It is the norm where I am in Ontario for Vets, OSPCA, breeders and owners to stress the advantages of neutering.  We meet very few intact male or female dogs when walking and those that are intact are mostly breeding calibre dogs and not just pets.  My municipality charges extra for dog licenses for intact animals, though they have finally come out of the dark ages and now charge the same for male and female, neutered or not.

But it seems, from posts here, that in the UK it is more common for pet dogs to be left intact.  Is that the case?  Are you not pressured, indeed required in the case of rescue organizations, to neuter?  Just curious.

Most dogs in the UK are kept in homes with secure gardens, and are required to be kept on lead in the street.  In such cases it is not difficult to keep entire animals and still prevent them being bred from. 

Also more of our rescue centres do not put dogs to sleep unless too ill or bad natured for rehoming, even though they only have to keep them for a certain time. whereas I gather that canine over population is a huge problem in the USA, and no kill shelt6ers are fewer in number.

Certainly recue organisations uusally require pets to be neutered.

Hi

You're right that fewer people neuter in the UK than the US.

For starters, dogs are neutered a lot earlier in the US than in the UK (generally speaking).  It is not unusual in the US for pups to be neutered around 16 wks old and there are even some breeders who neuter their pups before they go to new homes at 8 wks, which personally I find disturbing.  If they are not neutered at either of these times then they are usually neutered before their first season for bitches.

In the UK, the majority of breeders and vets believe that a dog should be allowed to mature naturally with the hormones which are produced in the testes and ovaries, before removing these hormone-producing organs.  They believe that if you neuter too early (before maturity) you risk "fixing" the puppy into puppyhood and it will remain quite puppyish in behaviour.  Generally speaking in the UK people are also more tolerant and accepting of a bitch's seasons, whereas in the US people seem to be grossed out by that and not want to have to deal with the mess (or inconvenience) (I am talking in huge generalisations here).

Personally, and I live in the UK, I think that neither dogs nor bitches should be neutered until they are physically and mentally mature - and this may be a different age for different breeds.  If you have a slow maturing breed, it might not be until they are 18-24 mnths old.  A toy breed would mature much earlier.  I also think, and this is just my opinion, that if a dog is not aggressive and so neutering is not considered for aggression reasons, and if the dog does not live with bitches in season, there is not really a good reason to castrate a dog.  Testicular cancer is actually quite rare in dogs.  On the other hand, bitches will develop pyometra if not spayed, it's just a matter of when.  So if a bitch is not to be bred from, then she should be spayed when physically and mentally mature - which won't be until she's had at least 1 season, sometimes as many as 3 depending on the breed. 

Almost all Rescue organisations do neuter all dogs that come through.  But a lot of people get dogs direct from breeders as puppies, and their dogs have not been in rescue.  Vets do pressure people to neuter to differing degrees, depending on the vet and his/her personal belief.  We do not need dog licences in the UK. 

Ontario is in Canada, not the USA! :D

oh no, how embarrassing, just goes to show I know nothing about world geography.

but I think the US/Canada are quite similar in neutering attitudes, so just substitute Canada whenever I say US!!!!

To be fair there is an Ontario in Southern California, USA as well. But less known! :D :D

Very interesting.  I recently read on a website somewhere that there is no reason not to neuter male dogs especially at an earlier age (earlier than 6 months) because there would be no difference in the physical appearance of the animal at maturity.  Though not as familar with dogs as I am horses and cats I find this hard to believe as the mature, intact male in horses and cats, often has a much more heavily developed head, neck and shoulders.   I would have thought this applied to dogs too.

I certainly agree with the statement that a more juvenile attitude is maintained in the neutered animal.  Again, my experience is mostly with cats but they seem to stay more kittenish if neutered as kittens.  This I consider to be something of an advantage.

Ontario is in Canada, not the U.S., so I do not know what the dog over-population problem is there.  I'm not sure it is so much of a problem here, certainly not anything near as bad as the stray cat problem, poor things.

Licensing is a municipal responsibility here and I suppose there must be some that do not require it.  My county also requires rabies vacinations.  We also have leash laws in most more heavily habitated areas but I think you are correct that we have fewer off-leash areas.  And we have a provincial Animal at Large Act.  Of course enforcement is something else.

Thanks for both your replies.  I continue to get the feeling that you live in a more "dog-friendly" place, overall.

Edited to add:  oops, no one mentionned off-leash areas.  That's what comes of only being able to see the last post when crafting a reply - have to rely on memory.  LOL.  And now there are more than two replies so thank you too.

Yes you are correct.

I think a study puching early neutering compared the developmemt of the penis in dogs that were neutered at 7 weeks and seven months and entire dogs. 

All the neutered ones were found to be underdeveloped in this area the ones done at 7 weeks more so than those at 7 months but not too much more so.  The conclusion they drew was that it was OK to neuter even earlier.

My question would be if the aparatus that is linked to urination as well as reproduction does not grow properly when neuteered before puberty (even at 7 months most won't have finished it) then what other important areas does it stunt growth?

The males of my breeding and in my breed that I know that were neutered as adults changed very little after neutering in appearnance or character still looking every inch male (luckily being hairy the absence of the family jewels would not be noticeable by just looking). 

Sadly those neutered as puppies kept that puppy look in an overgrown (often overweight) body, and they also exhibitied not only juvenile physical characteristics, but mental ones too.

>Though not as familar with dogs as I am horses and cats I find this hard to believe as the mature, intact male in >horses and cats, often has a much more heavily developed head, neck and shoulders.   I would have thought this >applied to dogs too.

Don't know about this particular aspect, but studies show that cats and horses are pretty much the same in how they change when a male is neutered, but dogs are not at all in the same league. They don't get the same big changes.

Depends on the breed, but the secondary sex xharacteristics in my breed are pronounced, due to the hair you might not see the male equipment, but generally ther shoudl be no mistaking an Elkhound bitch and dog.  As has been mentioned, the male will have a more developed head, neck chest and shoulders, and the coat growth will be different accentuating these traits.  the males body is normally shorter in the couplings too.