# Neutering question



## Daisybones (Aug 25, 2008)

:wave:My puppy Hudson will be neutered on October 2nd. He will be 6 months old. A friend of mine told me that it will stunt his growth. I've never heard of this before. Is it true? Will he not grow normally? Since the date of his surgery is coming up fast I may reconsider. Thanks in advance.


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## arcane (Sep 18, 2007)

I recommend keeping boys intact until 14-16 mos of age, so they can reach their full growth and masculinity potential...there are many threads in regard to the pros & cons of early neutering.


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## wagondog (Aug 24, 2007)

You will get many opinions with this, you can also search the past posts for neutering. My personal feeling is that early neutering does retard the growth and does not allow the animal to reach its growth potential. I also notice that dogs neutered early tend to become tall and leggy rather than properly conformed. My breeder is a well known and respected conformation judge of the breed, she asked me not to neuter Harley until at least 16 months or more if possible, I respect her opinion more that I respect mine This is a layman opinion from me but I would never neuter before 16 months unless necessary for other reasons. I also think neutering is a cash cow for some vets, again, my opinion.
Wagondog


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## BeauShel (May 20, 2007)

I would wait on neutering him till after he fully matures.


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## Charlie06 (Feb 10, 2007)

I got Charlie neutered at 6 months. Charlie is much smaller than other goldens I see. So many people think he is a female or still a puppy.....and he's 2. Not that I care what he looks like, he's a member of our family, not a show dog, but if I had to do it all over again I probably would have waited a little longer.


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## fostermom (Sep 6, 2007)

I personally believe in early neutering. I have never seen a dog who was neutered early have stunted growth. Case in point is my Danny. He was neutered at 7 months and he is a very nice looking field golden and weighs 78-80 lbs. and is at his perfect weight. Jasper was neutered at 5 1/2 months and he is about 63 lbs. and not the least big leggy. He is smaller because he was starved as a puppy during his critical growth period.


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## PeanutsMom (Oct 14, 2007)

I think you really gotta just look at how needed it is. If your boy is ever around unaltered females, even if she is just a puppy right now, or if he spends time out doors unsupervised, I would probably take the chance of him having a more feminine head and get him clipped. But if you are totally safe waiting, then that's what I'd do. I think it really depends on the situation.


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## Tahnee GR (Aug 26, 2006)

Most breeders now advise to wait on neutering. Here are some articles discussing this:

http://www.caninesports.com/SpayNeuter.html

http://www.dolittler.com/index.cfm/...neuter.spay.castration.cruciate.hip.dysplasia

http://www.naiaonline.org/pdfs/LongTermHealthEffectsOfSpayNeuterInDogs.pdf

My contract states that if the dog/bitch is spayed/neutered before the age stated in the contract (9-12 months for a bitch; 15-18 months for a dog), it will nullify my warranty. Not all dogs will be impacted in the same way, but you cannot tell ahead of time which ones will be.

Hilton's brother was neutered at a little over 4 months, against my wishes. When we got together at 12 months, the difference between him and his brothers/sisters was truly startling. He is much much taller, with long, thin legs and a narrow head. He has no chest to speak of. His owners were upset, looking at the others in the litter and asking why their boy looked so different. Now this litter went through some really really ugly, skinny stages growing up  but he did not have the hormones to get him through this stage and is stuck in it. I worry about his joints and ACL as well, as those longer legs may not be as stable. Luckily his owners are very very strict about his weight and he is in a good weight for his build.


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## Merlins mom (Jun 20, 2007)

I had Merlin neutered at a year old. For me it was a good "in between" for what was suggested here and what my vet suggested. Merlin isn't tall or leggy and is well proportioned at 62 pounds. It really depends on your situation and what you're comfortable with. You can find many articles online through google.


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## cathyv (Oct 8, 2016)

I had an appointment to have Maximilian neutered the end of this month, around his 6 month birthday. I was told about concerns with this breed and the need for him to be fully grown before doing this and sure enough, my internet search confirmed that theory. Neutering male Golden's can lead to longer legs, abnormal growth, hip dysplasia, cranial cruciate ligament (CCL) tears, elbow dysplasia, and four types of cancer: lymphosarcoma, hemangiosarcoma, mast cell tumors, etc. I am not a vet but these sound like serious concerns. Rather than taking any chances, Max will be staying intact till he's at least 18 months old.


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## Cpc1972 (Feb 23, 2015)

Jake was neutered at six months. It did not stunt his growth. He was a good 15 pounds heavier then a male should be. He was tall. But he died of hemangisarcoma. If we had gotten another male after he passed it would not of been neutered until 2 years old or maybe not at all.


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