Why can't you fix a dog before 6 months old?

I've asked this question before and I didn't get too much detailed explanations.Few of the answers included that they might end up with problems later in life, how?What are the negative effects of neutering a dog before 6 months?Can I fix a 2 month old…

    Why can't you fix a dog before 6 months old?

    I've asked this question before and I didn't get too much detailed explanations.Few of the answers included that they might end up with problems later in life, how?What are the negative effects of neutering a dog before 6 months?Can I fix a 2 month old…...
    General Dog Discussions : Why can't you fix a dog before 6 months old?...

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    • Why can't you fix a dog before 6 months old?

      Why can't you fix a dog before 6 months old? General Dog Discussions
      I've asked this question before and I didn't get too much detailed explanations.Few of the answers included that they might end up with problems later in life, how?What are the negative effects of neutering a dog before 6 months?Can I fix a 2 month old Siberian husky before 6 months?Detailed explanations please!

      Why can't you fix a dog before 6 months old?

      Why can't you fix a dog before 6 months old? General Dog Discussions
    • Many vets WILL spay or neuter a dog before 6 months. My vet will fix puppies (and kittens) as early as 8 weeks. My last dog was spayed at 4.5 months, with no negative effects.

    • In fact, there is such a thing called early spay/neuter now, due to the over population of dogs and cats. It was determined that whatever possible after effects of doing surgery on kittens and puppies would be far outweighed by the benefits of having them neutered before they got out into the world when adopted from a rescue. Surprisingly, the after effects have been minimal, and despite many worries that it would be a disaster, it has in fact been a reasonable success. While it is mainly done by shelter vets, early spay/neuter is recognized as relatively safe.

    • I have a doberman and we are waiting until she is 1 yr old cause it will make their legs longer than they should be. they will look all lopsided. Just wait, but be carefull bcause they will try to run away while in heat (if its a girl) so it can have puppies. DON'T LET IT!!!!!

    • yes you can but it needs to be more around 4 months old, not at two months, large breeds only, yours qualifies, we haven't had any negative effects yet. the vet will tell you the earliest he can find the gonads with a physical examination, we neuter early to keep the size down / muscle tone off, once the testosterone starts the muscles define.

    • Once the testes have dropped then they are technically fixable. I know several people who have had it done at 4 1/2 months with no problems. Some vets just have a 6 month standard. Perhaps it is just easier for them? I am really not sure.

    • Its not that you can not its that you SHOULD NOT DO JUVENILE SPAY OR NEUTER. Iam going to post an article that is in easy to understand terms.t is extremely dangerous for your pets long term health to spay or neuter them at a young age.Read the article below. I will post some links that have medical research to back the articles up----------FROM MSNBCAs legislators push for more mandatory spay and neuter laws for pets as young as 4 and 6 months in hopes of reducing the number of unwanted animals, critics are crying foul over research showing that such surgeries may raise certain health risks in dogs and therefore shouldn't be required. Studies have shown that dogs that undergo spaying (removal of the ovaries and uterus) or neutering (removal of the testicles) are at increased risks for certain cancers, thyroid disorder, incontinence and some of the same behavior issues, such as aggression, that the surgeries are said to prevent. Most of these problems aren't common to begin with, and the increased risks can depend on the type of dog and the age the surgery is performed. Still, the findings are leading some experts to say that, contrary to conventional wisdom, later spay/neuter surgery for dogs, and even vasectomies for male canines, may be better options for some animals, depending on such factors as breed and lifestyle.The American Veterinary Medical Association has not taken a stand on spay/neuter legislation, but the American College of Theriogenologists, a group of veterinary reproduction specialists that advises the AVMA, is considering a position paper opposing the legislation at its meeting in St. Louis in August, says veterinarian John Hamil of Laguna Beach, Calif., a member of the group's task force that looked at the issue.“What they’re saying is that because there have been problems associated with spay/neuter surgery, they think it’s improper for it to be mandated, much less at an early age," says Hamil. "They feel the decision should be made after discussion between the owner and veterinarian.”Proponents of spay/neuter legislation say it's a way to reduce the numbers of animals in shelters and cut down on euthanasia rates. They also cite the health and behavior benefits of the procedures, such as prevention of mammary cancer, spraying and marking territory, and roaming.Patty Khuly, a veterinarian in Miami, says a better solution to control the animal population than mandatory spay/neutering by a certain age is to offer the surgeries at lower costs so more pet owners can afford them and get them done according to a veterinarian's recommendations.“I don’t believe that the fourth month is a reasonable window,” she says. “Most veterinarians would agree on that. I think low-cost spay/neuter, making it more available, is the solution, as opposed to mandating a time frame, especially when we don’t know the real impact of early spay/neuter.” No one-size-fits-all answerThe idea that pets should be spayed or neutered at approximately 6 months of age or earlier dates to studies in the 1960s and 1970s showing that spaying a female before her first estrus cycle almost eliminated mammary cancer — which is common in dogs — and that spayed and neutered dogs showed a decrease in behavior problems that can be fueled by sex hormones. Since the early studies were conducted, however, research has also shown downsides to the surgeries beyond acute side effects such as bleeding and inflammation.Margaret V. Root Kustritz, a veterinary reproduction specialist at the University of Minnesota, reviewed 200 studies and found that while spay/neuter surgery has benefits, it is also linked to increases in the incidence of certain diseases and conditions such as bone cancer, heart tumors, hypothyroidism and canine cruciate ligament (CCL) injuries, as well as prostate cancer in male dogs and urinary incontinence in females. The extent of the risk can depend on the problem, as well as the size and sex of the dog, and the age the surgery is performed. The risk of a type of cardiac tumor called hemangiosarcoma is five times higher in spayed female dogs than unspayed females, noted Kustritz. And neutered males have 2.4 times the risk of unneutered males. The risk was also higher for osteosarcoma (bone cancer): Dogs spayed or neutered before age 1 were up to two times as likely to develop the disease than those that hadn’t been altered.Spaying and neutering may also heighten behavior problems such as aggression in some breeds and noise phobias in dogs altered at less than 5 months of age, she found. While it's long been believed that spaying and neutering can improve a dog's behavior, one large study done at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine found that, with a few exceptions, spaying and neutering was associated with worse behavior, although those effects were often specific to certain breeds and depended on the age at which the dog was altered. Cats seem to fare better, though. The main risk they face from sterilization is that they can become sedentary and obese, according to Kustritz's review of studies. As a result, vets say sterilizing cats before 6 months of age is appropriate. Reproductive choiceStill, some oppose the mandatory spay/neuter surgery for both cats and dogs based on the grounds that pet owners may not be able to afford the surgery if reduced-cost programs aren't available. Plus, they argue, people should have a choice. In San Mateo, Calif., Peninsula Humane Society president Ken White says such legislation provides a one-approach answer to a problem that is different from community to community. White believes low-cost or free spay/neuter programs are a better way to reduce the number of unwanted animals, based on what’s worked in San Mateo. The numbers of animals requiring euthanasia dropped dramatically — a 93 percent reduction since 1970 — as the humane society added ways for people to take advantage of low-cost and no-cost spay/neuter programs. Stephanie Shain, director of outreach for the Humane Society of the United States, says that in general the organization is in favor of spay/neuter laws but "we look at every piece of legislation individually. We generally recommend that those decisions are made with a veterinarian. If an individual pet owner feels they want to wait longer or their veterinarian feels they should wait longer, that's their choice."Veterinarians should consider the age for spay/neuter surgery based on the individual animal rather than rely on the traditional 6-month standard, says Khuly.For instance, giant dog breeds are more at risk for some types of cancer, and akitas, German shepherds, golden and Labrador retrievers, Newfoundlands, poodles and Saint Bernards are among the breeds at higher risk for CCL ruptures. “It seems that the bigger the dog, the less desirable it is to spay them early,” says Hamil. In his practice, he recommends spaying or neutering large or giant-breed dogs later than small or medium-size dogs.Some veterinarians suggest spaying females at 12 to 14 months of age, after the growth plates have closed and between estrus cycles. Hamil says that’s not unreasonable.

    • The animal has to have developed somewhat to do the procedure forfemales. it's a safer practice. it is also best for the animal (female) to have come in season and had at least one litter then spayed.My neighbor had her mixed Basset Hound fixed at 4 months old and the animal had a weight problem since then. The animal was never quite the same either. For males, they can do that in a snip er snap ha ha.They just have to have a pair, set.Waiting for the animal to be six months old would make the animal stronger for the surgery and would have less complications recovering from the surgery.