Why NOT neuter?

Thank you for posting the scientific perspective.  Whatever anyone's experience with having a dog that likes to please them, I assure you that if an intact bitch meets up with an intact male while she is in season, and no breeding takes place, there is a reason other than she is afraid her owner doesn't want puppies right now.   It's pretty irresponsible to keep pets intact if they are not destined for show or a responsible breeding  program, since only one miscalculation can result in 10+ puppies being added to the already overcrowded situation.  And, just because you find homes for them all doesn't mean that some unlucky pup somewhere close by you won't miss out on a home due to your irresponsibility.  There is always a first time for your dog to decide to accept a male, and you cannot, no matter how good you are at recognizing the signs, always predict exactly when she is or is not fertile.  So, if your dog has no medical reason why she cannot be spayed, why would you not?  I, frankly, am surprised that anyone involved in rescue would not realize the importance of this.

Very well said spiritdogs

ORIGINAL: ottoluv

Very well said spiritdogs

 
Great post if you were not the one being pummeled.  I treasure my freedom to choose and having control of my own household.  I think I know my dogs best above anyone else.  I am the type of person that has no problem in reevaluating a decision and then changing course based on good advice.  I think in this forum you have seen that happen from time to time.  But sometimes the best of advice is delivered with an accusatory or harsh tone that puts off the reader resulting in the message being lost.  So 2nd best will have to do and the risk that goes along with it.

ORIGINAL: DPU

ORIGINAL: ottoluv

Very well said spiritdogs

Great post if you were not the one being pummeled.

I think the reason you're being "pummeled"  is your advice to the OP is from experience very specific to you and your dog, and very much opposed to most people's experience.  It is not so much a reason not to get fixed (what the OP was looking for) but a testament that your dog has not had any problems staying intact.  While that's nice and all, it gives the OP no specific reason why they should not have they're dog fixed.  It only says that things have gone alright for you so far.

littlesaint,
According to the OP I was invited to respond and I did.  I did not give the OP advice nor was I advocating.  I described my home experience and observation with having a natural female dog living with other dogs including males.  My poor innocent dog Drizzle, that I love dearly, was labeled as being odd, unusually, and something being wrong with her.  She was depicted this way by posts from individuals who were specifically not invited to respond by the OP.  Then I was mistakenly referred to as irresponsible because of a poster not reading but skimming all the messages and drawing the wrong conclusion.  The majority of the posters were Off Topic and should apologize for their mistakes.

I will respectfully disagree that the majority of posts were off topic, and frankly I'm not sure it's your place to say who *should* apologise.  I think inherent in ANY discussion about an issue such as this is a responsibility to agree that making generalisations is a bad idea when so many people have different experiences.  It's not enough to discuss the pros and cons of spay/neuter - to make educated decisions, the WHY of each of those pros and cons must be discussed, as well.  Generalising is a BAD idea with dogs, or any animals, since at best we have a basic understanding of their thought processes.  If specific examples need to be used to prove a point, so much the better, for clarity's sake.
 
Kate

The OP was very specific on what was to be discussed.  Here is a reminder.
 
Has anyone NOT neutered/spayed their dogs? If so why?
My dog is 1 year old and is not neutered. I've seen enough arguments to WHY TO to it, I need to see WHY NOT.
P.S. That's besides the fact that you want to show or breed your dogs.

I haven't really read through many of the posts, so I am responding to the OP.

The reason I have not neutered my dog is because I don't feel like I have a reason to.  In MY situation, I prefer not to take away hormones from a dog that effects things like fat and glucose metabolism, muscle deposition and degredation when he isn't doing anything that would give me a reason to do so (marking, humping everything, behavioral issues related to it, etc).  Even though I feel this way, I usually recommend that people spay/neuter their dogs.  I just know myself and my dog more than anybody, and know that my dog would never be out of my sight or in a situation that would allow him to breed without my knowledge.  Now, if he ever exhibited any behavioral issues related to being intact, I would neuter him.  I just don't want to (because of the reasons above re: hormonal regulation) if I don't have a reason to.  I do want to emphasize this is because of my own situation and my individual responsibility. 

Just a thought for those that don't spay -- our now 11 year old doberman female almost DIED after getting pyometra.  It wasn't my decision not to have her spayed but my mom's, and she was planning to show her but never did, and "never got around to" spaying her after that.  There were no problems until there were.

I consider myself a very responsible owner.  We breed cockers for many years and did so responsibly.  I never had an accidental pregnancy with the cockers.  However, the shepherds are a different story.  Two poor little souls were born and died within 48 hours after Thor and Sheba tied THROUGH the crate door.  Shadow is the result of a foster child, who was terrified of the dogs, letting Sheba out of TWO crates to go outside and play with Thor in the milisecond it took me to switch laundry from the washer to the dryer......
 
I personally see no reason NOT to spay/nueter unless you are showing and breeding.  I think that DPU has been very lucky with his girl that she is not interested in procreating and I sincerely hope at her age that she does not change her attitude.  In my experience with intact females, just as an aside, they are far more prone to mammary cancers as they age and that in itself is enough to get me to the vet for the big snip.  I've watched too many die painfully.
 
I do think we need to get back to the original question.....what are some valid reasons for not nuetering?  As stated, I can think of none other than showing and breeding.
 
And, totally OFF topic, but why the heck is there a picture of a SNAKE in someones avator???  This is a DOG forum........

And, totally OFF topic, but why the heck is there a picture of a SNAKE in someones avator???  This is a DOG forum........

MissKiwi has a menagerie of animals, I'm so jealous I want turtles so bad!!!

Off Topic:  Uh Oh!  A snake?  I remember an episode on the forum involving a snake, Glenda, and Joel.  I feel the forum starting to quiver and cower.  See, I keep up on the going-ons in the forum.
 
On Topic:  I responded appropriately and with respect to the OP that the reason why I kept Drizzle intact was because I gave my word to the breeder.  I value honor and integrity in a person and I keep my word.  After so much time that has passed, the breeder with almost certainty is not going to call me.  So why didn#%92t I spay Drizzle after say about 3 years? I think it has to do with trusting what I am told by dog professionals.  You have to admit the dog world is terrible on keeping accurate and reliable statistics on itself.  Plus so many topics are debated like spay/neuter.
 
I got Blizzard and Drizzle as pups and after their ear cropping the vet discussed with me spaying Blizzard right away.  We did not discuss Drizzle.   Come to think of it, my vet has never discussed spaying Drizzle and Drizzle just had surgery to removed polyps growths on her chest.  Blizzard is an albino Great Dane and deaf.  She is my avatar.  The vet discussed the various illness avoidances that would result from spaying.  I agreed and the vet immediately performed the surgery, I mean she took Blizzard then and performed the operation.  Afterwards I dwelled on what I thought the reasons why there seemed to be an urgency to spay Blizzard.  I came up with it might have been a slow day at the vet#%92s office… I was the only one there.  I also thought it was because of Mother Nature#%92s kisses on Blizzard.  The vet wanting to immediately eliminate the passing on of perceived defects.   I also thought that maybe the vet viewed Blizzard as a special case and wanted to gain experience.  Also, Drizzle has seen a few other vets in her lifetime and those vets did not discuss spaying Drizzle.
 
I am a responsible dog owner.  You might say I go way overboard when it comes to the protection and safety of my dogs.  For example, Dog parks scare me, walking a dog at night scares me, people petting my dogs makes me alert.  My property is secure.  Whenever the dogs are outside I am mostly with them and if not, always within earshot.  It has taken years to create a very dog friendly and secure home for my dogs and I am proud of my success. 
 
I do not consider myself lucky because Drizzle has not been impregnated but on purpose she is not impregnated.  It is my relationship with my dogs, my training abilities, my experience to read behaviors, my precautions, my home setup that I feel is 100% proof.  If others achieved this I would say congratulations!

ORIGINAL: DPU

ORIGINAL: ottoluv

Very well said spiritdogs

Great post if you were not the one being pummeled.  I treasure my freedom to choose and having control of my own household.  I think I know my dogs best above anyone else.  I am the type of person that has no problem in reevaluating a decision and then changing course based on good advice.  I think in this forum you have seen that happen from time to time.  But sometimes the best of advice is delivered with an accusatory or harsh tone that puts off the reader resulting in the message being lost.  So 2nd best will have to do and the risk that goes along with it.

I have no problem with the tone in which I delivered the previous post.  It was civil and to the point.  Had I been intending to be harsh, I would have told you that you don't know your butt from a squirt bottle, but I didn't do that.  I merely stated what, to most educated people, is obvious.  I did not "pummel" you - but I certainly did disagree with your irresponsible stance on the spay/neuter issue.  And, if you are truly the type person who bases decisions on having been educated, don't take my word for any of this, go buy a copy of "One at a Time: A Week in an American Animal Shelter", and then tell me you are willing to take your chances...

Certain dog titles require the dog to be intact. Breeding purposefully requires the dog to be intact. If those activities are not in the future of the dog, it is best to spay/neuter. Reasons: less health problems, no unintended litters. And when dogs are ready to mate, they will mate. If they get "knotted," as the old saying goes, you may not be able to get them apart in time.
 
In this day and age with a drastic overpopulation of pets, regardless of PETA's high kill rate, there is no reason to keep a pet intact. Proper pet or animal husbandry these days includes spay/neuter. And if someone wants to say it's unnatural, so is getting vaccinations, grooming, even the old human-dog training/bonding thing. They are no longer wild animals and it is our responsibility to manage their lives.
 
It is technically possible to keep intact dogs though it obviously requires some secure situations during a heat. I just can't see the need to keep them intact unless breeding is intended. At the risk of getting blasted, I would tend to say that the desire to keep the animal intact for any reason outside of an intended breeding is because of psychological reasons in the human, rather than the health and safety of the dog.
 
One disclaimer, though. It is thought in some circles to keep a large breed intact until at least 1 year, to ensure proper growth. Other anecdotal evidence shows that there is no discernable difference in growth of a large breed depending on age of spay/neuter.
 

Again, the OP was specific on the discussion.  This is not a debate on spay/neuter and I don't understand why those that don't qualify to post, are doing so.  I thought this would be a good thread that I can share my experience and observations because of the OP strict guidelines.  But I guess I can't get away from the sisterhood of oldies and their forceful ways of intimidations.

So in a discussion on why NOT to neuter, it isn't reasonable for people to chime in saying they can't think of a good reason not to neuter?
 
Who is this sisterhood you speak of?
 
Kate