➡I accidentally bought Balut eggs: 2 live ducks! Now a Chat Thread!

[Tesumph]

Just home from the vet. We put old Fatso to sleep.

I’m so sorry. Extra hugs to all the pups tonight, in memory of the long and happy life Fatso led.

 

[Cyprus]

Early neutering of large breed dogs can lead to growth issues. Male dogs of breeds prone to hip dysplasia and other joint problems are often neutered around 2 years old as they do indeed need certain sex hormones to properly fill out.

2 years!
I sure hope owners are responsible enough to keep them from breeding.

I don't trust people who don't sterilize dogs or cats they don't intend to breed.

 

[Cyprus]

Also on the other side, I have a friend who didn't spay their female Labrador until she was 15. They only spayed her because she got mammary cancer.

 

[HuffleClaw]

2 years!
I sure hope owners are responsible enough to keep them from breeding.

I don't trust people who don't sterilize dogs or cats they don't intend to breed.

All my furry friends (dogs and cats) are spayed and/or neutered.

 

[Cyprus]

All my furry friends (dogs and cats) are spayed and/or neutered.

Same here!
We even spayed the pregnant queen our heartless landlord dumped at our house in the middle of january. After she weaned her kittens, of course.

 

[CSAchook]

I tried to follow this as best as I could.

• Responsible breeders don't sell intact dogs to avoid adding to the already problematic overpopulation.

Incorrect. Dogs must be intact to participate in AKC shows. Therefore breeders of show quality dogs sell both adults and puppies intact. That doesn’t make them unethical.

 

[Cyprus]

Incorrect. Dogs must be intact to participate in AKC shows. Therefore breeders of show quality dogs sell both adults and puppies intact. That doesn’t make them unethical.

I wouldn't know.
I don't watch AKC shows. I find them stupid and boring.

 

[Cyprus]

There are too many dogs and cats in need of homes to keep adding to the problem by breeding more. Unless you're breeding service or work animals or for conservation.

 

[HuffleClaw]

I know absolutely nothing about how breeders of dogs, and shows for dogs, and such work. But I did watch one dog show, it was quite boring, but of course that’s just my opinion.

 

[ShrekDawg]

I tried to follow this as best as I could.

• Responsible breeders don't sell intact dogs to avoid adding to the already problematic overpopulation.
• Desexing is an incorrect term. A spayed female is still a female. The correct term is sterilization.
• My female dogs were spayed at 6 months ON THE DAY and are perfectly normal size and weight.
• Dogs can get spayed as early as 2 months and be FINE. After two months the reproductive hormones are no longer necessary to their growth. FYI, cattle are castrated at 2 months and still grow to full potential. So are cats.
• Labradoodles are not purebred, no matter the registry
• My PUREBRED Siberian Husky female dogs were, at full price, worth $2500 each. That is average price for registered dogs, especially females, and even more especially of rarer colors.
• The pricey early deposits are to drive off impulsive, irresponsible future owners. PetWorld does the same thing for kittens, selling them at $250 a piece.

Yeah, sorry, it kinda blurred together/rambled. I’m going to try to address your addresses lol

• I don’t think that’s necessarily true. It’s complicated and long and I won’t go into my full opinion or anything so I don’t start going off on a tangent/rambling again but the vast majority of breeders (AKC, UKC, etc.) do not sterilize dogs before rehoming. They simply have a spay/neuter contract which seems to work well. Also, a lot of other countries don’t even fix dogs or fix them a lot less often and they don’t have that many more unwanted litters or behavior problems. I think the key is management rather than just always fixing the dog. It is not that hard to manage intact dogs if the time and effort is put in. BUT. For the average pet owner, fixing is probably best, but I don’t think it should be done so young. For shelters rehoming older dogs, I think they should all be fixed if they’re above like 6 months.
• I was simply using the term the breeders listed on their websites. I don’t know if it’s right or not but it probably doesn’t matter much anyway. Also I think in Australia and the UK they call it desexing and the breed originated in Australia.
• 6 months is not that early and I wasn’t saying they’d be under or over weight or height. Most dogs are fine. BUT...
• They DO still need their hormones. Yes they can look and appear healthy and fine, was not saying they would drop dead or get sickly or something, but there is actually a lot of research out now saying that early spaying and neutering is really bad for large breed dogs and can cause a lot of health problems. They are a lot more prone to ACL/tendon/ligament injuries and structure issues. Spayed and neutered dogs also tend to be taller and lankier than their intact relatives. They need the hormones to close the growth plates properly. If they are neutered too early, the growth plates won’t close on time and they will continue to grow. This is why they are also more prone to the ACL injuries because they are taller than they “should be.” Large breed dogs shouldn’t be fixed until AT LEAST 1 year, for most of the giant breeds it is 18 months to 2 years. In fact, a lot of breeders of giant breeds have it in their contracts not to neuter until that age. Even some Golden breeders have it in their contracts now. There is a lot of research about the potential joint issues and ACL issues for me to ever risk it. Certain breeds are also more prone to cancers and there is even one vet that says dogs shouldn’t be fixed at all or at least put on hormone supplements because all their fixed clients ended up with endocrine issues. I am not that extreme but there is enough research that I will either not fix my next dog or I will do an alternative, hormone sparing surgery like the ovary sparing spay for females or vasectomy for males. I won’t risk it. We neutered Gator way too early and he has had numerous leg injuries and health issues. Cattle, cats, and dogs are all completely different species and early spaying and neutering of cats generally does not have the same ramifications as it does on dogs. And cattle usually only stay alive a few years anyway so if there were any consequences, we probably wouldn’t know. And the issue is not whether they reach full size or not. It is joint and muscle health.
• I know they are not purebred. I was not trying to say that they were and I know that there are lots of fake registries established by puppy mills. But my point was that the Australian Labradoodle is a specific type that has been bred for over 30 years and they have strict requirements about what qualifies as one and who can be registered as one as well as their temperament and coat type, etc. and some of the breeders have been breeding 10 years, 20 years, etc. just like most purebreds, so they are more reputable than most of the other doodles and mutts. And all breeds started out as mutts. Registration and breeding true doesn’t happen overnight. They are trying to be established.
• I know they can go that high but around here they usually aren’t. The really good, reputable breeders are usually around $1800-$2000, sometimes $1500 or $1200 or occasionally more, I’ve seen a few higher ones (over $2000) but it’s not as common. And they’re usually not less than $1000, unless they’re from BYBs. So I know how high a reputable breeder’s dogs can be but my point was that is really high for a glorified mutt. Not that it is high for a reputable purebred breeder. Also, if they are charging more based on gender or a color, especially marking “rare” colors way up, that is usually a red flag and not a sign of a reputable breeder.
• I get that and I’m not against a deposit but for a lot of breeders it’s like $150 or $200, not $500.

Just home from the vet. We put old Fatso to sleep.

I’m so sorry.