that their is alot of intolerance towards people who have dogs that arent fixed, but are not allowed to reproduce. I can understand being angry at someone for conciously contributing to the pet overpopulation accidentally or irresponsibly. What I am asking is, what reason is there to bash someone who decides to have an unaltered dog that is never allowed to reproduce, or if they are it will be planned, and all the pups and parents will be cared for lifelong by the dogs caretaker. In case of accidents owner also takes full responsibility for the lifelong care of all offspring. So what is wrong with not contributing to the shelter problem, but still having an unaltered dog? If all the dogs are guaranteed lifelong care

Any responsible person with unaltered dogs should never leave them alone or unsupervised so they dont have an opportunity to reproduce. It can be done even in the same household.. before I had my female fixed I had 2 unaltered dogs in the same house for 6 months until I could get a spay.They never once even had a chance to hump... let alone get out of the house/yard and mate with another. My male is still intact and at 3 years he has no interest even in females (he is not alpha, I am and as we all know betas dont have breeding rights) he is supervised always, he is always within my control and under my watchful eye and not once has he ever even tried to leave his fenced in backyard(not like he could with me watching) and not once has he run free without me. The only time he is out of my sight is when he is safely locked in the house while I am gone. I have 4 cats they are fixed and my female dog is too, but I have had no need to fix the male he has no behaviour problems at all.

Answer 1

I understand how you feel as a responsible pet owner who chooses not to alter your dog. From what you describe, you take great care to ensure your dog is not responsible for causing unplanned litters. This is a good thing, but in reality, it's not all too common either.

The sad truth is that most, who "choose" not to alter, are no where near as responsible with this and this is the reason so many say to simply spay and neuter. There are lots of questions here regarding pregnancy that was an "accident". If the dog had been altered, that "accident" would have never occured in the first place. For most people, it's too much work to ensure their unaltered dog not meet up with another and so people suggest altering as a way to prevent and it takes the possiblity of "accidents" completely out of the formula. The fact is that many pet owners aren't careful as is proven here on YA with the endless questions about a dog getting pregnant "on accident".

The other problem is that those who have "an accident" occur, most often don't take the steps to ensure the pups are placed in good homes. It's not like a reputable breeder who takes a pup back, at any age, for any reason. In most cases, when that puppy goes out the door (often too young at 6 weeks), it's simply not their problem any longer. I'm not saying there are no people around who do take up responsibility for an unplanned litter, but the reality is that most don't.

For those who "plan" a litter, there are issues in some cases here too. Ideally, breeders should be seeking to acheive improvement in the breed by breeding and should be showing their dogs to prove they are a fine example and worthy of breeding in the first place. I can live with breeding "pet quality" or breeding "working lines"...

-IF the breeder is still doing all the needed genetic testing on the sire and dam.

-IF they are committed to assisting the new owners of their puppies to ensure they are well cared for and that the owners truly understand their breed.

-IF they are committed to any litters they choose to produce for the lifetime of that puppy/dog and will take back and rehome any that don't work out.

-IF they properly screen potential owners to ensure they are well suited to their breed so as to reduce the risk of a puppy/dog not working out later down the line.

-IF they adhere to the breed standard, not reproduce any dog that ISN'T a fine example and have a knowledgable person from the outside with an unbiased opinion to their dogs make the call and give opinions as to if a dog with worthy.

The truth is that when people get on here and ask about breeding their "akc" registered dog, it's usually a bad sign of a backyard breeder. If they truly had a fine example of their breed that was actually worth being reproduced, they would have gotten the pup from a reputable breeder who would have sold the pup with "show/breeding potential" (otherwise would have had a limited registration) and that breeder, if this were a first time for the owner, would be mentoring that owner to help them in the proper direction of showing/working that pup, as well as helping them choose a suitable dog to breed to (it's way more complicated to find a good match and too many thing fido next door, of the same breed will do fine). Basically, if they had a fine example of their breed, that reputable breeder would be answering all the "breeding/whelping" questions we see all too often here on YA.

The other issue I have with those who have "accidents" that could have been prevented by altering their dog, is that this takes away the possibility of a dog, already in resuce or shelter, from getting a home. They sell/give the mixed breed pups to people who, if this had not occured, may have choosen to adopt a dog already in NEED of a good HOME.

I think that not altering a pet is acceptable IF the owners truly can be responsible with this, but the sad truth is, more often than not, they simply are not.

Answer 2

Many people who show dogs, do not spay/neuter them. It is against the rules in most shows. These people however, are usually very responsible dog owners. Taking time, money and lots of energy to devote to the breed. I think that people who either want to be so called "breeders" and have no idea of the time, money and dedication needed are one source of the problem. Also, people who can't or won't spend the money, people who get a dog as a status symbol, and it gets old soon, people who gets pets on a whim, then decide they really "do not have the time", overall general losers. I have seen people walking huge pit's, mastiffs, etc. all fancied up in heavy collars, and looking really impressive, and they are not neutered, for the "masculine" factor. Then when the thrill wears off, the dog runs loose and starts impregnating the neighborhood females. It's terrible. I agree with spay/neuter programs, but I don't think it will ever be made law.

Answer 3

If you have an unaltered dog, odds are surprisingly high that you're going to be contributing to the dog overpopulation problem, even if the owner supposedly makes good attempts to keep the dog from breeding. Dogs have very strong instincts when it comes to breeding. A female in heat will do everything she can to attract males to mate with her, including roaming and marking. And most people know that a male dog will do everything possible to reach a female in heat -- including breaking chains, leaping fences, digging, and traveling long distances. Despite what you may do to prevent it, accidents happen.

It's not even nice to have a dog with all its strong mating instincts intact and yet it will never be able to fulfill its instincts by breeding. This will only make a frustrated, neurotic dog when it smells a dog in heat or when it comes into heat. Spaying or neutering your dog eliminates the risk of certain diseases and greatly reduces the risk of contracting other certain diseases. It also makes your pet a lot nicer, especially considering intact dogs have a much higher tendency of being aggressive.

The most responsible thing you can do is spay or neuter your dog. A person could attempt to just keep it from breeding because they want to save some money from getting it altered, but in the long run, it's really worth getting them spayed or neutered -- for both the dog's sake and the owner's.

Answer 4

ET hit the nail on the head. It's great that someone with an unaltered dog would be responsible enough to keep it from breeding.... but let's be honest, most people with unaltered dogs don't keep them under control. They roam. They find each other and you get posts like "what do you think these puppies are crossed with?" THAT'S the norm for people with unaltered animals. And yes, there's increased risk of cancers in unaltered animals, and pyometra is a nasty life-threatening infection. Imagine for a moment that you had 4 pounds of putrid infection in a great big balloon in your abdomen-that's what a pyometra is-and now you are facing emergency surgery to remove that huge balloon before it ruptures and kills you. We see it (unfortunately) all the time, and believe me it will make you militant about spaying and neutering. Plus you still have the behavior issues, like marking, humping, aggression, escaping, fighting... I don't know how many cats I've had to kill because an owner didn't think it needed to be fixed because they were going to keep it indoors....until it started spraying in the house. Coulda prevented that with a timely spay or neuter.

I commend you for properly taking care of the situation. I wish you were the typical pet owner, it would make my job much easier. But you are not. There's more irresponsible owners of intact animals than there are owners of intact animals with your degree of intelligence on the matter.

Answer 5

An unaltered dog is at VERY high risk of reproductive cancers. Females are at a high risk of mammary cancer & pyometria. Males prostrate infections and anal fistuals.
These illnesses are very hard on a dog, are expensive to treat and often don't have a favorable outcome. These aren't rare health issues nor are they old age issues..they often occur as early as 8-9 months of age. Unless you have had to deal with emergency pyometria surgery, testicular tumors, mammary cancer that requires extensive mastectomies, anal fistuals that leave large gaping holes that are very painful and can take months to completely heal you have no idea why some people are so adament about altering an intact dog.
Also statistics show that intact male dogs are responsible for most dog bites and attacks with intact females coming in a close second.
As a trainer I see many behavior issues associated with a dog, especially males, being intact.

Answer 6

The only problem with having an un alterd dog i HEALTH a male dog that is not fixed can get testicular cancer (along with the frustration that comes along with haveing the equiptment but not haveing the abilty to use it) For females however there is a wide range of phycal problems cancer, open or closed piometra, (an infection of the utris) The stres that is put on the body every three to six months when they come in to heat and also the hormones that make a female dog want to reproduce if this instinct is ignored it can cause mental stress on the dog. Have you ever seen a dog go thruogh a false pregnancy it is verry sad. I hope i gave you a bit of insite have a great day.

Answer 7

I understand your quandary. What I think most people don't realize is that the problems with overpopulation don't occur at the dog park or in loving homes, but on the streets and in the over-crowded and underfunded shelter systems. It's all well and good to be well intentioned about taking good care of your animal, but what if - god forbid - it gets loose? Even in a short period of time a tremendous amount of damage can be done, not only in the contraction of diseases by the animal itself, but you'd be amazed how many pups a lost male dog can create within a short span of time, or how quickly a female dog can get pregnant. Chances are those babies end up in the shelter system, racing time to find a home. The cultural pressure is all well intentioned, I think. Overpopulation of domestic animals is a problem we've contributed to and we need to deal with. It's cheap and relatively safe and not too much to ask of a responsible owner.

Answer 8

There really isnt a problem wiht it as long as like you say the owners are responsible & take the proper precatuions & all that jazzz.....the answer to your question is pretty much there are too many people w/ nothing else to do than judge others byt what THEY thingk should or should not be. Basically its nothign but ignorance & being for lack of a better word conceited. They think they know EVERYTHING adn hence can bully their opinion into everyone elses head. Bottom line its humans beings proving that tho we may be the superior race we are by far NOT the brightest crayons in the pack......dont get me wrong I against back yard breeders, people who let their pets have litter after litte of mutts and/or unwanted puppies or kittens all that jazz but just because your pooch is unaltered doesnt in my book make you abd pet owner by any means. I prefer to have my own pets altered but thats my preference. If your up to the FULL responsibility & are willing to face the facts that you COULD be possibly be putting your pooch at unneccesary risk for future health problems & are willing & able to treat those problems when & if they arise then by all means do what you will. Its a free country with A LOT of people hwo think they know it all.....go figure

Answer 9

In theory Nothing is wrong with it......In reality, people are not responsible with their unaltered dogs. They do not take "lifelong" responsibility for all the pups. People care mainly for people and what they want. The animals do and continue to suffer at the hands of irresponsible ownership. I know many hobbyist breeders and I don't have a problem with people breeding pets. What I have a problem with is owners that just
wants to get their dog laid, allows their dog to have its sixth litter of mixed breed pups. Those that give them out a shopping Malls, dump them at shelters or come on here for breeding and whelping advice. I see no problem with the fantasy breeders you describe however, I see the reality of it everyday on here. That's what makes me sick.

Answer 10

If all dogs are guarenteed lifelong care - I dont think there is a problem with it,but with an un altered dog especially females there is a high risk that they will becaome pregnant,and there are many people in todays society that think animals can just be thrown away