Should I worry about IVDD if I neuter my dachshund puppy early?

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.

No, the growth will actually be accelerated, as the dog will grow longer Usually sexual maturity will stop growth, If you remove the testicles, he will never become sexually mature, therefore will grow longer. Have him neutered at 6 months, if you cannot separate him from his sister when she is in heat. Or have her spayed before her first heat, also at around 6 months of age. When he starts roaming, have him neutered. Don't wait until 3 months after starting to roam.

There are some studies that recently may have found a correlation between earlier neutering and an increased risk for joint issues. This is pretty new evidence and at this point I think it's not really clear what the risks and benefits are. I typically recommend waiting until a male dog has reached his adult size, usually around 1 year, to neuter BUT in situations where the dog is showing undesirable behaviors potentially related to sex hormones I strongly recommend neutering earlier. If you were planning on having him neutered by 8 months I doubt 1.5 months of growth would make much of a difference for his bones and joints, so I would considering scheduling the neuter now. You could always talk to your veterinarian about pros and cons as well.

If a dog is neutered while juvenile, ie not yet sexually mature or grown up, then the neutering will impact skeletal development. It means that it will take longer for the dog to become a mature dog, and some research shows there may be also a mental development deficiency. However there is no time at which a dog "must" be neutered. I would do that before he gets the idea of roaming, as this can become a habit and then neutering will not influence this behavior. so 1) there is no need to neuter a dog at all unless you want to keep it from learning how to roam or keep it from breeding. Not neutering will not influence his health negatively. 2) if you have your dog neutered you can have that done at any time in his life.

HI, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I think it is find to wait until Nigel is 1 year old to neuter him. The descended testicle (cryptorchid) should be ok for another 6 months. Overtime (years) there is a risk that the retained testicle can become cancerous. Good luck!

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!