Last week, while examining Horace, his owner remarked that he’d been told he should neuter his dog but was in a dilemma about it all because he also wanted to mate him. Not wanting to interrupt my examination, I delayed replying until Horace’s owner posed the thorny question: “So should I, or not?”
Horace is a five-year-old male Alaskan malamute with a typical greyish, creamy-white coat and hypnotic icy-blue eyes. He is a beautiful specimen of his breed and I was not surprised that Horace’s owner wanted him mated. Neither was I surprised at his dilemma over whether to neuter Horace or not.
A quick search on the internet posing just such a question is likely to turn up vastly differing opinions on whether or not you should neuter your male dog, with the view that it can sometimes be more of a hindrance than a help.
The difficulty of taking such as decision is further compounded if you care for more than one dog, particularly if you have both male and females. The reality is that, be it male or female, young or old, any decision taken to neuter your dog should be taken at the right time and for the right reasons.
In male dogs such as Horace, the primary reason why you may be told to neuter your dog is to address behavioural problems and urinating indoors.
When there are clear signs of aggression or the dog has developed a habit of humping everything in sight or urinating inside the house as a form of marking its territory, then neutering is certainly a valid option.
While neutering often helps in these situations, it cannot take the place of proper training and disciplining of your dog. Here, it’s worth noting that male dogs regularly used for natural mating have been found to increase their marking of territory indoors by urinating on furniture or curtains.
On the other hand, there are valid reasons for not neutering male dogs. The most important is that they are needed for reproduction or, for example, if they are show dogs and need to display their testicles intact.
I had an interesting case a few years ago, whereby a dog developed a tumour in one of his testicles. The tumour had to be removed and we obtained a prostatic testicle from the US which looks and feels like a natural testicle. This replacement worked out very well. Apparently, there is a quite an interest in prostatic testicles even for dog owners who would simply like their dogs to look intact after neutering.
A fallacy that vets sometimes come across is that not mating male dogs is detrimental to their health and therefore should not be neutered. This is a completely untrue and unfounded claim.
What is a fact is that older male dogs have a tendency to, and may, develop enlargement of the prostate or testicular cancer.
There is also a condition in senior male dogs where they develop tumours around the anus. Both these conditions come about because of a production or over-production of male sex hormones.
The course of treatment for such a condition includes neutering. As a preventative, neutering a male before his senior years, which does vary according to the breed or size of dog, goes a long way to preventing these two conditions.
From then on, the arguments for or against neutering become less clear-cut. Some reasons given against neutering are that dogs have an increased tendency to put on weight. Yet, this can be controlled by the amount of feed and exercise given. There is also a very important social aspect that needs to be taken in consideration: neutering male dogs reduces the chances of unwanted pregnancies and stray dogs. Neutering is therefore universally recommended for rehomed dogs and for dogs that may live in groups, such as in a farm environment.
There are valid reasons for not neutering male dogs. The most important are that they are needed for reproduction or they are show dogs
Sometimes you come across male owners of dogs who are reluctant to neuter their dogs because they apply the human perception of emasculation to their pet. While applying a human perception to dogs is incorrect, the fact that male hormones may be necessary for development of the dog’s body is certainly a very valid argument.
The function of the testicles is not solely to produce the sperm necessary for fertilisation of female eggs; they also produce male hormones, one of which is testosterone.
Male hormones have what is known as the androgenic effect, which has to do with sex organ development and function, as well as the anabolic effect, which has to do with the growth of body mass and bone development. With this in mind, there is an argument in favour of not neutering a male dog in order to obtain maximum growth and development or, at least, to delay neutering for as long as possible.
Horace is a very well-behaved dog and certainly does not need to be neutered for unruly behaviour. He is also a fine specimen of his breed but his owner is still unsure as to whether to go ahead with a particular mating for Horace.
Horace is of a very large breed. Larger breeds become senior dogs earlier than small breeds and maybe in a year or two, unless things change, neutering shall be seriously considered. If you are considering neutering your dog, it is important that you do this at the right time and for the right reasons.
For this you seek the advice of your trusted veterinarian before deciding to go ahead with the operation. Your vet would have got to know both you and your pet and can therefore provide valuable insight into helping you make up your mind in this regard.
thisweekwiththevet@gmail.com
Dr Martin Debattista is a veterinary surgeon.