Neutering

Neutering your pet can prevent some serious health problems and provide you with peace of mind.

Certain behavioural problems may also be improved by neutering.

So remember that pets which are spayed lead longer, healthier lives.

So what are the advantages of neutering?

Spaying

Spaying at an early age (6 months) reduces the chances of developing breast cancer, as well as helping to eliminate the threat of uterine and ovarian cancer, and uterine infection.

One of the most obvious advantages of spaying your bitch is that she won’t be coming into season. This means no bleeding or mess associated with your dog being in heat and no unwanted litters.

For a cat, it means not having to tolerate the unpleasant behaviours that your cat exhibits whilst being in season. These include loud and frequent vocalization, which can disrupt the entire household, pacing, and urine marking in your home.

Unneutered female cats will also attract uncastrated tomcats from afar who may yowl incessantly.

Unspayed female cats can come into heat for several days every few weeks. This behaviour can be a deciding factor for cat owners when considering whether or not to spay their female cat.

Unplanned pregnancy can risk your pet’s health, as well as producing offspring that need homes and incur a large cost.

Castration

Castrating your male dog will prevent testicular tumours and might reduce the risk of prostatic infections. It decreases the possibility of perianal tumours and hernias, which are commonly observed in older, unneutered dogs.

Castration may reduce the aggressive impulses of your dog, and thus decreases the likelihood of injury due to fighting, although this will depend on when your dog was castrated and individual personality.

Castration will certainly help prevent your pet from roaming in search of females and may also improve the inappropriate behaviours such as territory marking or trying to mate with objects or humans.

Effects of castration on behaviour may reduce the older the dog becomes so consider neutering your puppy at an early age, before the effects of testosterone are irreversible.