The Decision to Neuter

[frankykeno]

My husband and I are trying to make the decision whether or not to neuter our new dog. Marrok is a 2 year old Taso Inu x Bulldog. We recently adopted him and he is intact.

I believe in neutering any dog if they aren't going to be bred and think it makes for a better pet and will help Marrok stay more on task with protecting our home if he's not driven by the need to breed. My husband is not as comfortable with neutering this dog. He is worried that it may affect Marrok's temperment, cause him to gain too much weight and become lazy. We are both concerned about any possible medical risks with the meds needed to do this surgery.

Any advice folks? Any experiences with changes to your dog's temperment or physical changes post surgery especially if the dog was past the pup stage?

 

[tomcat]

Hi Frankykeno: This is a great question that you asked and one that I have heard many many times in the veterinary practice.

In my experience, I have only seen 1 adult dog affected by his neutering. We had a 10 year old aggressive lab routinely come into the clinic where I worked and about 3-4 months after his neutering, we were all able to handle him without a muzzle and he generally became a much better behaved dog.

Now, the literature all points to no behavior changes in neutered pets and, like your husband, most people are concerned that their neutered dog will become lazy and gain weight. This is a old wive's tale and with proper exercise and diet, even neutered pets can have great body condition scores.

Like any surgery, there are risks with the surgery itself and anesthetics. The good news is that today's anesthetics along with the increase in trained technical staff at most veterinary hospitals has reduced those risks tremendously. Your best bet is to speak with your veterinarian before hand, make sure you feel comfortable with their surgical set up and let me know your concerns.

Another idea for you is to post this question at PetDocsOnCall.com. Not only do we have more than 75 DVMs who can answer questions about surgery risks, medical concerns, etc, we also have behaviorists who can discuss your initial question about behavior changes after neutering.

Good luck...let us know how everything turns out!

 

[JstLovesFilas]

My husband and I are trying to make the decision whether or not to neuter our new dog. Marrok is a 2 year old Taso Inu x Bulldog. We recently adopted him and he is intact.

I believe in neutering any dog if they aren't going to be bred and think it makes for a better pet and will help Marrok stay more on task with protecting our home if he's not driven by the need to breed. My husband is not as comfortable with neutering this dog. He is worried that it may affect Marrok's temperment, cause him to gain too much weight and become lazy. We are both concerned about any possible medical risks with the meds needed to do this surgery.

Any advice folks? Any experiences with changes to your dog's temperment or physical changes post surgery especially if the dog was past the pup stage?

Hi! All my boys are neutered - and were neutered at young ages. I have a Doberman that just turned 2 years - the Fila Brasileiro (this breed is known for not liking anyone - if you don't live in the house, you're a stranger and strangers are bitten) and I have a 7 year old German Shorthaired Pointer.
I showed dogs for over 20 years and if I wasn't keeping a dog for show/conformation/reproduction I absolutely neuter/spay them! It gives the boys a wonderful temperament - they become more of your buddy, they are so much more attentive to you. I made a 3000 mile trip with Bodacious and honestly I can't give you any good reasons for keeping a male whole!
Whether they breed or not - there is still the sex drive. You haven't lived until you are standing there talking to someone and have your dog embarass you by masturbating - and yes, they do this.

 

[Zoom]

I tend to favor holding off on neutering until maturity, because the hormones involved do more than just create sex drive. They are also responsible for growth rates, body structure, mental maturity and a couple other things. 2 years is usually a good age though.

Dogs only get fat and lazy if their owners let them. Intact dogs might have a slight increase in metabolism but for the most part, the reason they seem to stay skinnier easier is because those extra hormones usually are keeping them busy in one way or anonther. My Aussie was neutered at just under 2 years old and he's in fantastic shape at over 5 years of age now.

 

[JstLovesFilas]

All mine were neutered by 4 months... haven't found that to be true at all. Chipper is 7 - Bodacious is going to be 4 and Ernie is 2... I don't like holding off till two and having them possibly lift their legs in the house ....

Chipper has been a steady 80 pounds for 5 years - since maturity. None of the males are fat. The only one that had a problem with weight was the GSP bitch and she wasn't spayed until after 2 due to health problems.

I've just never had a problem with weight gain with a neutered dog...

 

[Renee]

Especially in a large breed, if it's going to be neutered, everything I've read has made me STRONGLY advocate holding off until after full maturity.

More than anything, make the best informed decision for your individual dog. My Bimmer (GSD/wolf rescue) is intact and will be 11 years old this winter. He's never given me cause to regret leaving him intact, although when Kharma comes into season I do take him over to stay with my parents for the duration.

I realized that if he was going to ride herd on Fila bitches he was going to need all the testosterone he could muster

 

[anyeone]

Especially in a large breed, if it's going to be neutered, everything I've read has made me STRONGLY advocate holding off until after full maturity.

This is what I have read as well. I plan to neuter my baby but will wait until he's 2. We don't have other dogs and his ventures outside the house will be very controlled so I'm not too worried about him spreading his seed in the meantime

(On the dog masturbating theme...my baby is constantly "showing his stuff" but as of yet has not tried to "do" anything with it. It's pretty hilarious, although I keep having to photoshop the pics I take of him!)

 

[JstLovesFilas]

Well for everyone that says that early neuter is wrong - and waiting is a good thing, there are just as many - or more vet's that advocate the opposite. My personal experience with clipping early has been adding years to their lives. The Bloodhound that passed away a couple of years ago was 14.... There are more reasons to do a early neuter than there is to keep them whole. Keeping them whole does not add muscle or attitude to a dog... The only thing you are removing is the desire to hunt for a girl in season... you are transferring that intense emotion to you - they become your buddy...
Spaying on the other hand - does nothing. It does not add or detract from the bitch. What her personality is when she's not in season is her personality when she is spayed.

 

[JstLovesFilas]

(On the dog masturbating theme...my baby is constantly "showing his stuff" but as of yet has not tried to "do" anything with it. It's pretty hilarious, although I keep having to photoshop the pics I take of him!)

Spend enough time with dogs and you will be standing there with a whole male while he enjoys himself ... airing it out is not the same thing.... trust me.

I bred and showed dogs for many years - just give it time.

 

[tapeboy]

Spend enough time with dogs and you will be standing there with a whole male while he enjoys himself ... airing it out is not the same thing.... trust me.

I bred and showed dogs for many years - just give it time.

I was up late and decided to google/yahoo "English Mastiff masturbate." That brought me to this forum.

I have always wondered how many other breeds (or dogs) like to polish one off in their free time. What other breeds have you all seen with some serious masturbating tendencies?

In my life, I have known one dog in particular that had a bit of a problem; an obsession; a chronic masturbater... an English Mastiff named Zeke. He was the dog of a girl that I used to date. She told me he had been pleasuring himself, but I did not believe it was anything more than what I had seen with any other male dog I had known... licking, etc. Since we were not living in the same town at the time, I asked her to videotape it so I could see. The following video is some of that footage:

http://tapeboy.com/videos/puppylove

Although I am privy to the infamous two-pawed masturbater of youtube notoriety (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDEK5LZ1eOo), I have still yet to see anything serious from a large breed (besides some humping). And I have definitely not yet seen the aftermath (i.e spooge) of a climax, from any breed, as I have with Zeke (relax, it is not in the video).

Just thought I would share that with you. (Hope it made you laugh like it did me.) Anyone else had a problem of this magnitude with a large breed? (How normal is this?) Oh, and I would like to weigh in on the "neuter or not to neuter" discussion. I vote: No Neuter! But if you must, at the very least wait until maturity and throw some Neuticals (http://www.neuticles.com/) in as a replacement, for Christ's sake! (Yes, I am a man. And I have owned two male German Shepherds (and one female)--neither of which was neutered.)

And no one should ever be embarrassed because their dog masturbates (it gives them character.. and you a good laugh)! Do not even... My God, if you could get your mouth down there, you would do it too! Matter of fact, I always cheered Zeke on (He was a teenager... and he did eventually stop.. less often and less dedication to the finish with advancing age as he was distracted by it less and less. Guys, just think back to eighth grade.)

I say the only REAL reason to neuter (without exception) is if you want them to live around other male dogs.

 

[Barb]

You say Marrok is already 2 years old. I would go ahead and have him neutered. My husband thought the same as yours about our males temperament changing, and it didn't. If your husband likes your macho dog now, he will be the same dog after.

 

[anyeone]

Tapeboy, my 6 mo old has not figured out how to m-bate yet, but he lets his willy out CONSTANTLY. Esp. when the camera is out and I'm trying to take pics

 

[Moose Momma]

I am a new momma of an 18 month old, 130 pound English Mastiff named Moose. We got him from a very sweet couple in our area that just didn't have enough time for him. They wanted him to be part of a family with room to roam, and we definately have that. We live on 80 acres in a fairly large home, with 4 kids as well as our 2 dogs.

We have had Moose just over a week and are having issues with him mounting our female Labrador Retriever, Mackenzi. She is our sweet old girl, at the age of 13, weighing in at just 55 lbs. (He obviously outweighs her by quite a bit). She is in great shape for her age, but she is definately more laid back than our new teenage boy. They have a great time together when he is not trying to mount her, but that time is becoming less and less.

We were told by his previous owners that he had never displayed even the know how or want to mount any female dog that they had come in contact with, but the last 3 days have been hell! That's all he wants to do and actually accomplished the task yesterday. He has become relentless with her. He is such a sweet boy and we are so glad that he is part of our family now, but this is not what we had invisioned. I fear that he is having his way with her whenever we are away, and he has been completely persistant even when we are here. The usual, "leave her and go lay down Moose", isn't working. We have been putting him in his crate after countless hours of making him leave her alone because I don't know what else to do.

I know that most say to wait to neuter until he's 24 months, but I don't know that I can wait that long and I also want to nip this in the butt. I know that he doesn't really have much control of this and I don't want to hurt his spirit by constantly telling him to get away from her, which is why I'm on the fence about what to do. He is soooo sweet and that's why we fell in love with him. We just want to be able to love him and have fun with our new family member, instead of beating him off of our other love all day long.

Any suggestions guys? Am I horrible for wanting to fix him or is it the right time? Please help me out folks, I'm new to not only the Mastiff bread, but sex crazed male dogs as well.

Nichole

 

[Mongo]

Mongo was neutered at 1 1/2.... I think its so stupid when men dont want to get a dog neutered because of his "manhold" grow up and think about ALLLLL the dogs in the animal shelters and how they got there!