By Vet Graham Lewis
Like many things in life, whether or not to neuter your dog used to be a fairly simple question with a simple answer from the Vet, as did when was the best time.
However as with many things the answer these days is a bit more complicated and has a lot more nuance to it!
Changes in the advice we give on this topic are based on recent studies on neutering and its effects on pets and whether it has any unintended consequences.
We always try to listen to the most relevant up to date scientific information and adapt how we do things to ensure we are trying to look after the best interests of our pets. Some may interpret the data differently but below are some of the key bits of advice we now use:
Male dogs that demonstrate fearful behaviour may develop fear aggression if neutered, so neutering males is not always the best option despite the health benefits associated with it.
There are implants that are not permanent that we can use to see what effect neutering would have on a male dog in terms of behaviour and sometimes these are a good option first.
Neutering dogs at a young age can cause problems with the development of their joints. In some cases, urinary incontinence is more common if neutered young and in a few breeds there is a small increased risk of certain types of rare tumour.
We now advise waiting until they are skeletally mature to neuter them. This can vary depending on the breed but your vet should be able to let you know when the right time to neuter your pet is.
We still regularly see emergency Pyometra operations in entire older bitches and also mammary cancers are common in entire bitches. As such our recommendation on whether or not to neuter, if you do not plan on having puppies, has not changed and we still believe it is the best option in most cases.
Neutering is a procedure that we do routinely, however it does involve a general anaesthetic so is not completely risk free.
It is a day procedure. Routinely your pet will go home the afternoon they have the surgery but recovery takes 10 to 14 days.
If you are not sure what the best option is for your pet then talk to your vet and they will help you make a fully informed decision.