Shelters spay/neuter early. Can I wait or should I find a breeder?

By convention, the general recommendation often 4-8 months, though early spy/neuter is common especially in shelters. A male dog who reaches sexual maturity before being neutered will grow into a “stalkier” build typically. There are also studies suggesting that waiting to neuter decrease the risk of knee problems and some types of cancers. However, he is also more likely to develop behavioral problems. With ages over 2, unneutered dogs are at a MUCH higher risk of overall health problems. I’d recommend talking to your vet about what their thoughts are. I don’t think there’s any significant difference in early neutering and neutering at 6 months of age. Here’s a couple of articles to consider: http://www.vrcc.com/oncology/does-early-castration-increase-the-risk-of-cancer-in-dogs/ https://www.petcoach.co/article/early-spays-neuters/ For what it’s worth, I don’t think it’s wrong to do it at 6 weeks and I don’t think it’s wrong to do it at 2 years. I DO think it’s wrong to just decide to NOT do it all together. I hope that’s helpful... I realize it may just muddy the waters more for you, and I apologize! Talk to your vet about what he or she recommends and the two of you can come up with the best plan for Diggy.

In small breed dogs some vets recommend waiting until the dog is older (6-8 months). The though is their lungs are better developed in an older puppy which makes the anesthesia part of the surgery "safer". That being said, many vets, including myself, have done thousands of neuters of dogs as young as 8 weeks or age with no problems. I think at 4.5 months he should be just fine to be neutered next week.

There is still a debate on whether or not spaying / castrating animals at a later age is beneficial. For now, until more research is done, it is still recommended to spay female animals around 6 months of age. Some veterinarians will recommend spaying at a later age (12 months or more) due to the effects of removing hormones on the body causing stunted growth and other changes later in life. Castrating is recommended around 6 months of age as well. However, in my opinion, it is ok to wait on castrating a male animal until an older age. In female animals, there is enough research that has been done that shows spaying reduces the risk of developing mammary cancer and also eliminates the chance of getting a uterine infection (pyometra) which can be fatal. In my honest opinion, if the stunted growth theory were true, I would take a decrease in growth rate over mammary cancer. I have spayed and neutered hundreds of animals and I have not seen any complications (other than urinary incontinence in female dogs) from getting spayed or castrated. If you want to wait on castrating Red, I would be comfortable in saying that this should be fine but to consider castrating him in the future due to reducing the risk of testicular tumors and prostate issues. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further!

Many shelters do neuter dogs before placing them up for adoption. As long as they are old enough, usually 3-4 months old they can be neutered. Due to the cost some rescues and shelters don't do this until they are adopted. Check around your area and you may find ones up for adoption that are already neutered. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you get answers to your veterinary questions.

The veterinary world is still undecided upon the benefits of waiting until after a pet has had a heat cycle relating to the ligaments. For smaller breed dogs, there may not be benefit. We do know there is a benefit as far as cancer reduction in dogs spayed before their first heat cycle. It is true that spaying a pet will decrease the sex hormones and this affects the joint physis. This however tends to be more of a concern for large breed dogs. At only 6.5 kg at four months old, Luna is not very likely to be a big dog. For the most part, when waiting until later to spay or neuter a pet it is involving dogs who are expected to be 34kg or above. I recommend to discuss your concerns with your primary care veterinarian as they will be the best to advise you. In general, maintaining good health of the joints involves maintaining a healthy body weight and feeding an appropriate food. Luna should eat a puppy food until she is about a-year-old. I hope this answers your questions and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is a personal choice. Some people like certain breeds so they purchase a puppy from a breeder. Or want to be able to raise a puppy and not get a dog who has been living in many homes. And there are people who find it unethical to buy dogs when so many are available through rescues and shelters. You can't get wrapped up on what other people do or tell you to do. Good luck!

There is some evidence that waiting until an adult has reached skeletal maturity, which for a female dog occurs around the same time as the first heat cycle, is beneficial for bone and joint development and could decrease the risk for orthopedic disease in the future. This is relatively new research however, and if you have reasons to want to schedule the surgery now it should be fine too - many shelter animals are spayed when they are 8 weeks old prior to adoption.