will neutering my old English sheepdog at 6 months mess with proper growth and development?

Answer 1

Yes, it will. The dog will never physically or menatlly fully develop as there will be no hormones running in his body. Do not fall for all the crap about fixing every dog because of all the dogs at the pound and the overpopulation issue. There is no over population issue, there is an over abandonment issue by idiots who have no idea what they are getting and when they do get it, have no idea how to treat it like a dog which develops issues that the idiot owners are now not willing to deal with. I have a shepherd that was fixed at 6 months of age, way before I got him. He never fully developed either physically or mentally and he is now 5. I have seen the same problem with every dog that was fixed, male or female. There was an entire article posted here a couple of weeks a go in reference to NOT fixing dogs, go read it. Be responsible and keep the dog under control so that you can avoid accidental breedings and let him mature as far as his genetics will allow him to. And please, whatever you do, read that article BEFORE you fall into the trap of cancers and all the other things you will hear, first. Also, look for the thumbs down this post will generate, that will tell you about the mentality and general dog knowledge of people.

EDIT: Ontario, I am a working dog handler, I need all the drive the dog can possibly give me, and then some. That drive is diminished or extinguished from a dog that has been fixed in my experience. I am also very interested in the testosterone that male produces for its effects on dominance that it has on police dogs and sport dogs. When I say sport, I mean sports that involve a large amount of bite work in them. I hate to see a police or sport dog be not fully developed physically or mentaly as this can lead to more serious problems for them and their owners/handlers. Also, this idea of breeding here on YA has gotten out of hand. I agree that the vast majority of people here have no idea what they are doing and should NOT be breeding, but, this humaniac attitude of every one yelling about the pounds and humane societies has got to stop. If people acted more responsibly when they got a dog, there would not be all these dogs at the pound. Plus, not everyone wants a mutt and not everyone wants a rescue. People have pushed this mutt/rescue thing too far and it is now starting to leave a bad taste in everyone's mouth. Thank you for your comments.


Tlh 98: How are genetics supposed to play their part on an organism lacking of natural hormone production? Would you be able to FULLY mature without the benefit of testosterone in your system? Why would a dog? Think about it please and I welcome your comments.

Answer 2

It does cause some development issues and if you must neuter at least wait until the dog has finished growing and matured.
I had my dogs neutered because I was told it would end the aggression my older male had been displaying towards the younger male, well it did not work. It has been months and I still have the same problem. On the other hand, the younger male has changed but it is not for the better(as far as I am concerned) he is a big baby now and it causes some problems with training. I will not neuter a dog again because it has not done anything positive. I can manage to keep intact dogs inside so there is no worry about them roaming the street impregnating other dogs so besides preventing unwanted litters I do not see the point in neutering.

Answer 3

I agree 100% with Greekman and it will earn me a thumbs down as well. I think it was the article that I posted that he is referring too.

Here is the article here:

http://www.naiaonline.org/pdfs/LongTermHealthEffectsOfSpayNeuterInDogs.pdf

It is not a myth that altering your dog to early can cause orthopedic problems. When done to early, it causes the the growth plates to keep growing because the hormone that controls growth is removed with the altering process, so the growth plate has a delay on when it's supposed to stop.

While altering does eliminate the chance for some cancers and diseases, it increase the risk for many more, especially if done too early.

People have said that the person that wrote this is not a vet, and is a nobody, so what does she know.

She may not be a vet, but she has compiled the research together and has presented it. What she has presented are results from studies being done by labs and vets.

What she has presented is legit.

Answer 4

No. 5-6 months is the ideal age to neuter any cat or dog. The idea that it interferes with normal growth is a myth - just like the old belief that it's best to let an animal have one litter before spaying!

The only negative consequence of neutering is that it slows down the metabolism a little. This can make animals more prone to weight gain, especially if they are not very active. This is easily controlled with the right foods tho. Some companies have in fact brought out new foods lower in calories, especially for neutered animals, to avoid the possibility of extra weight gain. Neutering does not affect growth and development.

Chalice

Answer 5

Old English Sheepdog Ontario

Answer 6

Early neutering tends to prevent the development of hormone-triggered behavior problems like marking, humping, and territoriality. It may keep your dog's behavior more "puppy-like." Also, the change in hormones may have a slight affect on the rate of bone growth, but this difference is only significant to dog athletes or serious working dogs.

It is widely accepted that for a typical companion dog, 6 months is a safe and reasonable age at which to neuter.

Answer 7

Yes, and you should neuter you Sheepdog at 8 or 9 months.

Answer 8

No it would not mess with proper growth and development. My Akita was neutered at 5 months and he is now 9 months old and 85 pounds.

Answer 9

Not enough to make a real difference, the only real reason you "may" want to hold off is if you were planning on doing athletic performance events with a large breed. For example greyhounds are left intact during their racing careers partly to reduce injuries, but it does not will prevent as I adopted one that broke their leg, one ended up tearing a knee ligament and I had one female that was much taller than the average who was 2" taller than my male despite being spayed at 3 1/2 years old and she also developed urinary incontinance. One of my foster greyhounds died of hemangiosarcoma just after his third birthday he was neutered at 18 months

So my own experiences with my adopted racers and foster greyhounds does not support Zinks research that spaying later is better and prevents certain illnesses.injuriies I still feel genetics plays a far bigger factor.

This articles provides both sides of the arguments on whether spaying.neutering early can have an affect on canine athletes

If your dog is going to be used for agility it is something to consider but I wanted to add to own views from what I have seen through greyhound rescue. but something you should discuss with your vet

http://72.14.205.104/search?q=cache:rjfgTZnrJpQJ:www.sheltermedicine.com/documents/Zink%2520rebuttal.doc+neutering+growth+plates+athletes&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=13&gl=ca


I read the link from the post above about how neutering before maturity results on osteosarcoma, to me that is a joke, race dogs start racing at 1 1/2 year old so that if they bomb out that that is the youngest age we get the majority are retired from racing at 3 and 4 years old some 5 and 6 years old, and that in when we neuter them so they are mature adults at the time of neutering . yet osteosarcoma is huge killer online surveys by owners in the UK are report 22 % dying as a result, if her facts were correct then why are they dying of this awful cancer, the survey was done in 2003, but in north america the reports of bone cancer deaths are staggering , I am seeing many adopters losing 3 out of 4 of their pet greyhounds to it, I have already lost one, and my other male is at the age now when it commonly strikes usually between 7 and 10 years old, it has become the biggest fear of adoptive greyhound owners especially if they see there dog suddenly start limping and in the last couple years several research studies have been launched in North america with regards to bone cancer in greyhounds, because of the extremely high numbers dying of this

If later neutering would prevent we should as owners being seeing the % we do and be living in fear at every limp we see.
I used to be on a greyhound owners forum regularily but reading that 2 or 3 more greyhound every week were diagnosed with bone cancer finally got to me, it became just too painful

Answer 10

No, neutering any animal is a good thing if you don't intend to breed it. Congrats on your new sheepdog, they are characters, you are going to be very happy together.