# When should I neuter my golden???



## hesantone (Mar 2, 2013)

I was planning on waiting a year but my golden is 10 months old and he is very hard to handle sometimes. He listens only when he wants to, he is getting up in the middle of the night to go out, he is still biting when he plays with my kids. My parents are pressuring me to neuter him and I just don't know what to do. I also do get concerned about him running away if he smells a pretty little lady. Any advice would be great- this is not easy!!!


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## LJack (Aug 10, 2012)

You ultimately have to make your own decision. I personally would wait until 12-18 months depending on your breeders contract. 
What I will say is that neutering will likely not fix the issues with attention, getting up at night and being mouthy with the kids. These are almost always training and/or communication issues. 
If you feel being intact is giving him too much energy/drive you can address that with more exercise. A tired puppy is a good puppy.


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## Dancer (Apr 5, 2010)

Neutering won't make a difference with those behaviours- he's just being a bit of a rebellious teen right now. It's his age, not his testicles. The only way to deal with that is to persevere with his training, and be consistent with what he's allowed/not allowed to do. He'll pull out of this phase! 
As for when you neuter (if you decide to), there are a lot of opinions out there on that. There is also a lot of literature becoming available (do a search of this forum and you're bound to find threads with links to these studies). Whatever you end up choosing to do, please at least read up on if/when/pros/cons of neutering and make an informed decision based on the information you find. You can't go wrong if you arm yourself with the knowledge to make the decision!


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## zeke11 (Jul 21, 2009)

I have a four year old, intact male. He is crazy, loving, active and bouncy. He is the perfect weight for his size. My vet always compliments me on keeping him at his proper weight. He tells me he sees very few goldens of his age that are not overweight.

I attribute it to his not being neutered. He does get exercise, but I wouldn't say a LOT - he gets only the recommended amount of dry kibble and he does get some treats and table scraps.

I just feel that animals tend to gain weight after being neutered. I don't know if it's hormonal or ??

Anyway, he doesn't try to run away - we have a fenced yard but he is not overly aggressive about trying to get away. 

It's just my vote - to keep him intact as long as you can and train him -- and remember that goldens stay puppies much longer than a lot of other dogs!

Kris


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## oakleysmommy (Feb 20, 2011)

12-18 months or longer. If I knew what I went through with Oakley now being neutered. I would have never neutered him. I have a Great Dane I won't be neutering him.


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## CharlieBear80 (Oct 13, 2013)

Based on what you've said it sounds like a training issue to me as well, although of course it's hard to tell over an internet forum. I'd encourage an uptick in your training efforts over neutering.


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## Willow52 (Aug 14, 2009)

Neutering is not going to change any of the behaviors you mentioned, only training and maturity will.


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## Max's Dad (Apr 23, 2012)

Our Max was neutered at 8 months. He was already over 90 pounds well into puberty. He was humping a lot and having some trouble with other dogs at dog park. The neutering definitely helped solve these problems. He is 3 years old now and has grown into a healthy, handsome boy. Even though he is neutered, he exhibits the normal adult male behaviors such as marking and even occasionally lifts his leg. 

If you search the forum, you can find a lot of opinions about when, or if, to neuter. You will also find that many owners choose to neuter at around 10 months of age. I would suggest you do the research and make your own decision.


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## shagerman0715 (Nov 20, 2013)

Willow52 said:


> Neutering is not going to change any of the behaviors you mentioned, only training and maturity will.




Completely agree with this. I am personally against neutering and all for being a responsible and careful owner. If you give your golden the proper training. You will notice a world of difference. Just my opinion


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## Dancer (Apr 5, 2010)

Dancer said:


> Neutering won't make a difference with those behaviours- he's just being a bit of a rebellious teen right now. It's his age, not his testicles. The only way to deal with that is to persevere with his training, and be consistent with what he's allowed/not allowed to do. He'll pull out of this phase!
> As for when you neuter (if you decide to), there are a lot of opinions out there on that. There is also a lot of literature becoming available (do a search of this forum and you're bound to find threads with links to these studies). Whatever you end up choosing to do, please at least read up on if/when/pros/cons of neutering and make an informed decision based on the information you find. You can't go wrong if you arm yourself with the knowledge to make the decision!


I should mention as well that for what it's worth, I chose not to neuter. I have a 4 yr old and a 1 yr old. We trained and disciplined our way through some of the problems you're encountering right now. It's temporary, so long as you get on his case about it and refuse to tolerate anything outside the bounds of what's acceptable in your family. Our boys are the only intact dogs we know, and although they're not perfect, they're the only dogs we hang out with who've received real discipline from day one. As a result, they're comfortable on every situation we put them in and people comment on how well behaved they are. So I don't believe their behaviour was impacted either negatively or positively due to their intact status. 

We did have another golden who we neutered at 10 months due to him being chryptorchid ( sp?). His behaviour was not impacted by his neutering. Although he would gain weight easily if we weren't careful, I believe that had more to do with a thyroid problem than anything. We were easily able to keep him at his ideal body weight throughout his short life. He died at age 5, so I can't speak to whether it would've become more difficult to maintain his weight properly as he got older. 


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## hesantone (Mar 2, 2013)

*Thanks! Help me with training!*

Thank you everyone. I decided to wait until at least a year. Most people agree this is a training issue. I feel frustrated because I spend a lot of time with him and obviously my training is not clicking. Our major issues are as follows (I'll take any advice)

1. When he's outside he won't come in the house when called (even with a treat). This is a major problem at times when we are in a hurry to leave. In general he won't come when called unless he feels like it. I've tried the hide and seek game and it works then but he knows the difference.
2. Digging up our lawn
3. Jumping (I was NEVER going to have. Dog that jumped on people LOl). It does work when we cross our arms but he still jumps on strangers.
4. Won't listen to the "drop it" command...lots of homework has been eaten and he steals a lot of stuff that is dangerous for him.

I honestly feel like having another baby would have been easier! We love him but it definitely is weighing on everyone in our family...even the kids.


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## shagerman0715 (Nov 20, 2013)

hesantone said:


> Thank you everyone. I decided to wait until at least a year. Most people agree this is a training issue. I feel frustrated because I spend a lot of time with him and obviously my training is not clicking. Our major issues are as follows (I'll take any advice)
> 
> 1. When he's outside he won't come in the house when called (even with a treat). This is a major problem at times when we are in a hurry to leave. In general he won't come when called unless he feels like it. I've tried the hide and seek game and it works then but he knows the difference.
> 2. Digging up our lawn
> ...


1. I would start leashing when taking him out and rewarding him afterwards. Find treats they like. I'll have to see what brand I use but they are like doggie crack. 
3. Depending how long you have let this go on depends how long it will take to get rid of this problem. Its going to have to be training. What I did was had my roommate go outside, then come back inside. I would have her act really excited to see my golden(which was what caused him to jump), if he jumped I gave him a stern "no, sit". If he didn't, I rewarded him. We probably did this for 30 mins a day. The more people you have participating, the better. 
4. Do you keep plenty of toys/rawhides on hand? I found that my golden would chew and play with stuff he's not supposed to when he doesn't have any toys. 

Hope this helps. I'm not sure about what can be done number 2.

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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Ok - I was trying to avoid piling on, but yes... it sounds like a training issue. And a maturity issue. 

Neutering doesn't suddenly make a dog mature and trained. That is taken care of by the owner and time. 

Now the following - I think there are very common sense responses that do the job. A lot of this is also management (ie, training the human to think ahead of the dog).

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1. When he's outside he won't come in the house when called (even with a treat). This is a major problem at times when we are in a hurry to leave. In general he won't come when called unless he feels like it. I've tried the hide and seek game and it works then but he knows the difference.

- Always take him out on leash if there is a chance you are going to be leaving shortly and don't have the time to wait for him to hang out all he wants outside. 

- Games are for puppies. Young dogs past 12 weeks need to learn to obey That means teach your dog to come when called. The little secret ingredient here is do not ever ask your dog to come if there is any doubt of your dog obeying. "ignoring" or "turning the deaf ear" is a behavior that is quickly and easily reinforced every time the dog blows you off.. 

2. Digging up our lawn

- Do not turn your dog outside without you in attendance. Dog starts to dig, you step in and discourage and give the dog something else to do. 

Alternative is something we've done and putting a huge dirt mound in a discreet area of the yard where the dogs can dig all they want without ruining the grass. 


3. Jumping (I was NEVER going to have. Dog that jumped on people LOl). It does work when we cross our arms but he still jumps on strangers.

- Always keep a leash on when other people are around. And use the leash and the dogs collar to keep the dogs from jumping and train polite greetings. 

4. Won't listen to the "drop it" command...lots of homework has been eaten and he steals a lot of stuff that is dangerous for him.

- This is both a management issue and a "outsmarting your dog" issue. Do not leave stuff in your dog's reach. If your dog has something, you are going to make a huge deal about leading the parade to the kitchen to trade the item in the dog's mouth for something more valuable - like bread. 

**** The bottom line is dogs are work and require a lot of love and patience from their owners. I'd suggest rolling with it right now and just use a lot of common sense management.


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## ally1h (Nov 27, 2012)

I agree with all the above. It is a training issue and it's his age. My pup started showing a lot of those behaviors around 8 months old. Now at 14 months, they are starting to calm down. BUT- we consistently train. I personally take my dog to obedience classes as it helps me be more consistent with the training and it is something to do. Don't neuter if behavioral issues are the reason. They won't magically change over night.

1. Leash train instead of letting him go outside by himself. Put him on a very long line if you don't want to go out with him. Use the long line as an opportunity to train recall. If he doesn't come when called then you have the long line to feel him in.

2. Digging up the lawn? Don't let him go out unsupervised. Don't give him the opportunity to dig it up. If he starts, correct him and distract him with another activity. Do this EVERY time.

3. Jumping on people. Every time he jumps on someone he is getting a reaction from them, which encourages him to do it again. Don't give him the opportunity to jump. Keep him on a leash and praise him when all 4 paws stay on the ground


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

I think it is a good idea to neuter before marking/girl focus/ on the toes with other males etc begins. Some goldens are really good even unneutered, but it can make a nice difference with others.


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## MedStudent (Sep 18, 2016)

I would suggest starting a correction-reward based system. The reason your dog doesn't listen is because there is no consequence for not listening. The treat based system is great until your dog thinks that what he is investigating is way more interesting than the treat you have in your hand. Start a correction based system and you will see that your dog is smart enough to realize he'd rather listen than get the correction.


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## watsonmom (Sep 25, 2016)

I was just reading through old posts. I'm going to neuter my pup next month. How did your boy do? Did his behavior change with the neutering or did training help?


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## laprincessa (Mar 24, 2008)

watsonmom said:


> I was just reading through old posts. I'm going to neuter my pup next month. How did your boy do? Did his behavior change with the neutering or did training help?



Neutering won't change behavior. Period. Only training will change behavior.


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## danoon58 (Jul 1, 2015)

Sounds like behavior issues not hormonal to me too! Seamus is 20 months and still has the I won't listen moments. He is still intact. I had read that they should not be neutered until their growth plates close and that they don't close until they are at least 2.

We were looking at a vasectomy for Seamus but ultimately decided (at least for the time being) to leave him intact.


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