In the past 50 years or so, in North America, there has been a huge push to spay and neuter any pet due to the ‘huge overpopulation problem’. With that, there has been little to no concern about the overall health of the animal that is being so fundamentally altered. In recent years, some veterinarians have not only discovered, but are openly admitting to the large number of health issues that have arisen due to dogs not having their sex hormones for long enough. There is no argument that their bodies, like ours, are influenced by their hormones. It is in a dog’s best health interests to leave them intact as long as possible but at least until they are 18-24 months old. This allows them to finish growing, their growth plates to close and for their bodies to be sexually mature. It can help with preventing certain cancers and other hormone related disorders.

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It can be challenging to have an intact dog due to our cultural beliefs. Many people think that somehow spaying/neutering will magically stop bad behavior but contrary to popular belief, training, not de-sexing, will make your dog a good dog.

 

Before you spay or neuter your puppy, we strongly encourage you to do as much research as possible. There are alternatives to spay and neuter including ovary-sparing spay and vasectomy, both of which allow the dog to keep their hormones without the ability to reproduce.

We did an OSS (ovary-sparing spay) on Rain when she was 3 years old in 2021. She has aged very well and has not suffered any ill effects due to the procedure to date. She has remained very fit, has not developed urinary incontinence and her temperament has remained the same.

An OSS does not stop the dog from having heat cycles but they are much less pronounced although the dog still has all her hormones and will still be receptive to males so must still be separated.

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I am including links to articles from UCDavis, WSAVA guidelines, an article on behavioural effects of neutering, and Dr. Becker’s article on early spay and neuter.