When doing research on this, try to find peer reviewed journal articles. There are a lot of opinions out there that are portrayed as fact.
Medically, spaying and neutering has many pros and cons
Socially, it is our best way to reduce the massive number of unwanted pets (4-5 million euthanized every year)
Behaviorally, it is often the best way to reduce unwanted behaviors like marking, roaming, humping, etc.
There is a great article: Determining the optimal age for gonadectomy of dogs and cats. It's in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association. http://avmajournals.avma.org/doi/pdf/10.2460/javma.231.11.1665?cookieSet=1
To determine the right age you have to weigh all the pros and cons for your situation. With a large breed male puppy, medically I would wait until he's at least 1 year old. If you look at the risk factors that increase because of neutering, they are very small chances that your dog would get that, but then there aren't major medical benefits to neutering either. It comes down to can you manage an intact male dog behaviorally and socially.
If it was a girl dog, it gets even harder. The risk of mammary cancer is high in dogs and spaying BEFORE the first heat, decreases that risk the most. But there are other problems associated with spaying. I personally would spay any female before their first heat, at around 6 months.
Medically, spaying and neutering has many pros and cons
Socially, it is our best way to reduce the massive number of unwanted pets (4-5 million euthanized every year)
Behaviorally, it is often the best way to reduce unwanted behaviors like marking, roaming, humping, etc.
There is a great article: Determining the optimal age for gonadectomy of dogs and cats. It's in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association. http://avmajournals.avma.org/doi/pdf/10.2460/javma.231.11.1665?cookieSet=1
To determine the right age you have to weigh all the pros and cons for your situation. With a large breed male puppy, medically I would wait until he's at least 1 year old. If you look at the risk factors that increase because of neutering, they are very small chances that your dog would get that, but then there aren't major medical benefits to neutering either. It comes down to can you manage an intact male dog behaviorally and socially.
If it was a girl dog, it gets even harder. The risk of mammary cancer is high in dogs and spaying BEFORE the first heat, decreases that risk the most. But there are other problems associated with spaying. I personally would spay any female before their first heat, at around 6 months.
