Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Long-term health effects of early spay or neuter in shelter dogs
By Spain, C Victor et al.·Published in Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association·2004·Department of Population Medicine and Diagnostic Science, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Long-term risks and benefits of early-age gonadectomy in dogs.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A study looked at the long-term effects of spaying or neutering dogs at a young age compared to the traditional timing. It found that while early spaying or neutering male dogs generally had more benefits than risks, female dogs showed a higher chance of developing urinary incontinence if they were spayed too early. For male dogs, early surgery was linked to fewer behavior problems like anxiety and escaping, but some health issues like hip dysplasia were more common. The researchers suggest that shelters can safely spay or neuter male dogs early, but female dogs might benefit from waiting until they are at least 3 months old.
People also search for: dog spaying benefits · early neutering male dogs · urinary incontinence in female dogs · hip dysplasia in dogs · dog behavior after spaying
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the long-term risks and benefits of early-age gonadectomy, compared with traditional-age gonadectomy, among dogs adopted from a large animal shelter. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. ANIMALS: 1,842 dogs. PROCEDURE: Dogs underwent gonadectomy and were adopted from an animal shelter before 1 year of age; follow-up was available for as long as 11 years after surgery. Adopters completed a questionnaire about their dogs' behavior and medical history. When possible, the dogs' veterinary records were reviewed. Associations between the occurrence of 56 medical and behavioral conditions and dogs' age at gonadectomy were evaluated. RESULTS: Among female dogs, early-age gonadectomy was associated with increased rate of cystitis and decreasing age at gonadectomy was associated with increased rate of urinary incontinence. Among male and female dogs with early-age gonadectomy, hip dysplasia, noise phobias, and sexual behaviors were increased, whereas obesity, separation anxiety, escaping behaviors, inappropriate elimination when frightened, and relinquishment for any reason were decreased. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Because early-age gonadectomy appears to offer more benefits than risks for male dogs, animal shelters can safely gonadectomize male dogs at a young age and veterinary practitioners should consider recommending routine gonadectomy for client-owned male dogs before the traditional age of 6 to 8 months. For female dogs, however, increased urinary incontinence suggests that delaying gonadectomy until at least 3 months of age may be beneficial.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14765797/