JingleBell: What is the best age to have a male boxer neutered?
My male boxer puppy is 6 months old. What is a good age to have him fixed? I'm afraid to stunt his growth.
I also have a female boxer that is spayed. He has started being aggressive towards her. Nothing serious, just rough houses a bit too much. Will getting him fixed help this?
Answers and Views:
Answer by rescue member
Way time – get him neutered. 4 to 6 months is just fine, 4 months even better. The younger the dog, the less it bothers him, and the faster he recovers. I've had young dogs like yours neutered by the dozen, they are up and running the same day – the hard part is keeping them relatively calm they usually feel so recovered in a matter of a day.
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Answer by ♥BYBs are money grabbing idiots♥
Fix him now that is the best time
Answer by Jen Hinson
Ok. This is a very long answer to what most people think is a great question that only needs a short answer. But, it is not that easy. I am 47 until recently (with new research) I would spay or neuter my dogs male or female at 4 to 6 months. Often on the very day, they turned four months old. Many say the earliest the better because of this or because of that. Now I see things differently.
First only spat or neuter if you in no way whatsoever want puppies. Let me explain. Wanting a puppy is different from wanting puppies. A puppy, you get from a reputable breeder. Littered are generally more than one puppy. No one else. IMO a reputable breeder does not have to show the dog or get any titles in it. A reputable breeder does all. necessary health tests and either somehow want to better the breed or correctly expand a rare breed. Not all breeders must show dogs. BUT ALL BREEDERS MUST HAVE HOMES FOR THE DOGS AND BE READY TO REHOME IF THE FIRST HOME DOES NOT WORK. IT HAPPENS.
If the breeder cannot get a home for all the puppies, then they should not have bred the dogs..ok that is out of the way. The more I have seen about this subject from reputable studies the more confident I am in saying the only cancers it really lessens the chance of from what I have read are the ones connected to the items being removed because they are not there to get uterine or testicular cancer. Chances for prostate and breast cancer are lessened since the sex organs removed create hormones that can lead to those cancers.
Fixing a dog is not a solution to straying, aggression, or any one of the many things that many people including vets claim. It is not a wonder cure. Proper training (hopefully positive training) is what makes for a well-behaved, well-mannered dog of either gender. Rough play is just that, play. Again, if you think it is too rough, correct it. When you adopted the dog, you became its parents. I have seen many people adopt a dog at 8 weeks old and either expect it to be completely trained including ere and poop at that time. I've seen others who flat-out do no training and expect the dog to be obedient. Most often I have seen this in owners of small dogs.
All dogs can be trained and bad behavior is bad behavior. If you had two children who played like that, would you just sit back and watch or would you discipline them? Do you (oh I have a habit of saying you when I mean a person or owner, I'm not talking specifically about the person answering the question, but everyone) have a child and then teach him or her nothing? Do you expect the child to learn not to put their hand in a fire, walk in front of cars, stay with you in a store, or even play nice with siblings and friends from the day they are 8 weeks old and forever without intervention, teaching, and discipline?
Okay, the same thing with a dog. You don't take a misbehaving boy to the doctor and say I'm having problems with him and have great difficulty controlling him, please take off his balls. Not funny (but I know some readers are now cringing or laughing).
Now, on to the actual question asked. It is not good for all dogs to get fixed early in life. Ok, remember when I said that because everything regarding sex (except urinary pieces) is taken out of the dog/bitch the hormones go with them? Well, some of those hormones are necessary for development. Sometimes it does affect the size. Some dogs get larger and others don't grow as much when they are snipped (not all but some), but the hormones for muscle development, tendons, and connective tissue are not all present at the time they are needed if they are fixed too soon.
Females get an extra umph of the hormones in their heats (seasons, earthen, or whatever you want to call it) that is why it is so important to allow a female to have their first 1-2 heats before breeding the first time.
Without these hormones, the joints and related tissues do not develop as well as they can, especially in larger breeds! In the smaller breeds, who generally do not have hip dysplasia problems, it is not as important, so they can generally be snipped earlier. Large breeds should be allowed to go at least to the age of 2 YEARS OLD before getting fixed. This allows proper development. Remember development is different from size/height/etc. The development could be key to functioning longer in life without pain…running with their human jogging partner, playing with friends, etc. If you cannot do the 2 years, then try your best for one year.
The biggest thing is NOT LOSING BREEDING during that time! With females, you must know the heat cycle and keep them completely away from any INTACT MALES period. They can find ways. Also, some think that when they quit having the bloody show the female is no longer in heat. NO WAY! WHEN. IT STOPS IS WHEN THEY. OVULATE AND THE BEST CHANCE FOR PREGNANCY. Male sperm can live for days, so the female can actually get pregnant if they get with a male before ovulation. Now the male is tricky.
I have also heard the pet owners say "Thank God I have a male. I don't have to worry about heat or pregnancy." Reality is you. must worry more. That is why waiting for years for the male to mature might be more stressful than the female.
The sperm of the male is always fertile (not just once or twice a year as females are) and if they get the scent of a female in heat miles away, they will often try to go for it. So this takes us full circle to the beginning of this way to answer. Obedience training and control. Male dog owners are just as responsible for bringing pups into this world as those with females. That is why I like that you asked the question and why I am taking so much time to answer. I want to explain my answer so all can understand. This is new research but there have been numerous studies to wait past the first year.
Now, I am going to contradict myself somewhat. If you do not want to go through heat (many are not as messy as people think) or you are afraid you cannot control your animal enough, then get fixed early. DO NOT TAKE CHANCES! Finally, more specific to your breed is that it is a boxer. Boxers suffer heavily from different cancers. It is a medium-sized breed, but very muscular. This could make the decision more difficult.
Because of cancer and medium build, I would say early neuter, but for the musculature, I'd say wait. As they say, the ball is in your court, now that you have more information than just saying 6 months. Owners of boxers have a tough decision that I do not envy. They are awesome dogs. I wish you luck!
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