Neutering
The advantages of neutering in Dogs
Females – Neutering or spaying involves an operation to remove the ovaries and uterus, preventing your pet from having puppies. This is usually done 3 months after their first season, unless it is difficult to prevent mating at their first season, in which case we can spay them at 6 months old before their seasons start. If you do not intend to show or breed from your dog we recommend having them spayed.
The advantages of neutering include :
- Not having to manage your bitch when in season
- Prevents litters of unwanted puppies
- Removal of ovaries prevents ovarian cancers and reduces risk of mammary tumours (when done before 4th season)
- Prevents uterine infection (pyometra) which can be life threatening and require spaying at greater risk in a sick patient
Even if you want a litter of puppies first they can still be spayed after this and have some of the above benefits. One disadvantage of spaying can be the development of slight urinary incontinence later on in life, but this is usually easily managed with medications.
Males – Neutering or castration involves an operation to remove the testicles and is usually done from 9 months of age. The advantages include :
- Prevents litters of unwanted puppies
- Less testosterone related aggression towards other male dogs
- Less likely to stray after female dogs
- Prevents testicular tumours
- Reduces prostate problems later on in life
The advantages of neutering in Cats
Cats can start breeding from 5 – 6 months of age and are very well adapted to produce frequent litters of kittens. Unless you are planning to breed from your cat it is advisable to have them neutered at an early age to prevent unwanted kittens. In addition to the benefits of neutering controlling the cat population there are other advantages to neutering your cat.
Male cats that have not been neutered are more prone to straying and fighting. Female cats that have not been spayed can come into season every 3 weeks for at least 9 months of the year, during which time they can show very noisy ‘calling’ behaviour and may have unwanted attention from tom cats in the area. Cats can be neutered from 5 months of age.