When should you neuter your pet?

This is a question I get asked a lot and before now there wasn't a lot of research on the subject. Vets and dog trainers always seem to have a difference of opinion so as a pet owner it's always been difficult to know what is right for your pet

As I mentioned in a previous post in some countries it's illegal to neuter your pet unless there's a good medical reason. In the UK it's common for people to neuter their pets early (some even before 6 months). I've even heard of charities neutering animals at 8 weeks old!

This difference in cultures has lead to us being able to study the effects of neutering as we now have a large sample size in both neutered and un-neutered animals in which we can study.

This research is still ongoing but is starting to show some trends.

Firstly in the early neutered pets there is more arthritis and joint issues and they're more likely to get bone cancers. This is thought to be due to the changes in hormones when neutering early and the growth plates tend to continue to grow due to more growth hormone in the system. Whereas an animal that is kept entire has a drop in growth hormone as puberty hits.

The un-neutered females do see more mammary tumours. They're also at risk of getting pyometra (a life threatening infection in the uterus). However. These conditions are treatable and the survival rate in these conditions is good.

There is also the behavioural side to consider. In males neutering can help with inter male aggression. However neutering can make anxiety worse to the point where the male becomes aggressive. I have heard this story myself where the owner has neutered their male dog and then it's turned "aggressive" to the point it's bitten someone.

Males also have the embarrassing behaviour of humping! In this case neutering may help slightly but a neutered male may still have the desire to carry out this behaviour. Even some female dogs like to hump! This behaviour may just require some training.

In females it's harder to say whether neutering effects the behaviour in terms of anxiety and reactivity at this stage of the study.

Animals left entire tend to have a longer life span. However there are other variables that may effect this. As I mentioned the samples for this study are taken from different countries so diet is a big variable. We tend to feed more kibble in this country compared to a more natural diet in parts of Europe.

There is the other cancers to consider. Testicular and ovarian cancer are obviously not a risk in neutered animals. However if an animal is kept entire and gets this cancer it can be neutered at that point and have a good survival rate.

Another thing to mention is that if you are planning to breed a bitch, breastfeeding reduces the risk of mammary cancer.

In my own experience I didn't neuter my girls until they were around 6 years. Pancakes is approaching 10 years old and has started flyball training as she's still so full of life and has no signs of any arthritis.

I did struggle with reactivity with Goose but managed to get her over it through training.

In my personal opinion and experience I would say it's better to wait until an older age to neuter your pet as the cancers it prevents (ovarian, testicular and mammary) are much more treatable than the ones more common in neutered animals (bone).

I also find that in males, their hormones help them with confidence and an early neutered male in more likely to suffer with anxiety and reactivity.

I hope you find this information useful. Neutering is such a final decision as once it's done it can't be reversed so needs to be considered carefully.