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When in doubt and with conflicting information on both sides . . . I would go with what my Vet says.
haha yeah I also worked at an emergency clinic where every local vet rotated through.....I certainly would hope that some clients didn't do what some of those guys recommended I worked with every kind...the one I worked at during the day with a laser/top'o'the'line monitoring equipment/staff CE/ultrasounds/lab equipment....then one of the locals that prescribed benadryl and aspirin for everything wrong from abscesses to GI problems We definitely had our favorites to work with But there again was the range of opinions on spaying, the one that I worked with daily spayed before the first heat cycle.
As to people that neuter males late.... I can't stand it. The older the dogs get, the baggier the sheath becomes and it develops a mucousy drip, gets crusty, just gross. I can't imagine that lying all over my carpet or a bedspread or couch. BIGGEST reason IMO to neuter at 6 months.
Sorry to be so graphic...having to restrain unaltered males daily for 10+ years has left a pretty big impression. Lets just say I washed my arms A LOT during the work day.
I trust my Vet to point me in the right direction. I have to; I'm not an expert in the canine reproductive cycle. I'm not a vet tech.
I don't go to an emergency clinic (unless I have an emergency) where Vets are rotated in and out. If I didn't have any trust in my Vet; I'd be looking for a new one. My male was neutered early; my female I'm holding off on until she has another BAT.
I would hesitate to tell someone on an internet forum not to follow their Vet's advice. On the flip side, I'm going to trust my local Vet - who has cared for my dogs all their lives - more than I trust an unknown poster on an internet forum.
As to people that neuter males late.... I can't stand it. The older the dogs get, the baggier the sheath becomes and it develops a mucousy drip, gets crusty, just gross. I can't imagine that lying all over my carpet or a bedspread or couch. BIGGEST reason IMO to neuter at 6 months.
Sorry to be so graphic...having to restrain unaltered males daily for 10+ years has left a pretty big impression. Lets just say I washed my arms A LOT during the work day.
Funny I have never noticed any of this with my intact male. And I have owned three intact males and worked in the past with a bunch of intact research beagles [65] and did not see this. Two of the beagles did, tend to have a problem with paraphimoses. When I worked for a vet, the dogs with crusty stuff were being treated for an infection.
My male has the best temperament by far of any dog I have ever met. And is structurally very solid. I will never again neuter a male GSD unless he is a cryptorchid or monorchid.
The arguments are much more solid for letting a male grow to full stature before neutering - bone cancer, growth plates and tall rangy lean animals with shallow chests - all issues from neutering.
Most of the issues with male dogs are training and obedience not because they have balls. I can work my dog around a female in heat. Is he distracted - yes - can he get back to work - yes. Does he drip ooky stuff - no. Does he have frequent erections? - actually fewer than most neutered males I have owned.
I trust my Vet to point me in the right direction. I have to; I'm not an expert in the canine reproductive cycle. I'm not a vet tech.
I don't go to an emergency clinic (unless I have an emergency) where Vets are rotated in and out. If I didn't have any trust in my Vet; I'd be looking for a new one. My male was neutered early; my female I'm holding off on until she has another BAT.
I would hesitate to tell someone on an internet forum not to follow their Vet's advice. On the flip side, I'm going to trust my local Vet - who has cared for my dogs all their lives - more than I trust an unknown poster on an internet forum.
I wasn't attacking you...I was just saying that there are a wide range of opinions from vets out there and the range that I worked with of that scope was in a small city. You have to arm yourself with information. And you should only see a vet that you are comfortable with his level of expertise.
The emergency clinic that I worked at was OWNED by ALL of the vets in town, that is why they rotated through, so they didn't have to be on-call late at night or worry about their patients using another vet that would see them late. It was voted for by all of the vets, unfortunately, they all have their own style of medicine. They decided to sell it years ago and it now has an owner and staff of doctors that usually came from one of the local hospitals.
I don't think anyone on here tells a poster not to follow their vets advice. This forum should be about sharing opinions or helping to point someone in the right direction. I think people realize that researching a problem is better than blindly following any recommendation - be it from a vet, breeder or the president , and weighing all of the information and/or getting a second or third opinion. We all follow what our hearts tell us anyway. But telling people that mammary tumors are very common and incontinence is relatively uncommon is not telling them to not follow their vet's advice.
I've heard opinions as to both ways. My lab was neutered at 6 months, and my lab/mix puppy was neutered at 3 months b/c it was a requirement before we could adopt him.
Personally I would have preferred the 6 months. Supposedly there are no ill effects from neutering b/w 3 - 6 months.
Not sure about the spaying. I did have a female dog, but it was when I myself was a kid and I don't remember what was done with here. She was spayed at some point . She never had puppies.
Along with the role it pays in normal development, too little estrogen can lead to bone loss, heart disease and stroke as well as many other problems...
I believe this is an area where animals and humans are very much alike.
Last edited by World Citizen; 05-25-2010 at 11:50 AM..
I recommend you listen to you vet. I got a dog she was aprox 5 mths old we got her fixed, she leaks pee all over the place we cannot keep her in the house she's been doing this now for 10 years Sad.
I have a female lab and my vet recommended me to wait as well.
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I worked with every kind...the one I worked at during the day with a laser/top'o'the'line monitoring equipment/staff CE/ultrasounds/lab equipment....then one of the locals that prescribed benadryl and aspirin for everything wrong from abscesses to GI problems 
We definitely had our favorites to work with 
But there again was the range of opinions on spaying, the one that I worked with daily spayed before the first heat cycle. 
I can't stand it. The older the dogs get, the baggier the sheath becomes and it develops a mucousy drip, gets crusty, just gross. I can't imagine that lying all over my carpet or a bedspread or couch. BIGGEST reason IMO to neuter at 6 months. 
