NEED Some advice, reassurance... anything... and quick

Hi all,

My 16 month old basset hound, Noba, is scheduled to be neutered tomorrow. I haven't had a problem at the thought of doing this until tonight. I was originally not going to get him neutered, wanted to breed him, then I found out he has hip dysplasia and don't want to take the chance of passing that gene on. I know that neutering an animal is good to avoid long term health problems, but for some reason... I am now struggling with whether I am doing the right thing!?! :confused: :confused: Can someone give me reassurance that I am doing the right thing? Thanks...

You are doing him and any future pups he may have sired A HUGE SERVICE!

What a great mom to put his health and the health of unborns first and foremost!

He will be fine and believe it or not would thank you if he could! Relax, he has a loving mom and obviously a good vet, a few days healing and a couple of removed stitches later and it will be all behind (pun intended ;) ) you both!

Prayers for a speedy wake up and fast healing on the few stitches!
Hugs

YES you are doing the right thing! Neutering is a routine surgery, all of my pets have been spayed/neutered and they have been perfectly fine. He definitely should NOT be bred if he has hip dysplasia. He will be back to his normal self in no time!

Neutering him is the right thing to do. Good breeders work very hard at elminating bad genes, and hip dys. would eliminate him from being part of a breeding program. He will possibly have a healthier life if he is neutered, too.
See my handsome red boy? At his original kennel, all the dogs must pass yearly hip & eye tests in order to be in the breeding program. His parents were removed from it because his litter all had a genetic defect, and he & his siblings were all neuterd/spayed. I applaud you for being a responsible pet owner. :)

You are doing a very good thing. Unneutered male dogs run the risk of a bunch of health disorders not seen in neutered male dogs: enlarged prostate (and all the accompanying no-fun effects), testicular torsion, their penis can get stuck outside of the sheath. Unaltered male dogs also tend to drip fluid from the sheath, which is no fun for you or your furniture.

They also tend to do things like mount other dogs and people, mark territory more often than neutered dogs, roam, and have a higher incidence of aggression. I'm sure you were aware of all this, but I know sometimes it helps to see it again.

He won't notice that they're gone, and the surgery is pretty darn non-invasive and safe. He'll be back to his normal bouncy self in a day or two. :) Good luck to you both!

Thank you all so much... I guess it's just the thought of him going through anything like this that makes me want to cry. I just hope that because he is a little older, it won't affect his psyche too much... He's my baby... my only concern is that it will make him "too calm"... not his typical bouncy puppyish self... don't get me wrong, him calming down a little would be wonderful, but not too much... will there be a huge personality change in him at all??? thanks again for the reassurance!!

There shouldn't be a huge personality change in him. Since his body will not be producing testosterone anymore, certain behaviors affected by testosterone are altered, but the puppy's energy levels don't change, or change only very subtly. :)

alex the wonder dog is 11 years old. last week, while playing in the snowy yard with me, he bounced like a puppy again. he will still trar up kleenex if he can, he will counter cruise if he can. neutering him did not take away one playful puppy minute. noba will be fine

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Originally Posted by Nobas Mom

Thank you all so much... I guess it's just the thought of him going through anything like this that makes me want to cry. I just hope that because he is a little older, it won't affect his psyche too much... He's my baby... my only concern is that it will make him "too calm"... not his typical bouncy puppyish self... don't get me wrong, him calming down a little would be wonderful, but not too much... will there be a huge personality change in him at all??? thanks again for the reassurance!!

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I think that you will find that most, if not all, of us have neutered/spayed our pets. It is agonizing to wait for that call from the vet that "all went well" but you will hear those words. Just try and relax. Your pup will not change at all. Though I have only had two males, I can tell you that I observed no change in either of their personalities. My Ripley was neutered when I adopted him four years ago. I don't know how old he is/was but he had all of his "equipment" for probably a few years. He adjusted just fine and is as frisky and crazy as ever. :)

Again, thanks so much... :D I think it's just major anxiety. Last time he went to the vet for anything (besides his shots) I found out he had hip dysplasia... I know that neutering is a routine surgery, but being a worried mommy and all.... :D :rolleyes:

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Originally Posted by Nobas Mom

Thank you all so much... I guess it's just the thought of him going through anything like this that makes me want to cry. I just hope that because he is a little older, it won't affect his psyche too much... He's my baby... my only concern is that it will make him "too calm"... not his typical bouncy puppyish self... don't get me wrong, him calming down a little would be wonderful, but not too much... will there be a huge personality change in him at all??? thanks again for the reassurance!!

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After spaying and neutered numerious dogs from retired show dogs to just pets or working dogs - I have not found there is any diffference from a neutered dog to a unneutered dog except in one area- CONCENTRATION.. A neutered dog can concentrate better. They no longer have " their own agenda". Just as willing to play after recovery...
The debate on considering breeding a dysplasic dog- I see others have already stated what is considered as well. With so many dogs without homes that are healty and the desire of the breed club to ONLY breed healthy dogs- there is no reason to considering neutered to be a bad thing. HD is NOT minor defect- ITS A BIG ONE!

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Originally Posted by Nobas Mom

Thank you all so much... I guess it's just the thought of him going through anything like this that makes me want to cry. I just hope that because he is a little older, it won't affect his psyche too much... He's my baby... my only concern is that it will make him "too calm"... not his typical bouncy puppyish self... don't get me wrong, him calming down a little would be wonderful, but not too much... will there be a huge personality change in him at all??? thanks again for the reassurance!!

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BTW, my boy Sherman was not neutered till he was close to 18 months old, just before we adopted him He was/is fine.

Let me toss this out to you- Hottie was neutered very late- the reason is that his sister died in a teeth cleaning, and with the suspect of anethesia, we waited until he was 6 and half.. We also almost lost him! Not from the anethesia but from a tumor undetected by numerious vets his whole life! It was a little bigger than a walnut tucked up in the scrotum. He was seriously ill for 3 days. Now realize this- Hottie has had a few specialists over the years- top vets on the east coast- and no one caught it.. I made the neuter decession based on the fact I knew another male dog was coming into the house- and paced the floor with the knowledge Hotties sister died in such a routine of teeth cleaning. If he had not been neutered- the tumor would have strangulated- killing him in a painful death. Dont let fear NOT get him neutered- let KNOWLEDGE know once decided to breed is not in the benefit of the pups- do it now.. You may do him a big favor verses continueing to wait.. A favor you do not even know about as in the case of Hottie!
( BTW- HOTTIE WAS having exams yearly even twice a year knowing he was in tact and with the risk of surgery- and STILL it wasnt found..)

You are definitely doing the right thing and being a responsible dog owner... thankyou. Noba will be healthier in the long run aswell.

You are doing the right thing for sure!! I understand how you feel. You're just being a normal, good, mommy. Noba will be fine. Welcome to Pet Talk. We would love to see some pics of that cute boy and hear more about him!! Of course we would love to get to know his Mommy better too!! :)
{{{{{{{HUGS}}}}}}}

I guess I just needed reassurance... and seeing it in black and white helps. Noba is at the vet's and will be going into surgery soon... :( ... I never had any doubt that getting him neutered was the right thing for him and any unborn potentials... I've always known it needed to be done... just the concern of his personality changing too much, but the reassurance you all have given me helps... I'm a first time dog owner and I don't want to screw him up!!! I was raised iwth dogs, but he is my first go at it alone!!! :D

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Originally Posted by Nobas Mom

I guess I just needed reassurance... and seeing it in black and white helps. Noba is at the vet's and will be going into surgery soon... :( ... I never had any doubt that getting him neutered was the right thing for him and any unborn potentials... I've always known it needed to be done... just the concern of his personality changing too much, but the reassurance you all have given me helps... I'm a first time dog owner and I don't want to screw him up!!! I was raised iwth dogs, but he is my first go at it alone!!! :D

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Well sounds like he has a great mom and you 2 will do wonderful!
welcome to PT by the way, hope to see pics of your fab boy and get to know you better also!

Noba's home... he got home about 5 hours ago and has just woken up for the first time to go potty and had an appetite like crazy... fed him only a little at a time. He's been walking around pretty whiny and keeps falling asleep, but other than that he's good!!! The E-collar and a basset hound is the funniest sight.. :D Since he is so low to the ground, he can't walk with it on and I have to hold the "cone" from the top to help him navigate around... it's so funny!!!

I'm glad you made the right decision and Noba is home and doing well! When most dogs get spayed/neutered they are pretty calm when they get home, well when Nebo (husky) was neutered he was bouncing off the walls! He had to have an E-collar too, and he hated it, so he feels for you Noba!

Good for you! You did the right thing and I'm sure if he could, Noba would thank you! I doubt you'll see much personality change in him, if any at all. He'll be back to himself in a few days :)

here is a picture of the newly neutered Noba... he was so knocked out the first night... poor baby was shivering from the anesthesia, so I covered him up and he slept all night!

He is just beautiful!!

I am so glad you gave us an update!!How are you doing now that he is home mom?

Dr G,

I am doing great... thanks for asking.. I feel so much more relieved now that I know he is doing great!!!! I do have one question though... where his "stuff" used to be is what looks like a small sac... I thought the vet was supposed to remove this??? I'm not sure what it is... is it similar to when a female has puppies and her milk sacs dry up and it takes time for the skin to tighten??? I know this is an odd question, but from the back it still looks like he has his "stuff"??? :D

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Originally Posted by Nobas Mom

Dr G,

I am doing great... thanks for asking.. I feel so much more relieved now that I know he is doing great!!!! I do have one question though... where his "stuff" used to be is what looks like a small sac... I thought the vet was supposed to remove this??? I'm not sure what it is... is it similar to when a female has puppies and her milk sacs dry up and it takes time for the skin to tighten??? I know this is an odd question, but from the back it still looks like he has his "stuff"??? :D

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That will eventually get smaller and smaller. It will go away soon, don't worry, it's completely normal!

Smooches to your big boy! He looks so cute under the blankie! I'm glad it all worked out well, I know you are relieved. He'll be bouncing around in no time.

Cyber-sibes,

He started bouncing around again yesterday morning... he was back to his old self 110%. It was great, but at 630 in the morning, not so much. At that point, I wanted to call the vet and see what else we could do that involved a little anesthesia and drowsy time... lol... :D

I am glad he is doing well.
Having morning energy after sleeping all night is normal. He will probably crash later on this morning after once the rest wears off..

We went through the same thing with our Mack (11 month old English Bulldog) a few weeks ago. He has that same little "sac" you mentioned, but it is not nearly as big as it was before. :eek: Thankfully, Mack didn't have to wear the e-collar at all. Poor little round thing couldn't have reached down there if he had to. :p

He was back to his old, lively self in about 48 hours, and it was hard to keep him quiet!

Hope your baby will do just as well.

Logan