Having castrated only once and been unlucky enough to have a dog that suffered badly from the lack of hormones, I am against it except where it becomes necessary for immediate health reasons.

Your vet can give him an injection to see if castration would actually make any difference to him, a castrated dog does not always stop mounting behaviour or aggressiveness. It would be well worthwhile to try the injection and also wait till he grows up as all dogs go through a teenage period when they will try it on and also be experimentally sexually active, most will grow out of this when they reach maturity and become calm and delightful companions. In which case you will have had him castrated when time and training would have done the job.

At the moment I have 3 intact males, living together with a spayed bitch, there are 2 bitches living next door and I do not have any trouble at all. Have to add my neighbours are good, knowledgeable and considerate dog owners and make sure their bitches are not allowed to torment my dogs, male or female

I agree completely with Shadowboxer, this question comes up so often and I have previously posted about my losses due to pyometra in a number of bitches and malignant mammary tumors in a champion bitch. I have recently heard from a friend who has just lost her 6yo standard schnauzer dog with testicular cancer, she wish she had had the operation.

now i am even more confused lol i spoke to hubby last night and he said we are having max done??!!! when is the question???!!!!

I'm against any kind of surgery requiring a general anaesthetic, except on medical grounds. In my (Nursing) opinion, anaesthetic risk should not be underestimated.

I wouldn't feel that being unable to exercise with a in season bitch was a valid reason to accept the anaesthetic risk.

Do I understand correctly that the bitch lives with somebody else? If so, it is that persons responsibility to protect the bitch from any and every other male dog. That means walking the bitch on lead, at less busy walking times, or in areas where the bitch would not cause a problem for other dogs/ owners.

Max is very young at 7 months, not yet fully mature, and in my opinion no dog should be castrated before they are fully physically and mentally mature, about three years old in a Labrador. The lack of normal hormones would mean his growth and physical appearance might be affected. He may get 'stuck' at the teenage gawky stage.

My advice would be... Don't do it.

Gus's mum actually died from a routine speying Autopsy stated that she was fit and healthy too

This is a great post, as I'm confused aswell.

I have Luna, who had a false pregnancy after her first season. Her 2. season is ending today, so we still have to see if she has another false pregn.

I've heard that u cant be sure about the false preg. before 4 or 5 seasons have passed

So I'll have to see. But I'm very confused about what's best for her.

I'll be having Teagan spayed in the new year. (about 2 months after her first season).
I'd rather not risk pregnancy - if a dog tried to mount her while out walking, i'd have no chance at getting if off her!
I'd also like to minimise the risk of other complications/diseases later in life.

I can only say the only 2 dogs we didn't have spayed/castrated had either prostate cancer or mammary tumours both of these conditions could have been so easily avoided by neutering them. All our other dogs have been neutered and have not suffered from these awful cancers.

It's not easy is it - and it boils down to personal choice.

All the bitches I've known well which have not been speyed have ended up with pyometria in their old age - no fun.
If you're not going to breed a bitch it seems kinder to have them speyed early, so their lives are not restricted twice a year.

With dogs it's not so clear cut. Obviously it takes away the risk of testicular cancer. Have had 2 dogs, both castrated before we got them, both lovely things, and no sexual problems with them. I wouldn't chose to get a dog puppy, so I've not really thought throught the castration argument.

I can remember when it was fairly exceptional to get cats castrated/speyed and now it's a no-brainer. perhaps we'll get like that with dogs......?

Sorry, whittered on there, without saying much.

Hope you are happy with your decision once you've made it. xx

Katy...I have the same probs with Tetley
I have been considering this for a while...mostly because my B-I-L's bitch has already had pups with Tets (accident..although very beautiful they are )..and he prob won't have Kiera spayed
I don/t want to breed from him, I also didn't realise that it prevents other illnesses, so on those points I will have him done, just a shame it won't calm him down ..Tetley is 16 months old now bt w