Does Spaying or Neutering Cause Stunting? Having your dog spayed or neutered early will not stunt your puppy's growth, but it might affect the joints of large breed dogs. Studies show that early spay/neuter does affect the growth plate, delaying its closure and causing dogs to grow taller than they should have.
Dogs who undergo spay surgery before they reach their adult size may grow slightly taller than they would have without spay surgery.
Contrary to popular opinion, desexing does NOT stunt the growth of an animal, in fact it prolongs it. Growth plates are present at each ends of the bones and are the area of the bone that allows it to grow during development.
She may cry or moan a little, and might just feel like sleeping. It's important to let her rest, keeping her still will be essential for an uneventful recovery. It often takes a day or two for pets to feel like themselves again. It can also take a couple of days for them to pass faeces.
An age of six to nine months of age may be appropriate for neutering or spaying a toy breed puppy or small breed puppy but a larger or giant breed may need to wait until they are near or over 12-18 months of age.
There are some old wives' tales that a dog should go through at least 1 heat cycle before she's spayed. This just isn't the case. Studies have shown that the risks of mammary cancer and urinary incontinence are higher if you wait to spay your dog after she's gone through 1 or more heat cycles.
Your female pet will live a longer, healthier life.
Spaying prevents uterine infections and decreases the incidence of breast tumors, which are malignant or cancerous in about 50 percent of dogs and 90 percent of cats. Spaying your pet before her first heat offers the best protection from these diseases.
Dogs desexed before 5.5 months of age had a 6.7% incidence of hip dysplasia, whereas dogs desexed at 6 months or older had an incidence of 4.7%. However, only 54% of the dogs with a diagnosis of hip dysplasia were reported to also have arthritis or joint problems requiring veterinary attention.
In general, it will be between 7-9 months for the smaller females and later for the bigger breeds. Hence, for small dogs, up to an adult body weight of 20kg, we recommend desexing at 6 months old. For larger dogs, we recommend leaving it a little while longer, so about 8-9 months.
Early-age neutering does not stunt growth in dogs or cats (a once-held belief), but may alter metabolic rates in cats. The anaesthetic and surgical procedures are apparently safe for young puppies and kittens; morbidity is lower and recovery is faster than in adult animals.
This happens because dogs are no more capable of having offsprings, so they have no reason to continue producing hormones at their optimal levels. The drop in estrogen level can become an immediate reason why the dog may seem to be calmer, simply because of its effect on the female reproductive cycle.
The loss of estrogens and androgens (sex hormones) from neutering dogs and cats causes a decrease in metabolic rate, thus their energy needs are lower. Neutering a pet is linked to an increased risk of unhealthy weight gain and obesity if there is no change in diet or feeding plan at the time of surgery.
To be clear, the question here is whether or not to spay early or after the first heat cycle. Because of significant risks of pyometra (uterine infection) or mammary cancer late in life we recommend that all female dogs not intended for breeding be spayed before their second heat cycle.
Spaying your dog too early can result in health problems later on since her hormones should have some time to work. Early spaying can increase the risk of hip dysplasia, torn ligaments, bone cancer, and urinary incontinence.
Small breed dogs (under 50 lbs projected adult weight): There is no question here at all, males should be neutered at 6 months of age and females should be spayed prior to their first heat (5-6 months of age). Large breed dogs (over 50 lbs projected adult weight): This is where things become a bit trickier.
The night before the procedure
Give your pet their food around 8 pm and then DO NOT give ANY food to your pet after 9pm. (This includes treats and milk). Water may be left down overnight, but should be removed first thing in the morning.
Heat usually lasts between 2-4 weeks. Early in the cycle, a female dog may not be receptive to male dogs, although some are receptive through the entire cycle. It can be shorter or longer and you'll know the cycle is over when all her vulva returns to its normal size and there's no more bleeding or discharge.
Estrus is the stage when the dog can become pregnant. Although this can vary with each individual, on average a dog will be in heat for 1 ½ to 2 weeks but this can be shorter or longer.
However, spaying your dog while in heat presents some increased risk of complications from bleeding due to increased vascularization in the reproductive organs during the heat cycle.
Your pet needs to be kept in an indoor crate/ kennel for most of the day and night for the next 10 days. The time of highest risk for the sutures breaking down is 3-5 days after surgery.
Generally, spaying or neutering your pet will not change its personality. If there are any effects on behaviour, they tend to be positive (reducing unwanted behaviour). Spaying or neutering will not change your pet's affection level or playfulness. For females, there is typically no change at all.
Females rarely experience behavior changes, though many will take on a lazier disposition. Activity levels may be reduced in both males and females after spaying and neutering, but this is by no means certain in all dogs.
Internal parasites feed off of the nutrients inside their host's body, essentially eating what the host needs to grow. This can cause weakness, lethargy, and stunted growth. Parasites that can cause stunted growth include roundworms, hookworms, whipworms, and tapeworms.
Sex hormones, like estrogen and testosterone, close the growth plates. If a puppy is spayed or neutered before their bones are done growing, the closure of the growth plates is delayed, sometimes by several months. The result of this is that the dog will get a little taller.
The short answer is that no, your dog isn't likely to be less hyperactive after getting spayed or neutered. It won't change their personality much, if at all. Each dog has its own positive and negative social habits.