To neuter or not?

[bowman]

I am thinking about having my puppy neutered.  I have no plans on breeding him but I have heard that neutering dogs can diminish their hunting drive. What do you guys think should I do it or not?

[carpsniperg2]

if the dog has drive it should not matter i have been around allot of top notch hunting dogs that have been neutered i am a lad breeder and the only thing that i see is of course allot of neutered dogs gain weight when they get cut.

[Shootmoore]

If your not breeding, be a responsible dog owner and get em fixed.  Bob Barker says so!  + un-neutered male dogs have a higher susceptibility to colon cancer.  You wont have any unwanted Kickapoo's running around the neighborhood and your dog is less likely to go roaming.  All positive reasons why to get em fixed when not planning on breeding.

On hunting drive, my lab is fixed, and I'm not sure how much more "drive" I could stand now that he's retired do to a knee injury.

Shootmoore

[Machias]

This is brought up quite a bit on several hound hunting sites I visit.  Alot of old hound breeders believe that spaying or neutering does not change the dog's hunting ability or drive one single bit.  Lots of folks recommend waiting till the pup is a year old or so to fill out and muscle up nicely, but there is alot of discussion on the pros and cons of early vs waiting a bit to spay or neuter.

[gasman]

If i have my dogs nuetered it will be after they reach the age of two years. Most (not sure if all) dogs grow untill they are about two years of age. If a dog is nuetered early n the testosterone may go to the body and muscle and the dog can be bigger in size.

As i writ ethis my 8 month old lab is in heat, and my 10 month old lab wants some of that action. It is difficult to keep them apart with out kennels t put them in, but we are dealing with the lack of being able to seperate them. We want to breed them at least once but want to wait untill they are two years of age.



It is going to be a long two years 

[Sportfury]

My breeder gave a reccomendation of waiting at least 18 months before I neutered my boy. Of course he also wanted my dog to compete in hunt tests, which, if he would have done good would have been a good reason to breed him.

I just dealt with the same issues as Gasman. My GWP female came in heat in November right before I was going to have her spayed, so I ended up dealing with blood spots and horny male dogs. My parents were on vacation, so I had all their dogs at the house including my female's uncut brother and it was a zoo. I basically had to kennel her or him at all times and I was even scared to leave her in the outdoor kennel because of other dogs. Luckily the outdoor kennel has hotwire around it because our dogs like to climb, but I wasn't sure that a determined male would stop at a the donkey kick from that hotwire. Nerve racking three weeks.

I think if you are not going to breed then have him cut. He may get bigger, but I don't think that should matter much. Do what you think is best.

[JackOfAllTrades]

I'm pretty much neutered.. Hasn't decreased my hunting drive!   

[dontgetcrabs]

I'm pretty much neutered.. Hasn't decreased my hunting drive!   

That's funny Steve.     BUT have you gained any weight?   

[Special T]

I've hear of dogs doing it through the chain link fence.  I waited until my chessie ran off with my brother black lab fixed female and didn't come back for 5 hours.... I said sorry son you done screwed up. Put a microcip in him and had him cut... he was 3.5-4... if i got another male i'd probably go the same route...
 

[floatinghat]

Before I e collared my lab I tried it on myself first to see what I was putting her thru.  If you are real questioning if its right for him try it out yourself first.


























Be a responsible owner and just get it done.

[Viszla]

It won't have any effect on their hunting drive.  Either the dog has the drive in him or not.  As for gaining weight it depends on the dog.  Labs are hard to keep in shape no matter if they are cut or not.  Many pointers, on the other hand, could use some weight.  My vizsla is cut and I can't keep weight on him for anything, you can practically watch him run it off.

[Schmalzfam]

I agree with waiting until they are 18months to 2. If you are a good owner, it won't be an issue with him being neutered to avoid breeding. So, let him mature first. Just my opinion.