Desexing, pluck, cut or leave em alone, your thoughts?

[SPEEDY]

I have been reading up on the pros and cons of getting a dog desexed.

It seems views change around the world, in the US and Australia we are obsesed with plucking out the boy/girl bits, where in Europe it is uncommon.

The pros seem to be longer life, less aggression, less mess and reproductive cancers etc. Cons are much bigger risk of every other cancer, incontance, greatly reduced bone growth rate and more prone to bone problems.
But looking into research done in Europe shows their dogs live longer and are more healthy.

Then there is the over option, getting the snip or tubes tide, most vets wont even talk about those options as it takes more training and time even though it does what they really want, Ie to stop dogs breeding.

I have decided not to desex my pup as Im convinced its better to put it off for 2.5 years and better if they have a litter. I always waited till after my bitch hounds had a litter to desex them as I found it made them a more mature dog and smarter hunters, it seems studies in europe agree with me.

So where do you stand in your part of the world, what would/have you decide to do to your dog?

[Vaughan]

I'm not sure I can add much. We had our GWP tik (female dog) de-sexed when she was 3 y.o. I would not have considered doing it before I felt she was fully mature and had not really wanted to do it at all because of the risk of incontinence but my young male was unbearable when she was in heat, and she was not happy either. Added to which she has bad hip displasia so cannot be used for breeding anyway... My understanding is they basically opened her up and took out the lot.

Only downside I can see has been she is a bit of a food monster now. She always was but maybe it is a bit worse. No big problem, its not like she can climb down into the cellar to get the food herself. Other than that, she is more social and noticeably happier, hunts as enthusiastically as ever and does not come into heat just as the hunting season starts. So in my opinion it was only a positive thing. Whether it impacts on her bone density and thus her hip problems, I can't say. I hope not.

Personally I would not de-sex a male. If he was so aggressive I could not control him, I would shoot it. We had a de-sexed male lab when I was a kid. I wouldn't have another one. I would not mind getting them a snip to stop the breeding (which would not stop the wondering if they developed that habit) but the vets I've asked do not offer that option. Not sure why, it seem routine enough in men.

[mchughcb]

Had both mine desexed at 5 months and 6 months. Both still alive. Only I wanted to breed the second one as they are as rare as hen's teeth over here, but the missus had her way in the end.

[SPEEDY]

I will desex mine down the track, but this RSPCA fulled get em desexed asap is just nutts, getting a 7-8 week old pup done is just wrong imo.
After a year or two yes, but let them grow up before you do. But that does seem to be the selling point for desexing, its better for the owner and Im just not sure if thats a good enough reason.

Then again there are doggy abortion pills, and fake balls so either way someone is cashing in.

[Vaughan]

Then again there are ........ fake balls so either way someone is cashing in.

A dogs gotta lick somethin, even if it is a couple of silicon implants......

[SPEEDY]

Thats what I dont get, wouldnt it be just as easy to give them the snip and let keep their factory origonal balls? There is no need to cut em out and bin them.

[Vaughan]

Makes no sense to me either. Giving them a snip should be less invasive, not more. They're veterinary surgeons ferchristsakes, how hard can it be? It would not stop them wondering off to find a bitch in season, if they had that habit, but it would reduce the consequences and without turning them into fat lazy braindead eunuchs.

[SPEEDY]

With 6x as much chance of getting cancer, bladder problems and bone problems.