Why do I feel guilty?

mon1o

I have had my dog a week this coming Saturday and he is settling in fine. Follows me round from room to room and sulks if he doesn't get to snuggle up on the sofa in the evening but he's now eating well and loves his walks. Got no worries with him at all. Only thing is occasionally he has tried to hump my in laws female German shepherd and he has attempted to do the same to a king Charles spaniel. My in laws areaconstantly harpimg on about how dogs need neutering and all "responsible owners" unless they are willing to breed neuter their dogs. So I've got him booked in for his pre-neutering check up at the vets tomorrow. I know it's the responsible thing to do but he's such a calm, placid dog and even when he's trying to have his wicked way once he's told to leave the other dog alone he does as he's told.

I feel guilty getting him neutered because he is so calm and a good dog, although we do not want to breed him I've only ever known dogs who
need calming down get neutered. I have no doubt that this is a misconception on my part. I shall speak to the vet tomorrow but is there anything specific I need to know or be prepared for? Poor Levi (the dog) he has no idea

tizerbelle

Dunno! Are you male? If so, nothing else need be said!

Neutering isn't purely done to try to solve behavioural problems. You don't want to breed from him but what if he got out one day and the next thing you know you are visited by a very angry owner of a b!tch wanting money off you for vets fees for an unwanted pregnancy and litter?

Benefits of neutering include removal of risk of testicular cancer (if he hasn't got them, he can't get cancer in them); it may also help reduce the risk of problems such as prostate glands and cancerous growths

mon1o

No I'm not male lol! I'm sure once I've had chance to speak to the vet I'll feel a bit happier. Thank you I wasn't aware of the reduction of cancer risks (apart from testicular cancer) and yes I certainly wouldn't want to anger other owners. I just feel really bad for Levi but in the long run I know it's probably for the best.

*Robin*

mon1o wrote: »

I just feel really bad for Levi but in the long run I know it's probably for the best.

He will have forgotten about his visit to the vet's very soon, and you're having the op. done for his benefit as well as yours so please don't feel bad.
Think about the annoying aspects of dogs who like to hump; the embarrassment to you when having to drag him off not just other dogs but maybe your auntie / the vicar / a child at the park.. The stained, smelly cushions and chair-legs..

I would guess he's not a tiny puppy? In which case the humping is probably already an established behavior - and there's only one way to stop it effectively; so you really are doing the right thing in having him neutered - well done.

ladymarmalade1970

If he is not aggressive or boisterous even though you don't want to breed him i would suggest reading lots up on castration. I have had both my male dogs done (at 9 months for rottie and 6 months for staffy X), primarily because keeping 2 male dogs together of my breeds can cause issues and i wanted to do as much as i could to prevent this.
The post that says you don't want a vet bill as your dog has got some !!!!! pregnant is a very valid point to consider BUT i don't think that all dogs should be castrated and i don't believe that the benefits are all that great either - not for a male anyway. It's pushed onto us via the vets/rescues and breeders because there is a massive problem with unwanted dogs and they want to try and reduce this. Fair enough but if you know you will keep your dog forever and you know you can stop it going up to !!!!!es in season etc then it may not be the best choice for your dog.
Incidentally, i had my JRT done when he was 4 to "calm him down" and it didn't make one bit of difference. Some thing such as humping can be learned behavior or dominance and my rottie still does it occasionally.

mon1o

Thank you all of you for your advice. I know it's silly to feel bad but I do. Don't get me wrong the humping is not by any means excessive but something I'd rather put a stop to now - I don't have a problem with simply telling him to stop as long as he continues to respond the argument of the oh and everyone else is that "he will only get worse" (he's 16 months old) - how true this is I dont know Levi is our first dog so we are learning (or trying to!) as we go.

hethmar

I felt the same mon, you feel you are putting them through an operation which isnt life-saving and is potentially dangerous. BUT honestly, it is for the best. At the moment he may be humping without getting aggressive but the !!!!!es probably are neutered? What if he sniffs a !!!!! in season a mile away and is off - you would be amazed how they can get over fences and past obstacles when nature calls, running across roads and so on. He cant help it poor boy but he could get himself killed or cause a traffic accident and if you contain him in the house when he is like this, he will become aggressive and miserable.

Both my boys got over it very quickly and as long as you control their food intake carefully after the op, so they dont put on weight, it can only have benefits.

Good luck x

CFC

ladymarmalade1970 wrote: »

i don't think that all dogs should be castrated and i don't believe that the benefits are all that great either - not for a male anyway.

It's pushed onto us via the vets/rescues and breeders because there is a massive problem with unwanted dogs and they want to try and reduce this. Fair enough but if you know you will keep your dog forever and you know you can stop it going up to !!!!!es in season etc then it may not be the best choice for your dog.
.

This is true. It's quite simply become a mantra that all dogs must be castrated or you are an irresponsible owner.

It is not being done for your individual dog's benefit - it is done to ensure that there are no unwanted pups brought into the world by that dog, and to try to help with unwanted behaviours such as marking, aggression, and excessive humping.

It is rarely a 'cure all' and as it is such a profound change in the hormonal function of your dog (even apart from the fact that an op always carries risks) that I think you owe it to yourself to give it some research to ensure that YOU are happy with the decision that YOU come to about YOUR dog.

It is important to understand that despite what people often say, there can be downsides to castration and every individual dog is different.

On the other hand I would say, if you decide it is for the best, then don't feel guilty that he'll wake up and think,
"Sweet Mary, who had my bits away in the night, who did this to me??"
because dogs don't think like that

Jay_Tee

I'm in a similar quandry about my little dog, as in a lot of ways he's quite timid even at 20 months. I went to the vets on Monday just for a chat about the pros and cons. One of the things she mentioned was "chemical castration" as a way of getting some idea as to how castration would change his behaviour, it doesn't have exactly the same effect but would give an approximation.

It's given in the form of an implant that lasts 6 months, the vet's going to find out more information and let me know more about it next week.
My issue is that I don't want him to lose confidence and I feel that may be the case if he's castrated.

mon1o

Hi there thankyous so much for your help. I took Levi to the vet this morning and spoke with her for ages about my concerns. She was very reassuring and stated that no op should be undertaken lightly. She said his temprament won't change and he will stop the attempted humping. To the poster who stated all his current attempted mates were speyed - yes they are one was even a male dog which I was surprised at lol! The vet was very happy with his overall health the only thing she noticed was he has an undershot jaw but cant tell us what action we need to take (if any) until she has him under anaesthetic. she watched his behaviour and said as he was an inquisitive dog we need to get a cone collar thing to stop him licking at his wound. I said I'd think about it a bit more but afterwards we were at the park and he made a break for a 6 month old female labradoodle who was twice the size of him and it took me a long time to get him back - whether she was in season Im not sure but he was trying to jump on her and he found some serious strength for such a little dog and ran off pulling his lead right out of my hand. Thankfully the owner of the other dog grabbed his lead and eventually I managed to drag him away. The oh threw me a look and once I'd sat down and calmed my nerves I called the vet and booked him in to be neutered next Tuesday. Hopefully it is the right decision (to be honest the labradoodle didn't seem to perturbed by the incident and came running after him once I'd managed to regain control!)

Needless to say I've kept a very firm grip on the lead when out for walks today after that!

hethmar

Well, I think you have made the right decision - imagine how it would be if he got out the garden without you knowing. One of my boys was disabled at birth but he still managed to get a quarter of a mile up the road and sat outside the house of a !!!!! in season - that was a decider for my OH who had been resisting having the boy neutered. If he could manage that so quickly with his disability- he had dug under a back gate! - imagine how a fully fit young dog could be.

He had also been showing some nervous aggression with male dogs and that has also stopped now - though the introduction of a very very laid back male dog to our pack also helped with that problem.

A further plus is that a neutered dog is not going to be of interest to thieves and an awful lot of dogs are being stolen. Even with his disability, my dog caught the eye of someone in the park here - a dodgey looking bloke with no dog in a dog walking area. He asked me if he were a stud dog (he does have a full pedigree, but we took him as rescue due to his disability he was due to be pts) - I told the bloke (a lie at that time) that he was being neutered the next day so, no, he couldnt be a stud dog. I looked in my rear view mirror all the way home!