Neutering a male chocolate lab puppy

[theresa92841]

My friend has a lab puppy that just completed her shots. We both use the same vet. She was telling me that the vet said she should wait to get him neutered. I forget the exact age recommended but I believe it was over 1 year old. The vet said that with labs if they were neutered as puppies their bodies developed differently . . . something about being round and stocky (some fancy word for it) rather than lean.

She has always had her pets neutered early and feels uncomfortable waiting so long. I am in agreement, I would not want to wait until he was that old.

Do any of you have labs? What has been your experience?
Does what I said even make sense . . . I may not have explained it right.

[Julia423]

Hmmm, never heard that one. I don't have labs, but my brother does. His were neutered as pups and are beautiful, healthy labs...no unusual body shapes/development.

[That_girl]

I guess it could make sense...keeping the testosterone pumping through the body longer.

Really, it shouldn't make that much difference. If your friend wants to get him neutered early, than she should do it.

[katiem]

Both my vet and my breeder recommended that I not neuter my Rottweiler until he was over one year so that he would be larger and have a fuller head. By the time he was 8 months I was so nervous about him not being neutered that I got it done instead of waiting any longer. He is still a very large dog so I'm not sure how much bigger he was going to get!

If shes ready to neuter him I think she should do it. If her vet refuses, go to another vet for a secong opinion.

[lindsayanng]

i would think it would only matter if your friend REALLY cares about what her dog looks likes.. if its just a looks thing, and there is MORE health BENEFITS for neutering early then she should just do it and tell her vet that she doesnt care about the appearance and wants to get it done asap.

[theresa92841]

Are there any other negatives to neutering early? I did an online search and it confused me. It said it increased the risk for bone cancer if you neutered before the age of 2. But other sites didn't say that.

[That_girl]

Are there any other negatives to neutering early? I did an online search and it confused me. It said it increased the risk for bone cancer if you neutered before the age of 2.

I've never heard that. Do you have the link for the site?

As far as I know, there are no risks with neutering early.

[theresa92841]

I've never heard that. Do you have the link for the site?

As far as I know, there are no risks with neutering early.

This is one of the first websites my search found: http://www.homevet.com/forum/showthread.php?t=101

You have to read aways, but it has a list of cons.

[That_girl]

Thank you for sharing that link. Interesting information, from an interesting source. I will keep this in mind when helping people in the future decide whether to neuter or not.