Can spaying hurt or help with aggression?

Question

We have a 4-5 month old American Pit Bull Terrier. She is an absolute sweetheart with humans, including kids, but she has just developed signs of aggression towards other dogs.

We've spoken to a trainer and to a vet who have given us opposite opinions about when to have her spayed. One of them told us that early spaying may make the aggression worse by eliminating the estrogen that naturally counterbalances the testosterone, and recommends waiting to have her spayed until she is a year old.

The other says that the aggression may be related to signs of an early heat, and recommends spaying her at about six months.

Either way she is getting spayed ... we're just wondering about timing.

Any opinions either way?

Believer, I don't think I explained that right. The point of the trainer (who is *extremely* well respected) is that if a female puppy is showing some signs of aggression towards other dogs, then getting rid of her ovaries and halting the estrogen may make things slightly worse at the very time we're trying to train her.

Answer 1

Spaying can definitely curb aggression, but it won't get rid of it completely.

American Pit Bull Terriers are big teddy bears with people, I know--that's the way they're bred; to be a human's best, most loyal friend. Simultaneously, they were also bred to be vicious fighters. Dog aggression is in their genes. I'm a little surprised that your puppy is showing aggression at such a young age since most APBT's don't show aggression till they're fully grown (around two years old).

You cannot get rid of this natual instinct in this particular breed. Some APBT's go their whole lives with showing any aggression towards other dogs, sure; unfortunately your pup isn't one of them. So, I'm warning you right now: START TEACHING RESTRAINT AND TO WALK ON A LEASH NOW. Because she could be dangerous towards other dogs on walks.

But, again, this breed is such a loyal, amazing companion.

As for spaying her... do it now. Not only will you curb some dog aggression, but you will also lessen the chances of her getting certain types of cancer. Waiting till she's a year old won't do much to lessen her chances of cancer. You might as well kill two birds with one stone while you can.

Answer 2

The usual time for an animal to be altered is 5 to 8 months old. So 6 months isn't much of a stretch. Some vets have begun spaying earlier (2 months) which hasn't seemed to have any negative affects on the animals.

So I don't see why you can't get her spayed at 6 months, or even at a year. Really its up to you. Spaying may or may not help with her aggression problem. Either way, spayed or not, you should try working her around other dogs and show her that her behavior is not acceptable, because spaying may not fix that problem. All dogs need to be socialized and shown that they shouldn’t be attacking any dog that comes along. This could lead to some problems for you down the road, like being sued.

Here’s a link about spaying:

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=2&cat=1625&articleid=926

Answer 3

The aggression issues may or may not go away with spaying regardless of waht age she is spayed, however with that said if at the age of 4-5 months she is showing dog aggression then she needs to be spayed soon. Do NOT wait until she is a year old. Spaying will NOT make her aggression worse no matter when you spay her..the person that told you that is in error and needs to learn a bit.He may be a well respected trainer but he has no idea what he is talking about concerning spay & aggression.
In addition to getting her spayed she needs more socialization and training

Answer 4

I would suggest getting her spayed as soon as possible, before her first heat which usually happens around the six month of age. It will help with her aggression. But it will raise her testosterone levels and she will develop hair more in places that are usually not hairy. I've learned this by having some females spayed. My mom had two females spayed and they developed more hair than before. As for being aggressive I can only ask if your dog has been socialized with other dogs? If not then this is your problem. She's jealous and trying to prove she's the pack leader over other dogs. She should be soicalized and get her fixed or you will have a lot of problems with males and possibly puppies you aren't really ready for.

Answer 5

With dogs or cats, spaying or neutering too early can affect their full growth and girth. With a smaller dog, six mos or so is fine. For a bigger dog, unless suggested by a Vet for a medical reason, its better to wait a bit later because you are cutting off that normal hormone supply that affects their girth and growth and that can impact their bone and joint health too or their overall health if they get overweight early and their bones and joints don't grow to reach their naturally inclined (before surgical intervention) growth. Think MASTIFF. Spay or neuter them before they get their full height. Picture them gaining too much weight and they don't have their full girth to support it. It's not fair to the animal. Some Vets won't spay or neuter very large dogs until a year and a half or MORE.
Other Vets say it's no problem because they are more concerned about preventing breeding and unwanted puppies. If you are a responsible owner, you will take care about that.
As far as having a pit bull that is showing signs of aggression towards other DOGS (not humans) that is in their nature and they have to be socialized very early on. Take your dog to training with a trainer familiar with the breed because you have one of the best breeds on earth!! Also check that the trainer is qualified and certified to be a trainer of dogs that have aggression issues.
The spaying won't affect their nature as far as aggression towards other dogs. Training can correct this.

Answer 6

From personal experience (2 female and 3 male dogs trained since I was in high school, all of which were spayed/neutered): the males tend to be much more playful ("puppylike") for an extended period of time. Sure, sometimes agressive, but playfully aggressive with people. The females have had no increase in aggressive tendancies.

From what I've found on the web:

Females may get more "attention" from males after they are spayed, which may make them more aggressive toward male dogs. But the health benefits seem to outweigh these concerns. http://www.doglistener.co.uk/medical/neuter.shtml

It is a well-known fact that non-neutered pets are much more likely to roam and to be aggressive than non-neutered pets. Statistics show that an intact male dog is 6.2 times more likely to bite or be aggressive than a spayed or neutered dog. 2 http://www.snkc.net/

Hope these help--it was all of about 10 minutes worth of research on Google.

Answer 7

I have always heard that spaying/neutering your dog will help "mellow" them out. I have 4 dogs and they are all neutered/spayed. I'd have to say the 2 males/2 females all get along very well.

I would watch and see when she is showing signs of aggression. Are you present?? The kids?? What about food?? She could be simply trying to protect something that she thinks is her property.

Either way I completely agree with you decision to get her spayed. It is SO much healthier for the animal. Good luck!!

Answer 8

Everything I've ever heard is that spaying earlier reduces aggression. The trainer is just plain wrong.

I'd work with another trainer to work on dog socialization as well. Pits as a breed have a tendency to be dog aggressive and the sooner you address it, the better off you'll be.

Answer 9

Most vets recommend around 7-8 months. If she does start her heat cycle early wait at least a week afterwards and then take her. This gives her body time to heal and recover. Thank you for being responsible and making the decision to spay her. She will love you for it!

Answer 10

It would not sound like their being unspayed is inflicting their battling if it only all started a speedy collectively as back...even in spite of the incontrovertible fact that it may be of their terrific pastime to be spayed for common wellbeing motives. Your terrific guess is attempting to detect the reason of their anger in direction of one yet another, in case you have tried and can't then you definately could be extra valuable off consulting a animal behaviorist or canine practise college.