12 week Vet visit... don't neuter him at all??

[aphayes96]

Hey there!

Grady went for his 12 week vet visit. Clean bill of health. Sound ortho and doing well all around. Growth is on track after his slow start!!! Eating better for sure and no more bacteria in his stool. SO.... we talked about neutering and my Vet, surprisingly, told me that unless he's showing bad behavior, i.e. marking and such, that he wouldn't neuter Grady. He said that with the giant EM breed it does show that neutering can increase risk of arthritis and other ortho problems. I have never owned an animal that I didn't neuter or spay! I suppose I'm just curious your thoughts on having a giant unneutered dog as a pet. I definitely have never had an animal get out and roam or even kept my dogs outside. They are couch dogs but is it irresponsible not to neuter him if I'm not breeding because of the "just in case oops"? Yikes. I couldn't imagine if he got out and caused a pregnancy! I'm thinking I'll just wait and see and if he's well behaved, neuter after he's 18 months anyway like many have recommended. Just rambling! About to post some 3 month pics!

 

[Sabrina]

Our 3 year old isn't neutered and won't be used for breeding...it costs so much to put him under anesthesia, and I hate doing it if it's not for his health...he has never tried to get out and we are good at keeping him very contained, but there are times in the year when he acts a little weird when we assume there is a female in heat somewhere nearby, ie. lots of panting, hard time sleeping, chattering his jaws

 

[Bentley]

There are many variations on this one, the most common I've heard is make sure that the dog has reached full growth if possible before spaying/neutering to avoide later on arthritic or bone problems.

 

[dsaw247]

Our EM just turned 8 months and has now started marking outside, and once in the house. I blame myself for the incident in the house. When we took him for his puppy shots, we went ahead and paid for a package that included having him neutered. Like you, we're torn about what to do. As of right now, we plan to have him neutered no earlier than 18 months, but maybe later since he's a very slow grower. I would like to hear from those with more experience as well.