"prevent unwanted puppies" or overpopulation
I cannot listen to this bull shit anymore. Be responsible, supervise your dog to avoid overpopulation!
There is so much more to it than just cutting the balls off.
You as a responsible dog owner should know what it takes to avoid unwanted puppies, like the alpha couple in a wolf pack, that prevents other pack members from mating. Naturally you will not leave your female in heat unsupervised in the back yard, and only walk her on-leash, and in areas that are not frequented by other dogs.
After reading the latest scientific studies, my opinion is clear on this: In Switzerland vets recommend to spay/neuter asap only to foreigners. Because they are used to it. They never do this with domestics, who are educated.
Vets who desexes a healthy dog younger than 20 months without health risk, is simply greedy for money. Removing a dog’s ability to produce important hormones while his skeleton is still developing can result in delayed closure of the growth plates at the end of each long bone, which may put the dog at a higher risk for orthopedic disease, developing one or more joint disorders respectively.
Yes, in smaller breeds this happens round about 12 months, in middle to large sized breeds around 15 months, and in giant breeds approx. at 18 months.
Secondly, every event regarding health, and occurring before the age of 16 months may have a negative influence on the dog’s future behaviour.
The vets are baiting you with the “avoiding cancer” speech. In fact, chances are that you have to visit the vet even more often due to the side effects of desexing, and bring him more money.
Do you remember how it feels waking up after a surgery? Do you know how it feels having pain at your sexual organ? Do you know how it feels when something of your body is missing? For all of you who answered every time with “yes”: Why would you do this to your furry friend? Just so you do not have to pay attention? Don't get a dog.
The involved hormones that control unwanted behaviour are only an inferior product of the gonads.
Hunting & roaming behavior leads to escaping and straying. This Behavior is connected to stimuli – an object, quickly moving away from a dog triggers chasing & catching. The brain controls these behaviors; probably the limbic system is involved. For sure the hippocampus is relevant for spatial orientation, the important basis for straying. Sexual hormones do not control this behavior.
Ecological elimination of competitors, is not dependent on sexual hormones, but on appropriate socialization. Dogs that have not been socialized properly will more than likely show aggressions against other dogs.
Anxiety (angst), fear and stress related behavior has as a rule an indirect relationship with sexual hormones. This behavior will rather increase if you castrate your dog.
Protection behavior is often shown at the beginning of building a relationship, with the goal to keep unwanted thirds away. It is controlled by the norepinephrine and the cortisol. Also in females the testosterone will increase in the adrenal cortex if she was able to cope with a social conflict. Castration has no influence on these systems.
Hyper sexuality in males can also have different neuroscientific reasons. Aside the direct control of testosterone in the genitals this behavior is also depending on the norepinephrine system. Males can still show mounting, because of the transformation of testosterone to estradiol, and estradiol production increases in the adrenal gland after castration!
Without health risks, there will not be physical benefits for your dog, just for you.
Both, males and females can get fine, dull puppy like hair lateral of the torso and outside the extremities. Sometimes bilateral symmetrical loss of hair is possible.
The appetite increase in both and food will be better metabolized, so they need less energy and have a disposition to adiposities if the food does not get changed.
Studies of cardiac tumors in dogs showed that there was a 5 times greater risk of hemangiosarcoma, one of the three most common cancers in dogs, in spayed females than intact females and a 2.4 times greater risk in neutered dogs as compared to intact males.
Spaying and neutering is associated with an increase in urinary tract cancers in dogs. Both have a 27% to 38% increased risk of adverse reactions to vaccinations.
In males the connective tissue becomes looser, the hair becomes brittle, and less water resistant and the risk of eczemas increases. Due to the lack of testosterone they don’t build as much muscles anymore and therefore need more amino acids.
About 2% eventually develop prostate cancer, compared to less than 0.6% of intact males. In a study of 29 intact male dogs and 47 castrated males aged 11–14, the neutered males were significantly more likely to progress from one geriatric cognitive impairment condition (out of the four conditions – disorientation in the house or outdoors, changes in social interactions with human family members, loss of house training, and changes in the sleep-wake cycle) to two or more conditions.
Neutering also has been associated with an increased likelihood of urethral sphincter incontinence in males.
In females the connective tissue becomes tighter and they built more musculature. There can be the risk of mineral lacking in the calcium-phosphorus range. There is some evidence that spaying can increase the risk of urinary incontinence, especially when done before the age of three months. Spaying in female dogs removes the production of progesterone, which is a natural calming hormone and aserotonin uplifter. Spaying may therefore escalate any observable aggressive behavior, either to humans or other dogs.
The “Bielefelder” Study shows that a castration under the age of six months has only negative consequences: Negative changing of behavior like uncertain behavior towards other dogs, increased aggression towards same sex dogs, negative influence on the physical development, and lack of mental matureness.
If the castration takes place prior to the end of the puberty it is possible that the dog has an increased period of growth, lanky bones and overall gigantism (problems with the circulatory system!!!) as only the hormone production closes the Epiphyseal plate.
Due to the lack of sexual organs the dogs’ smell changes, neutered males become attractive for intact males – intact males mount 19% of the neutered males – and females may not be recognized by intact males and get attacked.
The learning and working ability of castrated males only increases because one distraction factor has been eliminated. If the dog owner is not able to provide interesting training, a castration has no influence on this ability.
Sources: Wright, Nesselrote, Miklósi, Teske, Goldschmidt, Blackshaw, Ganslosser, Feddersen-Petersen, Niepel
Having written all this: I read all the studies personally. I have experienced plenty of dogs, whose owners did not believe me, and they found themselves regularly at the orthopedic specialist or got rid of their dogs, because they could not handle the aggressive behavior anymore.
So, if there are proven health risks, of course you help your dog. I recommend Prof. Dr. Susi Arnold, http://www.animalreproduction.ch/site/index.cfm
The personality of a dog will be nearly developed around 18 months. Only then you will know if you have an A type dog or B type dog - wether confident or not confident. The A type dog is controlled by Adrenalin, the B type dog by cortisol. If you desex a B type dog, its brain might tell the system to produce cortisol constantly which will put your dog into non-stop-stress. This will get even worse, when you adopted a street dog from a different part of the world.
Therefore, if you want to go for it, please wait. However, if your vet said, I have an appointment available next week, lets do it - run!