At what age can you have your pet dog neutered
Deciding to neuter the dog or not is a difficult decision for a dog owner. Dog owners have varied reasons for neutering the dog but the most common reason is to reduce the population of unwanted and homeless dogs. Dog lovers would not hesitate to support the program of minimizing the number of homeless dogs.
To neuter a dog, a small incision is made on the skin to remove the testicles to prevent the dog from reproducing. Neutering though is not done solely for the prevention of reproduction as dog experts attest that this surgical procedure give the dog a healthier, happier and longer life. With the removal of the testicles, the risk for testicle cancer is removed as well. The hormone level of a neutered dog is controlled thus bad behavior that is associated with mood swings will be controlled as well. Neutering is said to give a dog longer life as aside from minimizing the risks for some health concerns, neutered dogs have no inclination to roam thus accidents that can lead to the death of the pet is avoided.
However, dog owners have many reservations on the right time to neuter the dog . Neutering a dog is surrounded by many myths. Many owners believe that if the dog is neutered at an early age the physical development as well as the personality of the dog will be affected.
The playful and affectionate nature are some of the reasons why most people would choose to have a dog for a pet thus many owners would not dare neuter the dog at an early age because of the belief that the procedure will make the pet less playful and affectionate. These beliefs though are unfounded. The personality and the physical development of the dog will not be affected at all. So what is the right age to neuter the pet?
Except for newborn puppies, dogs can be neutered anytime. A pet owner would learn from the breeder the age of the dog but if the pet was obtained from a shelter considering the right age for neutering would not be possible. The neutering procedure can be done on a dog at any age providing the testicles have descended but as the primary reason for neutering is to prevent reproduction, it would be best if the dog is neutered before it has attained sexual maturity. Small dog breeds attain full maturity at six months of age thus at this time a Shih Tzu or some breeds of terriers can already be neutered. Dog experts recommend neutering large breeds at about 1 year of age as Great Danes, GSD and other large dogs take longer to mature sexually.
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