After your precious pet is several weeks old, this question will arise, to neuter or not to neuter, and in the case of a female, to spay or not to spay. 

 

If you bought a dog with a great pedigree line and plan to show him or her, do not neuter or spay.  You can not show a dog that has been neutered or spayed.  And if that is the case, please do not let your dog run free.  Be a responsible pet owner and keep track of your dog’s whereabouts 24/7!   My second Springer, Spencer, was out in his fenced in yard and I was shocked to see a female of mixed pedigree that was in heat squeeze herself through the gate to get to him!  However, the joke was on her, he had already been neutered!

 

If you purchased your dog for a companion, friend, and pet, then by all means neuter and spay.  In today’s world, approximately 7 million pets are put to sleep each year and some of these are pedigrees!  In the United States on any given day of the year, 10,000 babies are born and that same day 70,000 puppies and kittens are born!  We all know there are just not enough homes for each and every pet!  In 6 years a dog and her offspring can produce as many as 67,000 puppies!   

 

Neutering and spaying does prolong their lives!  For females, spaying reduces the risk of breast cancer, and practically eliminates ovarian and uterine cancer.  For males, neutering reduces testicular cancer and prostrate problems as well as avoiding problems such as hernias.  There are other advantages to getting your pet neutered or spayed, such as your pet is less likely to roam, another is a cheaper dog license.

 

Whatever decision you make, make an educated one based on you and your dog’s future!   

Tags: neuter, neuter prolong lives, neutered, pedigree, spay, spayed, spaying prolong life

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 10th, 2008 at 11:38 am and is filed under Dog Tips. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.