# effects of neutering male GS



## synnove (Jul 18, 2018)

Hello, we'll bring home a GS puppy in November. We must decide whether we want a male or a female. We're leaning towards a male but neutering a male worries me. In my home country neutering is not as common as in the US (where I live). My American friends are all in favor of neutering. My friends in Europe tell me neutering can make a male lazy and effeminate, and even cause overweight, and say it's totally doable to have an intact male. Thoughts? Thanks.


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## car2ner (Apr 9, 2014)

Not everyone in the U.S. neuters their males. If your dog does not roam or have females getting into heat regularly nearby, you can wait to deal with that until (or if) a health issue comes up. 

Females are a bit tougher to leave intact. Keeping them intact may have positive health benefits for some things and may have more complications in others. I took a middle ground and had my gal spay at 18 months about the time she was full grown and a couple of months after her 2nd heat.


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

Training and management makes a well-behaved dog. Neutering alone won't. Males are not the sex addicted, fighting-prone, roaming monsters everyone makes them out to be. I have had several intact males and they were never a problem, nor did they sire illegal litters.
I lived in Western Europe for many years and actually find that I encounter more aggressive dogs in the US vs my time in Europe. That's my personal experience and not based on science.
I think that in US we are to casual about removing body parts from dogs, cats, horses, birds etc as if the design wasn't good enough.


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## ausdland (Oct 21, 2015)

Manage him, I wouldn't neuter him, at least until he's 2.5 years old if you feel you must. I'd never neuter a male unless a health condition required it.


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## ausdland (Oct 21, 2015)

wolfy dog said:


> Training and management makes a well-behaved dog. Neutering alone won't. Males are not the sex addicted, fighting-prone, roaming monsters everyone makes them out to be. I have had several intact males and they were never a problem, nor did they sire illegal litters.
> I lived in Western Europe for many years and actually find that I encounter more aggressive dogs in the US vs my time in Europe. That's my personal experience and not based on science.
> I think that in US we are to casual about removing body parts from dogs, cats, horses, birds etc as if the design wasn't good enough.


I want to take that one step further and say as a culture, generally, we are more irresponsible and aggressive than Europeans, so our veterinary community has come up with the grand idea of sterilizing domestic animals prior to maturity.


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## synnove (Jul 18, 2018)

Thanks all, glad to hear not everyone thinks neutering is necessary, I personally don't like the idea


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## tc68 (May 31, 2006)

Ditto what everyone above said. No need to do it if you exercise your dog every day, there aren't any intact females in your neighborhood, your dog is under your control 100% of the time, and/or there aren't any health problems that require it. But there are downsides to not neutering him...and you need to know that there will be places like doggie daycares, some dog hotels, some dog parks, some grooming places, and other places that won't allow your dog in because it's not neutered.


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## Felafufu (May 19, 2018)

tc68 said:


> Ditto what everyone above said. No need to do it if you exercise your dog every day, there aren't any intact females in your neighborhood, your dog is under your control 100% of the time, and/or there aren't any health problems that require it. But there are downsides to not neutering him...and you need to know that there will be places like doggie daycares, some dog hotels, some dog parks, some grooming places, and other places that won't allow your dog in because it's not neutered.


Licensing fees (in jurisdictions where they are required) are often higher for un-neutered pets. Where I live, an annual license is $30 for an intact dog. Not break-the-bank expensive for many people, but still three times higher than for spayed/neutered dogs.


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## Muskeg (Jun 15, 2012)

Europe is a big place, there are lots of areas with plenty of strays like Greece, and then places with no strays, like Norway and Denmark. Careful about making blanket statements about an entire continent or country and its people. 

There are plenty of areas in this United States with no dog overpopulation that are massive sinks for stray dogs from elsewhere in the US. For example, New England, parts of Minnesota/Wisconsin, places in Oregon, Washington (and I'm sure others). 

Of course, neutering your dog is your decision. Unless used for breeding or competition, I'd spay a female at about 2 years old. Breeding females, I'd spay after her last litter or around 7-8 years old. Males, it's more murky, but I wouldn't worry much about neutering a male at about 2, if that is your choice.


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## car2ner (Apr 9, 2014)

Felafufu said:


> Licensing fees (in jurisdictions where they are required) are often higher for un-neutered pets. Where I live, an annual license is $30 for an intact dog. Not break-the-bank expensive for many people, but still three times higher than for spayed/neutered dogs.


In my county in MD I think it is $25 for intact and $5 for desexed. Yeah, not break the bank difference but I like that they reward us for doing what they believe is responsible (and for some people it is). consider it positive reinforcement for humans.


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## Sabis mom (Mar 20, 2014)

synnove said:


> Hello, we'll bring home a GS puppy in November. We must decide whether we want a male or a female. We're leaning towards a male but neutering a male worries me. In my home country neutering is not as common as in the US (where I live). My American friends are all in favor of neutering. My friends in Europe tell me neutering can make a male lazy and effeminate, and even cause overweight, and say it's totally doable to have an intact male. Thoughts? Thanks.



Neutering young can alter growth, and can minimize masculine features. Note that I used can, not will. The extent of this will depend on genetics and nutrition as well. 

Whether or not it is necessary depends on you not the dog. Responsible owners who mind their dogs should have no issues keeping an intact dog, male or female, and keeping it in fit and healthy condition. I have kept intact males and females with zero issues and I have had altered males and females with no issues. To my mind it is an elective surgery and therefore should not be performed unless there is an actual reason. In any case it should not be done, IMO, until the animal is done developing both mentally and physically.


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

car2ner said:


> consider it positive reinforcement for humans.


Sigh...not for me. 
From Griff :grin2:


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## car2ner (Apr 9, 2014)

wolfy dog said:


> Sigh...not for me.
> From Griff :grin2:


Let Griff know Patton feels the same way. I spent $30 on tags for my county this year :wink2:


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## tc68 (May 31, 2006)

Felafufu said:


> Licensing fees (in jurisdictions where they are required) are often higher for un-neutered pets. Where I live, an annual license is $30 for an intact dog. Not break-the-bank expensive for many people, but still three times higher than for spayed/neutered dogs.


Yeah I forgot to mention the licensing fees. Yep, non neutered/spayed are more expensive.


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## Sunsilver (Apr 8, 2014)

I had to have my male neutered due to a bad case of prostatitis. The only difference it made was he didn't pee on the front counter at the vet's any more when I took him in for his yearly vaccinations! :laugh2: He'd still romance and even tie with in-season females, and still fight with other males, if they challenged him. 

When I was a kid, very few people neutered male dogs. The females got the snip to prevent unwanted puppies, and owners always having to guard them from roaming males when they came in season.


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## Hellish (Jul 29, 2017)

I harken from small town NH where stray dogs and dogs in shelters were not much of an issue. And just a handful of dogs for rehoming on Craigslist. I never thought much about the reasons for spaying and neutering, nor the pros and cons; I managed my dogs and the neighbors did as well. It was the responsible, courteous thing to do. 

Total shell shock to move to Tucson, AZ where animals are discarded at alarming rates. Overflowing shelters. Dogs are tied in the desert and left to die, stolen from fenced yards for fighting bait, and Craigslist is full of hundreds of backyard bred animals and 95% of those are *unmentionable* breed types. They are the favored status dog for our large immigrant population and basic care and training of a dog is not a part of the culture, let alone thoughtful animal husbandry. I get to pay $64 a year for my intact male as a result. Ruins it for those of us that are responsible.


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## car2ner (Apr 9, 2014)

Hellish said:


> I harken from small town NH where stray dogs and dogs in shelters were not much of an issue. And just a handful of dogs for rehoming on Craigslist. I never thought much about the reasons for spaying and neutering, nor the pros and cons; I managed my dogs and the neighbors did as well. It was the responsible, courteous thing to do.
> 
> .



a few decades ago I lived in Barnstead NH. It was common to open the door and let the dogs roam at large. The Forest Rangers were mostly concerned with dogs packing up and harassing the deer. I don't remember any of my friends' dogs getting pregnant unless the family wanted more farm dogs. My pets were always spay. Yes, it was the responsible, courteous thing to do. 

Still in NH I had adopted a full grown neutere GSD, He was a magnificent animal. His previous owner trained him well and it must have broken their heart to give him up. At the time I lived in the city of Manchester. I hear that Manchester has changed a lot since then with problems typical of busy cities.


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## clipke (Nov 14, 2017)

I know this thread is a little old now, but my GSD is in tact and will remain in tact. I'm not sure he will be bred, as he is much larger than the breed standard. Not sure if there is any demand for that, but his temperament is great and no health issues. But as to your actual topic, I have a rottie mix and against my will, my ex girlfriend and mother had him neutered. He is taller than he should be, head is smaller than it should be, and he's realistically not as built as he should be. He's still a very large dog, but his proportions are out of whack. I'm 99% sure it has to do with the fact that he was neutered at 2 months old. I would have at the very least waited till he was older. I read something about growth plates closing later if neutered early, and that seems to be the case with him. I didn't want to disrupt the development of my shepherd and wanted to keep the breeding possibility open, so he's in tact. If you're responsible, and keep an eye on your dog, you really don't need to have him neutered. The general public may encourage you to do so, but I feel like that's more so out of a fear of more unwanted, backyard bred dogs being put in shelters. This is the same crowd that totes adopt don't shop, so it's best to just ignore them and do what you think is best for you dog.


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## Nurse Bishop (Nov 20, 2016)

Hellish said:


> I harken from small town NH where stray dogs and dogs in shelters were not much of an issue. And just a handful of dogs for rehoming on Craigslist. I never thought much about the reasons for spaying and neutering, nor the pros and cons; I managed my dogs and the neighbors did as well. It was the responsible, courteous thing to do.
> 
> Total shell shock to move to Tucson, AZ where animals are discarded at alarming rates. Overflowing shelters. Dogs are tied in the desert and left to die, stolen from fenced yards for fighting bait, and Craigslist is full of hundreds of backyard bred animals and 95% of those are *unmentionable* breed types. They are the favored status dog for our large immigrant population and basic care and training of a dog is not a part of the culture, let alone thoughtful animal husbandry. I get to pay $64 a year for my intact male as a result. Ruins it for those of us that are responsible.


I am So Glad to live out in the country and am not required to have my GSD licenced. Rabies tags, thats it. If we lived in a town she would have to be licenced. She has an ID tag and is chipped. I don't like the government telling people what to do and collecting fines. No shes not spayed and I don't care for the way spaying changes their metabolism. Of the 14 dogs I have known in my life, none were spayed (7) or neutered (7) and never had any health problems or litters. One time my Russian Woldhound was collected by the pound and they would not give him back unless I had his testicles removed. So I got him a vasectomy.


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