Are you "pro" spay/neuter or not?

It's not my place to tell anyone whether or not they should spay or neuter their pet really.
If you can't handle it or don't want to deal with an intact dog, fine, go have them fixed. Simple enough

the only people with licenses to breed are running puppymills. if you are producing so many dogs that you need to be licensed, you're not breeding dogs responsibly.

as for the original question, yes and no. i am 100% in favor of across-the-board spay/neuter by shelters and rescues of the dogs and cats and puppies and kittens that they're adopting out. i am not generally in favor of pediatric spay/neuter, but i support it in a shelter/rescue situation, because they need to look at the big picture first and foremost.

for cats, yes. except for a few exceptions, i am absolutely pro spay/neuter.

for dogs, it's much more complicated. i think you need to do what is right for you, your dog, and your situation/lifestyle. i do wish that more vets would be better about knowing the information and presenting it to owners. it is still widely stated that spay/neuter at six months is the healthy thing to do for your pet, but it's really not so black and white.

i support people who want to keep their dogs intact, provided they do it responsibly and aren't producing puppies either intentionally or not. i don't think that a dog who is not being used for breeding should automatically have its bits cut off or you're a bad owner. i do think it's more beneficial to spay a female than it is to neuter a male. i'd keep a boy intact just because. i doubt i'd keep a female intact unless i was seriously considering breeding her. the risk of pyometra and mammary cancer outweighs the benefits of keeping her intact beyond the age of two at least in the breeds i'm interested in- not sure if that's the case in, say, rotties.

it's a complicated issue, and it *should* be. removing organs from an animal should be a big decision, not one taken lightly.

First and foremost, I'm pro education. I really really don't like pediatric spay and neuter, or as a friend likes to call it-"speutero, neuter in utero" But honestly, I'm happy as long as people are informed of the benefits and risks associated with it and can make an informed decision.

For me personally, I have no intention of castrating my Koolie. Will I breed? Maybe, but even if that wasn't a possibility I still would have no intention of altering. He came with balls and I see no reason to put him through what I consider for me an unnecessary surgery that has a lot of risks associated with it. Of course I'm willing to castrate if need be, but it definitely won't be the first course of action I would take and more than likely would be a last resort

But, I'll never tell anyone what to do with their own dog, but I do like it when people at least wait for sexual maturity

^
This. Very well said.

The thread being referred to may be the one I started about owning intact dogs. And I stand by what I said - I am capable of keeping an intact dog and will do so. Nothing has convinced me that neutering is necessary, for a dog I own. Strictly pro-neutering people won't agree, but I respect their choice and feel that this is a personal decision.

That being said, I will 100% recommend my neighbor across the street fixing her new male puppy when he matures. Why? Because her dogs have gotten out multiple times to run across the street, and none of her dogs are obedience trained. I am very glad my neighbor down the street fixed his Labrador Retriever male. That dog also tends to run out on the streets and has plenty of issues with other dogs as it is.

Now, I say that because these are my neighbors and I see how they take on dog ownership and the responsibility. I know they let their dogs roam the neighborhood for hours, many times without them realizing their dog is out. On the other hand, if I walked through Petco and saw someone with a mature intact male, I will not make assumptions about their ability as a dog owner and will not give it much thought.

I completely understand the viewpoint of those who will neuter all their dogs. If you do not want to deal with an intact dog, and believe that an accident may happen with your dog, then that in itself is a good reason to fix the dog. I am at a point where I can perfectly respect shelters and rescues for fixing puppies at 8 weeks old. For them, they can not guarantee what type of home the dogs will end up in and the owner's level of responsibility, no matter how choosy they are. And it's a precautionary step that, unfortunately, is justified with the type of Joe Blow dog owners we have.

I, for one, am not one to put my dog through surgery because I find it convenient to do so, because the inconvenience of an intact dog for ME is something I can handle... and I am perfectly willing to do so. But that's MY view and I do not try to force it on anyone.

I am still relatively undecided with females. I know that it is significantly more beneficial to spay a female than it is to neuter a dog, and as of now, I believe that I will likely spay all females eventually. But I do have an interest in conformational showing and will be keeping a bitch intact for that *unless* I find convincing and significant evidence to prove otherwise, or due to circumstance.

Please correct me if I am wrong - but I believe that some small counties do require anyone with more than two dogs to have a license...? I do know for a fact that there have been multiple attempts to require breeders earn a license as well, but am not sure how successful that has been. I, for one, hope that this is not the case.

I'm all for do what you want....but the average person has no clue what precautions need to be taken with an intact animal.

If you are educated on the subject and have sound reasoning, I have no issue with pets being kept intact. But I believe that all dogs that go through rescue should be altered.

My husband and I will never have an intact female in the house, barring a medical reason. I have no intentions of becoming a breeder or showing a bitch.

I have every intention of keeping my males intact, generally because I will continue to show them. Once they are retired from performance, they'll be neutered.

I would never leave a dog intact unless for whatever reason they couldn't have the surgery. They turn 6 months old and that appointment is being made. It's just not something I want to deal with, I don't want to put up with a female in heat and I don't want the behaviors associated with intact males (and quite honestly I can't stand looking at their balls hanging down!). And God forbid that dog ever gets loose, I'd rather not have to worry that they're off reproducing somewhere.

For other people it's ultimately their choice, but I think most people are not responsible enough to handle an intact dog.

Am I against the surgeries themselves? no, I think spaying and neutering has helped SO MUCH with pet overpopulation.

but I dont think I should decide what others should/shouldn't do with their dogs.

as much as it annoys me when average joe breeds his pet dogs over and over... Its a dangerous road to go down to say that he MUST neuter/spay his dogs.

I do NOT LIKE early spay/neuter. I wont do either until at LEAST a year.
and I dont want to be forced to neuter/spay my dogs early or at all..just because.

Romeo isn't neutered. he does not mark, nor hump. He will be neutered, just because it gets annoying being so diligent. and Id like to start letting him off leash at the park, but with other dogs running around.. I don't now because all it takes is a minute!

My family has a very firm spay/neuter policy

females are ALWAYS spayed. Dealing with heats would mean.. ruined furniture/rugs.

males are neutered if they show bad boy behavior.. lol like humping, marking, or ball licking in front of company LOL

my moms bichon isn't neutered. he never goes to the park, he has ZERO chance of getting a female dog preggers.. hes about 6 years old. so we dont bother.

We have two boys and a girl, all intact. Strider is getting scheduled for a neuter pretty soon. I wanted to wait until after his birthday.

The idea of silent heats freak me out, but other than that we have had no problems. Our house is super tiny so we crate and rotate who is indoors throughout the day anyway (three big dogs running loose in here is too much when they want to wrestle). When Kaia does go into season, we'll just adjust who is out when so that they don't come into contact when she's in season.

Plus we have two "Alcatraz" crates from this company.

Stainless Steel Cages

They are rad. That is all.

I think the neighbors should have to get something before they breed themselves as well as their dogs. It has been eye opening what I am experiencing here. I have never seen worse off dogs, 3 dead, and one missing in 2 months, or how much they do not watch their 5 year old child.. Maybe a license isn't what I was trying to say, maybe they should just sterilize everything in that building. I know this is replayed in every community. I just don't know what any one would do to stop it.

I think for average owners, and even most above-average owners, it is the "right" thing to do. As others have said, it only takes a minute, or a single mistake.

I don't disagree that there are some very responsible dog owners who can have intact dogs, even of the opposite sex, in the same home. I know that there are some here. But I truly think that is the great exception.

As for me, Bailey was neutered at 6 months because that's what I was told was the "right" thing to do. I kind of wish I'd known to/been able to wait for a year. But, at the same time, he goes to daycare on weekdays and is often off leash in public with other dogs (we went to the dog beach twice this weekend) -- it would kind of be a bummer to have to wait for too long, or miss out on that stuff altogether because he was intact.

i believe in pet owners making informed decisions and vets and educators not only willing to provide that information but respect the owner enough to make that decision for themselves
i do not support desexing puppies

Ashley

I must be in the minority because pediatric spay/neuter doesn't bother me. I understand why rescues and some breeders do it and it is the ONLY way to know 100% that those dogs won't be bred. Would I do it? No, but I don't necessarily think it's wrong either.

^ this. :hail:

Laur, for things like shelters and such, it doesn't bother me. because it IS the only way to know for sure that that animal will never be bred.

For me personally, I wouldn't not take a dog because it was speutered young.... but if given the option, I would wait.

As far as where I stand on the whole subject? I think most people probably should speuter their animals, but it is def a personal decision. If you are responsible enough to handle an intact animal than it's up to you if you want to or not...

I prefer to get it done young because I am afraid a male dog will start marking and I won't be able to stop it. Maybe it's silly. I don't know. Ash was neutered at 4 months. I think Anna was around 8 months but she never had a heat first. My cats were done as soon I could

I am pro-responsible ownership as well.

I think, for the majority of pet owners, spay and neuter is the best decision.

I would hate for it to become mandatory though, because for the really informed pet owners to have to spay/neuter their dogs would be completely unfair.

For myself, my crew is all spayed and neutered. They are not breeding quality. I do wait for maturity for my personal dogs though.

I am in the "neither" camp........the camp of letting the pet owner decide what works for them. I will say that I'm not a big fan of pediatric neuters, but I will not presume to tell someone else what is best for their pet unless it's clear cut abusive behavior. Period.

Both of mine are neutered, Phoebe was from the Humane Society and was spayed at approx 9 months old. Orson was neutered at 2 years old because we considered the hormonal affect on his maturing body, no risk of an 'oops' with him being the only intact dog in the home, so it was no problem to wait. I am glad they are both neutered.......it is a total convenience to ME, I am not under the delusion that it was for their sakes, LOL

I don't mind either way so long as the owner is responsible, we didn't desex Sophie till age 12 and we only did her because she had a few minor infections and we didn't want to risk pyometra. We were really worried about it because of her age but she handled it better than the boys did and they were done at 6 months and a year.

Mac is still entire, she won't be bred and we will probably spay her in the next couple of years (she's 4 now) because when she goes into heat its not fair on her, she is kicked off the bed/couch and gets very confused.

With Quinn I'm probably gonna wait till she's 12 - 18 months before I spay her but she will be done because I h ate dealing with heats and I don't want to risk it.

I have to say that it was nice to hear from Steve's sports medicine vet that I did right by him in waiting to neuter him. That's the first positive reinforcement I've gotten about it outside of the internet.

For the average person: YES... spaying and neutering is ideal! If you are not 100% sure that your dog is not going to get loose, and ensure that intact females and males are ALWAYS seperate when not supervised, and if you are not going to breed responsibly and/or do what must be done if you do make the mistake of allowing an accidental breeding, you should alter your pets before they are sexually mature.

However, it is not impossible to keep an intact dog and prevent them from ever breeding accidentally. It's not even that difficult. If my boys were intact, I would know 100% that they have never in their lives bred with a female. But if you're the kind of owner who doesn't think it's a biggie for your dog to spend the day in the yard unsupervised, or whose bitch just happened to go into a "silent heat" and didn't realize anything was amiss, it's not responsible or ethical to leave so much to chance and ignorance.

Personally, I would like to buy a puppy from a reputable breeder someday, and keep them intact in hopes that maybe if they were an excellent example of their breed they might be bred... if they weren't an excellent example, I'd probably still keep them intact, unless there are some behavioral or health issues that altering would help. I don't judge anyone who has a "whole" dog. I do if they have oops litters, though.