It’s amazing what time and studies can do for an otherwise traditional point of view. I came into the dog world with the traditional mind set of it being important to spay and neuter your dog by 6 months old. That’s the responsible thing to do as a dog owner, right? Turns out that way of thinking may ultimately be damaging to our pet’s health. Here’s what studies are beginning to reveal . . .
Health Pros & Cons
Pros: Honestly there’s just not really many pros for early spay/neuter. For females it eliminates the risk of getting pregnant and getting pyometra or mammary cancer. And for males removes the ability to impregnate a female and prevents testicular cancer. But how frequent are these conditions occurring verses opening your dog up to a myriad of other potential health problems.
Studies done in other countries (Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Scandinavia . . .) where they don’t generally spay/neuter dogs have shown that certain breeds are more prone to these issues than others. With male dogs that get testicular cancer, it’s almost always benign. In females, 50% mammary cancers are malignant. And dogs with pyometra have a 97% survival rate if treated at an early stage.
Size Matters – Note that a lot of these health problems are mainly in larger breed dogs. The same complications have not been observed in smaller dog breeds.
Cons: After spaying/neutering they are seeing an increase in obesity, diabetes, pancreatitis, cancer, incontinence, and Cushing’s (also caused by gmo’s). Even waiting to spay females until after a couple of heat cycles they’ve seen arthritis and thyroid problems within months of surgery.
Growth Platelets – Hormones tell a dogs body when to stop growing. When dogs are spayed/neutered before a year of age, they don’t get those signals. Consequently, they grow taller than they normally would. This later causes joint and skeletal issues.
Behavior – Many people decide to alter their dog due to behavioral issues like aggression. But they’ve been finding that neutering can actually make things like aggression worse. On another note, females with fear issues may have been too close to a male puppy in utero. This gives the female to many male hormones. Leaving a female intact longer allows her to build more female hormone and hopefully built her confidence.
Types Of Spay For Females
They say there are 2 types of spay for female dogs (traditional & laparoscopic). But I’ve come across 2 more that just aren’t as common but are more beneficial.
Tubal Ligation – Fallopian tubes are cut or blocked so egg can’t get through, “getting your tubes tied”.
Pros: Best option for spay
-Female can’t get pregnant
-Leaves hormones intact
-Better for overall health
Cons:
-Not a well-known procedure by vets, can be hard to find a vet to do it
-Expensive
-Female can still have heat cycles and attract unwanted males
-Can still get pyometra
Hysterectomy or Ovary Sparing Spay – Leaves ovaries, removes uterus.
Pros: Second Best Option
-Female can’t get pregnant
-Removes risk of pyometra
-Lower incidence of cancer, auto immune and obesity
Cons:
-Still a risk for mammary cancer (varies depending on breed)
-May change brain function
-Female can still have heat cycles and attract unwanted males (no bleeding or discharge though)
Laparoscopic Spay – Ovaries are removed through small incision, uterus is left intact.
Pros:
-Female can’t get pregnant
-Removes risk of pyometra
-Less trauma vs traditional surgery
Cons:
-Not recommended – removes hormonal impute
-Expensive
-Higher risk of joint disorders
-Higher risk of auto immune
-Higher risk of certain cancers
-Higher risk of urinary incontinence
Ovariohysterectomy or “traditional spay” – Ovaries & uterus are removed.
Pros:
-Female can’t get pregnant
-Eliminates the risk of pyometra
-Eliminates the risk of a false pregnancy
-No more heat cycles
Cons:
-Removes hormonal impute
-Higher risk of joint disorders
-Higher risk of auto immune
-Higher risk of certain cancers
-Higher risk of urinary incontinence
-Possible increase aggression in males towards strangers
Types Of Neuters For Males
Traditional Castration – Removes testicles.
Pros:
-Can’t impregnate females
-Minimizes sexually driven behaviors
Cons:
-Increased risk of joint disorders
-Increased risk of cancer
-Increased risk of auto immune disease
-Changes in behavior
Vasectomy – Cuts or ties the Vas Deferens so sperm cannot travel though. Testes remain intact.
Pros:
-Hormones stay intact
-Less invasive procedure
-Less risk of cancer
-Less risk of joint disorders
-Less incidents of obesity
-Less risk of vaccine reactivity
Cons:
-Takes time to be effective. As long as 2-6 months
-Risk of testicular cancer remains. But is easily treatable if caught early.
-Increased risk of prostate bacterial infection
-Increased risk of hernia
-Can still exhibit male behaviors and interest in females. Proper training can curb this.
Best Overall Age To Spay/Neuter
From all of the current info that’s been provided. I’d say if you know you want your dog fixed, it’s best to wait 1-2 years for small to mid-sized dogs, and 2-3 years for large breed dogs. If you can find it, it’s best to do a tubal ligation for females, and vasectomy for males. But for ultimate longevity, it seems altering at 5-7 years of age is the best age range. Why? The dogs get their hormones for a good long time, and then they are fixed before some of the other potential health risks come with age from continuing to be intact. But with proper diet and exercise, I’d say chances are minimized that you’ll ever have a problem.
So Do I Fix My Dog, Or Leave Them Intact?
Simply put, if you’re a responsible dog owner that always has control of your dog, leave them intact for as long as you can (or even their whole life). If your dog runs away frequently and is not under your control, spay/neuter them to prevent unwanted pregnancies.
What About Overpopulation?
Overpopulation of dogs in the US comes down to a lot of irresponsible dog owners, puppy mills, backyard breeders, etc. In countries like Scandinavia, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark, they don’t spay/neuter they dogs, and they don’t have an overpopulation problem like we do. Why? Answer: Responsible ownership.
But I Don’t Want To Deal With Female Heat Cycles
I had this opinion too and couldn’t wait to spay because of it. But after experiencing my dogs first couple of heat cycles, I realized it wasn’t that bad. I bought doggie diapers to deal with the blood during the day. And then she gets to sleep in a crate at night where she can self-clean. She almost didn’t even need diapers because she was so on top of cleaning up after herself. The crate and diapers also prevented unwanted pregnancy from my husband intact male dog.
My Personal Experience With Spay/Neuter/Intact
Keeneye (husky mix 60 lbs) – I neutered my first dog ASAP at 4-6 months of age (can’t remember exactly when). I was young and didn’t know any better. I just knew the smaller he was, the more affordable the procedure was. Luckily, he never had any major health problems. I fed him raw food on and off as I could afford it. Otherwise, he got the best kibble I could afford. He lived to the ripe old age of 14+ years old. Towards the end of his life (the last 6 months), he started having issues like needing help to stand up and pooping hard poops while he was laying down. I wish now that I had left him intact until the proper age of about 2 years old. Perhaps he would have lived 2-3 years longer.
Dun (heeler mix 50 lbs) & Gus (black lab/golden mix 70 lbs) – My husband’s dogs were both intact males. My husband didn’t believe in neutering despite me trying to convince him to do it (at the time). His dogs were healthy for the most part other than throughout their lives they curiously would both puke at times and lose their appetites for a day or two at a time. They were fed kibble diets and got several “snacks” throughout the day of whatever my husband is eating (usually bread-like products). Dun ended up developing some sort of cancer with a smelly growth protruding from his anus. It finally took his life at 8 years old. Gus left us at 10 years old due to a blockage in his intestines. If not for the blockage though, I still think he would have only made it to 11 years old at best. He was still having multiple problems with mobility and even had a random seizure that messed him up pretty bad. Both dogs should not have passed so soon. In my opinion it largely came down to diet verses being intact.
Edyte (black german shepherd 55 lbs) – This is my friend’s dog. She waited to spay her until about 3 years old. My friend said after spaying Edyte, she went from being a bit of a “bitch” and work driven dog, to a calmer demeanor and became more playful with other dogs. She’s now about 6 years old so it’s hard to say yet on how she’ll continue to age. She did develop “vitiligo” after getting too many vaccines at once. So that has started to create some early health challenges.
These personal experiences are just to show that the above information will vary from dog to dog. Your dog’s overall health is affected by several different factors from diet, vaccines, spay/neuter, etc. The decision to spay/neuter is a personal one and is up to you and what you think is best for your dog and based on your lifestyle.
Sources:
Do we need a paradigm shift in canine neutering? (dvm360.com)
Sterilization Options for Female Dogs – Dr. Judy Morgan’s Naturally Healthy Pets (drjudymorgan.com)
Sterilization Options for Male Dogs – Dr. Judy Morgan’s Naturally Healthy Pets (drjudymorgan.com)
To Spay or Not to Spay? – Dr. Judy Morgan’s Naturally Healthy Pets (drjudymorgan.com)
Data on the consequences of early sterilization continues to mount (aaha.org)
