Female in Heat vs. Intact Male
- Thread starter Lizmo
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Being into breeding I've had both ... and at the same time . These were not kenneled dogs but family dogs in the same household . Obviously separated when in heat . I have always prefered my males ... though have loved my females . But , they don't call them bitches for nothing !! My intact males were never a problem ... my intact females meant many weeks of watching like a hawk as I didn't breed each heat and any with my males would be in breeding . Unless I was a breeder and bought a female for responsible breeding , I would spade . As to males ... it's up to the owner and their dog's attitude .
It REALLY depends on the breed of dog you get as well.
Females in heat can be quite annoying if your a "show person".. you CAN NOT compete with a bitch in heat at any obedience, agility, rallyO. BUT you can show a bitch in heat in conformation (although its frowned upon).
Iintact males tend to loose any and ALL brains they start out with when they are around a bitch in heat.
I know ALL about this topic - I grew up with multiple intact dogs in the house and its a PAIN!
When your bitch is in heat you really shouldn't take her out to places that are public. She is more suseptible to infect. She can be moody as well while shes in heat.
Males, along with loose their brains - some can get aggresive/pushy.
Riot is faily good around bitches in heat, hes grown up with it living with jada. Each time shes in heat - they are not allowed together for a month. BUT they use the same backyard so Riot would come in from the backyard(alone) and be frothing at the mouth b/c hes so excited he could smell Jada..
Overall though - i'd prefer an intact male. Only because I know how to deal with it.
a Bitch in heat can be messy, you loose show dates and (if you have a double coated dog) they blow their coat out.
Females in heat can be quite annoying if your a "show person".. you CAN NOT compete with a bitch in heat at any obedience, agility, rallyO. BUT you can show a bitch in heat in conformation (although its frowned upon).
Iintact males tend to loose any and ALL brains they start out with when they are around a bitch in heat.
I know ALL about this topic - I grew up with multiple intact dogs in the house and its a PAIN!
When your bitch is in heat you really shouldn't take her out to places that are public. She is more suseptible to infect. She can be moody as well while shes in heat.
Males, along with loose their brains - some can get aggresive/pushy.
Riot is faily good around bitches in heat, hes grown up with it living with jada. Each time shes in heat - they are not allowed together for a month. BUT they use the same backyard so Riot would come in from the backyard(alone) and be frothing at the mouth b/c hes so excited he could smell Jada..
Overall though - i'd prefer an intact male. Only because I know how to deal with it.
a Bitch in heat can be messy, you loose show dates and (if you have a double coated dog) they blow their coat out.
Jen... I don't think my girl has gone into heat yet (though she might've had a low key cycle and I didn't notice) but since you plan on your puppy being a working dog, you might want to know some of the working consequences of both..
Females in heat are very frequently "off" when working. The hormones just really fiddle with their minds since they're not used to it. Males can be difficult if a female in heat is very nearby, but for the most part I think they are more consistent. Same goes with their demeanor - females are moody, more sensitive (not always in a good way) and, in Border Collies, tend to be a bit more on the snarky side. They're also more one-person dogs than males... and also more of the "thinking" type. At least in my experience.
You are limited in the places you can take a female in heat, but you can take an intact male virtually anywhere (as far as shows, trials, etc. goes)
Females in heat are very frequently "off" when working. The hormones just really fiddle with their minds since they're not used to it. Males can be difficult if a female in heat is very nearby, but for the most part I think they are more consistent. Same goes with their demeanor - females are moody, more sensitive (not always in a good way) and, in Border Collies, tend to be a bit more on the snarky side. They're also more one-person dogs than males... and also more of the "thinking" type. At least in my experience.
You are limited in the places you can take a female in heat, but you can take an intact male virtually anywhere (as far as shows, trials, etc. goes)
Dekka cannot train agility when she is in heat..she has no focus. Agility is to stimulating and she tends to 'play' by her own rules. We can train obed no problem though.
Kaiden is fine and will work even if there are girls in heat in the training hall. Snip right now is beside himself with desire and has no brain what so ever at all.
Kaiden is fine and will work even if there are girls in heat in the training hall. Snip right now is beside himself with desire and has no brain what so ever at all.
I've had two intact females in my life (Dance because she's a show dog, a Dachshund because she didn't deal well with anesthetic at all and spaying wouldn't have been safe). Sure, heats can be messy, but I didn't find them to be much of a problem. Dance was very clean (this time around anyway) and the Dachshund was too. Dance was a little 'off' during hers behaviour and focus wise... one moment she'd be happy, cuddly, willing to work for me etc. and the next she'd want nothing to do with anybody and looked sad, but I didn't find that to be a big deal. Her attitude didn't really affect our day at all. Obviously you can't take a female out anywhere while she's in heat, and that can be a little annoying if you have an active dog, but I lived through it. I think the biggest problems that go along with keeping an intact bitch are the concern of pyometra and false pregnancies. Aside from the worry of those two things, I don't find it to be a major hassle at all. It only happens a couple times a year and lasts for a few weeks.
All of that being said, I personally wouldn't choose one over the other. I don't find most intact males to be a big problem just as I don't find most intact females to be a problem.
All of that being said, I personally wouldn't choose one over the other. I don't find most intact males to be a big problem just as I don't find most intact females to be a problem.
The club I train at, the guy has a male and a female Bouvier, both who are unfixed. The female completely loses drive and focus when she's in heat. The male is a nut job. He broke off his 2 top canines by hanging from the roof of his kennel which is 8' tall. Unfortunately he's one of those dogs you can't pet. I never pet the female either but apparently she's more social. He's also got 2 female working Border Collies (he's got a flock of sheep he uses them for). He says that when no one is around and all the dogs are out of their kennels, the male Bouv hangs around him just like the BCs and is a nice dog, and it's the female who starts stuff all the time.
I have an intact male and he's easy to deal with. I see what my friend goes thru with his females, I wouldn't want it.
I have an intact male and he's easy to deal with. I see what my friend goes thru with his females, I wouldn't want it.
Hmm interesting all the stories of girls being 'moody' Most of my girls LOVE everyone when they are in heat. Dekka in particular loves every dog when she is in heat. Even if its another girl. Zo growls at Dekka from in her crate, Dekka presents her rear and wags her tail, the hussy. Scandal also loves every one and everything when she is in heat. She normally wants to eat cats (which is funny in a way as she is much smaller than even a small cat) but when she is in heat she will flirt with them.
Sawyer is the first boy dog I've had, but he's got me hooked. Patches, my grandma's female BC, was an awesome, awesome dog but even still...but she was spayed so I don't know about how she would have been in heat. I miss that dog quite a bit...I only saw her once, maybe twice a year, but she never forgot me in between and loved to just sit on the back porch being brushed and petted.
We once found a stray female that was in heat. We kept her until we were able to find a home, and in my experience, she was way more whacky than my intact male... even with a female in heat present. She was completely wired all the time, constantly marking on walks, and totally unfocused. I thought it might have been her personality, but she really mellowed out after the heat was over. So, I guess it just depends on the dog.
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I haven't had problems with my girls being moody, but they can be just as whiny and determined to get to a boy as the reverse situation, so it is a necessary pain in the butt to keep them confined. Also, I don't think I've read yet where anyone has described the odor and blood spotting that a medium to large dog in heat can leave all over the carpets if they won't keep their panties on. It's totally gross and the only thing that gets it out is a professional steam cleaning.
Debbie
Debbie
I have only had two females in my adult life because of the Heat issue and now would not own a unfixed female...I had a very bad experience with a female Rottie, named Macha. Its a long story but between false pregnancies, heat cycles and a really stupid vet.... I lost her and it broke my heart.
To me I have been able to deal with lack of "Focus" that the males go through and I just avoid taking them around females in heat like I avoid aggressive dogs.
To be honest the last three male dogs I have owned have listen pretty well in those situations. I obviously don't stay long or leave them unattended or uncontrolled to tempt the fates but Sal especially is usually more interested in where they have been than where they are. I did fix Sal last year so its not an issue at all any more. He just licks their faces a lot...he is not smooth with the romance
To me I have been able to deal with lack of "Focus" that the males go through and I just avoid taking them around females in heat like I avoid aggressive dogs.
To be honest the last three male dogs I have owned have listen pretty well in those situations. I obviously don't stay long or leave them unattended or uncontrolled to tempt the fates but Sal especially is usually more interested in where they have been than where they are. I did fix Sal last year so its not an issue at all any more. He just licks their faces a lot...he is not smooth with the romance
When our females were in heat, they lost all sense of focus- Nikki especially. She was intact for several. It was honestly a pain. The mess wasn't too bad, but it's still kind of gross.
I'd personally much much rather deal with an intact dog, though it looks like my next dog might just be an intact bitch, we'll see. It's doable, obviously, but somewhat of a pain.
Also whereas my males weren't too too determined when around bitches, when Nikki was in heat, she was absolutely DETERMINED to get to Trey (even when he was fixed). I can tell you that is totally not like herself at all, she usually snaps at him if he gets too close.
I'd personally much much rather deal with an intact dog, though it looks like my next dog might just be an intact bitch, we'll see. It's doable, obviously, but somewhat of a pain.
Also whereas my males weren't too too determined when around bitches, when Nikki was in heat, she was absolutely DETERMINED to get to Trey (even when he was fixed). I can tell you that is totally not like herself at all, she usually snaps at him if he gets too close.
I have both, untill next week (Saffie will be fixed then)
A bitch in heat can be a pain, but the mess and the avoiding other dogs is only a couple of weeks every six months. Saffie has moodswings and false pregnancies. Untill two months after she has been in heat, she is really down and not herself, and she can be very bitchy towards other dogs during that period. Instead of playing and running she just walks next to me all the time.
So that's why we decided to fix her.
Boy will stay intact. If we meet a female in heat I still get his attention and he never runs off. A couple of months ago both our neighbours dogs were in heat, but he didn't react to that at all. I know stories of males that will not eat and just whine all day when there is a female in heat, and I'm glad Boy doesn't do that.
I got Boy when he was around seven years old, still intact. He sure has his typical male-things, like wanting to pee against every tree, licking up pee from nice smelling females, and he likes to armwrestle with other intact males (and no I don't let him).
I rather have an intact male that's easy like Boy then a female in heat and with false pregnancies and moodswings. But I also know males that follow their balls everywhere they go, and then I would rather have that female. Females can also be very easy when in heat, almost no bleeding and no moodswings. Then it's just a matter of avoiding other dogs for a couple of weeks.
Overall, I like females better, but that's just a feeling.
A bitch in heat can be a pain, but the mess and the avoiding other dogs is only a couple of weeks every six months. Saffie has moodswings and false pregnancies. Untill two months after she has been in heat, she is really down and not herself, and she can be very bitchy towards other dogs during that period. Instead of playing and running she just walks next to me all the time.
So that's why we decided to fix her.
Boy will stay intact. If we meet a female in heat I still get his attention and he never runs off. A couple of months ago both our neighbours dogs were in heat, but he didn't react to that at all. I know stories of males that will not eat and just whine all day when there is a female in heat, and I'm glad Boy doesn't do that.
I got Boy when he was around seven years old, still intact. He sure has his typical male-things, like wanting to pee against every tree, licking up pee from nice smelling females, and he likes to armwrestle with other intact males (and no I don't let him).
I rather have an intact male that's easy like Boy then a female in heat and with false pregnancies and moodswings. But I also know males that follow their balls everywhere they go, and then I would rather have that female. Females can also be very easy when in heat, almost no bleeding and no moodswings. Then it's just a matter of avoiding other dogs for a couple of weeks.
Overall, I like females better, but that's just a feeling.