Getting my puppy neuterd?

Question

He is about 4 months old. Is this too young? Also, I don't think his testicles have dropped yet. Ho long until they will? or, I have been told that there could be additional fees for such a situation, anyone know HOW MUCH extra it might cost? I am calling the vet tomorrow and I can ask then, but I was just wondering...

I am asking because the shelter requires me to get him fixed... And the adoption cost covers getting him fixed and I think the paper she gave me only lasts for so long.

Answer 1

Ditto what punk_rawk_grrl said...

Yes, new technology, anesthetics, and better surgical techniques have made early pediatric spay and neuter the new standard. I say "new," however, pediatric spaying and neutering has been around for decades and is endorsed by the American Veterinary Medical Association, American Animal Hospital Association, Humane Society of the United States, ASPCA, American Veterinary Medical Association---and thousands of animal health professionals, welfare, and rescue organizations. Generally, kittens and puppies need to be six to eight weeks old and weigh of a minimum of two pounds. Early sterilization is an effective and safer alternative for your pet:

Less Bleeding
The young puppy or kitten is not yet fully developed; therefore, the blood vessels of the ovaries, uterus, and testicle are smaller and have minimal bleeding.

Excellent Visualization
Adequate visualization of the ovaries and uterus is essential when spaying a female cat or dog. In the adult animal there is often layers of fat tissue in the abdomen and around the organs that makes visualization sometimes difficult. In the puppy and kitten there is almost no fat at all. The ovaries and uterus along with the arteries is clearly seen.

Elastic Tissue
Because the tissues in kittens and puppies are not yet fully developed, it is easy to manipulate without fear of tearing the tissue or a blood vessel.

Less Stitching
Again, since the tissues are less developed in puppies and kittens, less stitches are required, which means less surgery time. Less surgery time mean less time under anesthesia.

Fewer Drugs Required
The smaller the patient, the less anesthesia is needed.

Quicker Recovery Times
Because less anesthesia is required, recoveries from surgery are quicker. Also, kittens and puppies have a faster metabolism, which helps rid the body of drugs more quickly. Most pediatric patients are up and walking within an hour of surgery and eating within two hours of surgery.

Near Zero Complications
Puppies and kittens are no more likely to have complications due to surgery and anesthesia than are animals 6 months and older.

Less Healing Time Required
Kittens and puppies grow at a remarkable speed which helps them heal much faster than older pets.

Less Cost
Our cost for a dog spay or neuter is based on its weight. For larger breed dogs, if you wait until the dog is fully grown, the cost of the surgery will be much more. It is better to have them done at a young age for all of the reason mentioned above, but also because it will save you money. There are many discounted or low cost spay and neuter organizations that offer pediatric spay and neuter.

And last but not least, a spayed or neutered pet will not add to the heartbreaking, exponentially-increasing number of homeless animals.

Lots of great articles on pediatric spay and neuter if you Google for them. Here's just two overviews.

http://arbl.cvmbs.colostate.edu/hbooks/pathphys/reprod/petpop/early.html
http://www.cvm.uiuc.edu/ope/ivb/spay-neu.htm

Thanks for wanting to learn the facts, and please spread the word.

Answer 2

You go, Punk Rawk Girl. My answer was going to be that my pup was nutered at 4 months, as soon as they started to drop. The procedure is different if they have not dropped, because they then have to go in and get them, hence the cost. The sooner you have the opportunity to get the procedure done, the more benifit he will get from it. The longer his life will be, the less he will miss them in the long run, and the less he will remember about the pain after. Also, with being so young, he will bounce back faster and his body will adapt.

The form you got from the shelter should not expire, but they can say you are putting them off and not holding up your end of the deal at 7 or 8 months, when you are getting too close to sexual maturity.

Again, yay for Punk Rawk Girl.

Answer 3

Excuse me here - but you're ALL wrong!!! Why are you answering when you don't know the answer???

A puppy or kitten can be neutered as soon as it's two pounds in weight and two months in age. A lot of shelters nowadays are using this early spay/neuter because a) it ensures the animal going out of the shelter is definitely incapable of breeding and b) it's a lot easier on the animal at a younger age.

I wish ALL shelters would adopt this policy as there's really no way for a shelter to chase after everyone that's adopted a pet to make sure that they indeed get the pet spayed/neutered as promised when they adopted it. And by breeding the shelter animal they're just making MORE animals that need homes and adding to the pet overpopulation problem.

For more info go to here: http://www.spayusa.org/media/pdfs/vets_learn_procedure.pdf

Answer 4

They can be about 5 1/2 months but I would wait until about 6 months. There isn't a certain time they should drop but it should at the latest be 6 months. That's another reason most vets do it around that time.

And for a situation where only one testicle has dropped and the other has not does cost more. The reason is because another incision has to be made to find it. When a testicle has not dropped it is call cryptorchid. (Kriptorkid) hehe.

Ask your vet for prices. It's different everywhere!

Hope this helps good luck!

Answer 5

Males are normally neutered at 6 months old. By then his testes should be down. If not, he'll have to be neutered to keep him from getting cancer. And something I was told about from a friend of mine that had a male who's testes never distended & he was not very friendly & wasn't very active. After he was neutered, he totally changed so she wondered if he may have been in pain & once the testes were removed, the pain went away. Rest assured, neutering him is the responsible thing to do in a couple months.

Answer 6

This is far too young to have a puppy castrated. I wouldn't dream of doing such a thing. Let him have his puppyhood first then think about it when he is over 9 months old.

It could take some time for his testicles to drop. I have known dogs whose testicles haven't dropped until they are nearing 12 months.

You ought to speak to your Vet if you are worried but I would give it time.

Answer 7

If is is a male you should definately get him neutered, the sooner the better. a puppy can be spayed or neutered at eight weeks old. the shelter shouldn't have a time limit on neutering him unless u wait like a year.

Answer 8

Yoour puppy can die if this procedure is done this early. Wait till he is 18 months old or just to be safe maybe 20 months.I think my dog got nuetered for about 200 or maybe 300 dollars.

Answer 9

Well....he is deffinatly too young because my dog was neuterd at 6 months....and i don't know the cost i think it was like 300 dollars.

Answer 10

Why don't you wait a few more months? It is still early.