Talk Cancer

Question:

- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Neutering will have no affect on his guarding ability at his age.  My husband trained and competed successfully with his neutered male GSD. Anyway, if your dog dies from cancer he won’t do much guarding anyway. Debbie While neutered dogs certainly can do protection work,(I can think of an excellent young dog that I am training for someone for his Sch I title), I do not believe neutering before training is a good idea. I know vets say otherwise but I am skeptical about the reality of this. Neutering does affect a dog physically and behaviorally. how affected depends on the age of the dog and it’s particular temperament. The behavioral changes are for the better if the dog is a pet but not neccesarily better for a working dog. Please don’t misunderstand, I think the great majority of dogs should be neutered or spayed, unless there is some reason not to (top quality breed stock or if it adversely affect their ability to perform a function.) MIKE HERSTIK INTERNATIONAL K-9

I believe the original poster stated that his dog already had cancer.   This was also an adult dog.  (Five years, I think the poster said.)  I agree that neutering a male dog before he develops would probably not be a good idea. My statement was based on our experience with a  male shepherd we had.   He had an undescenced testicle.  Since statistically undescended testicles are more prone to cancer, we had him neutered as an adult after had already matured.  My husband went on to title this dog in Schutzhund.  Ajax obtained a Schutzhund 3 and his protection work was always pronounced.   Maybe he would have been an even better Schutzhund dog without the   neutering.  I guess we’ll never know that.  But he certainly did retain enough drive to do protection work.

Response:

Neutering will have no affect on his guarding ability at his age.  My husband trained and competed successfully with his neutered male GSD.   Anyway, if your dog dies from cancer he won’t do much guarding anyway. Debbie

Response:

Neutering will have no affect on his guarding ability at his age.  My husband trained and competed successfully with his neutered male GSD. Anyway, if your dog dies from cancer he won’t do much guarding anyway. Debbie

While neutered dogs certainly can do protection work,(I can think of an excellent young dog that I am training for someone for his Sch I title), I do not believe neutering before training is a good idea. My friend David Deleisegues who just won the North American Sch III competition concurs with this. If you are going to neuter him, do it after he has developed  a strong foundation drive for the work. Perhaps the statistics will prove me wrong but in all my years in the dog business I have known countless unneutered males. I have never known one that has had a cancer related problem. I know vets say otherwise but I am skeptical about the reality of this. Neutering does affect a dog physically and behaviorally. how affected depends on the age of the dog and it’s particular temperament. The behavioral changes are for the better if the dog is a pet but not neccesarily better for a working dog. Please don’t misunderstand, I think the great majority of dogs should be neutered or spayed, unless there is some reason not to (top quality breed stock or if it adversely affect their ability to perform a function.) MIKE HERSTIK INTERNATIONAL K-9

Response:

Mike – I gotta disagree with you on training an uneutered male for anything working drives are not sex driven if anything sex drives interfere with work. For a long time Schutzhund dogs could not be neutered and compete. I’m guessing from some of the replies I’ve seen here that may have changed. It would be interesting as an experiment to neuter one pup and not another fomthe same litter with the most similar temperaments possible and then train them both just to see. My neutered males always have been excellent natural guardians without the disconnection of purpose that a bitch in season can cause an unneutered dog. The only drive I have ever seen diminish (for many dogs it does not totally go away) after neutering is the sex drive – sure have wished it would stop the prey or defence drives on occasion! nancy who is glad she no longer lives in ’sin city’ where guardian dogs were really needed daily – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Neutering will have no affect on his guarding ability at his age. My husband trained and competed successfully with his neutered male GSD. Anyway, if your dog dies from cancer he won’t do much guarding anyway. Debbie While neutered dogs certainly can do protection work,(I can think of an excellent young dog that I am training for someone for his Sch I title), I do not believe neutering before training is a good idea. My friend David Deleisegues who just won the North American Sch III competition concurs with this. If you are going to neuter him, do it after he has developed  a strong foundation drive for the work. Perhaps the statistics will prove me wrong but in all my years in the dog business I have known countless unneutered males. I have never known one that has had a cancer related problem. I know vets say otherwise but I am skeptical about the reality of this. Neutering does affect a dog physically and behaviorally. how affected depends on the age of the dog and it’s particular temperament. The behavioral changes are for the better if the dog is a pet but not neccesarily better for a working dog. Please don’t misunderstand, I think the great majority of dogs should be neutered or spayed, unless there is some reason not to (top quality breed stock or if it adversely affect their ability to perform a function.) MIKE HERSTIK INTERNATIONAL K-9

Response:

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – My 5 year old male German shepard has prostate disease and my veterinarian recommends neutering. I am afraid it will decrease his effectiveness as a guard dog. Any one have any ideas? If he has a problem with his prostate already…which could lead to (if it isn’t already) CANCER, for heaven’s sake NEUTER HIM AN SAVE HIS LIFE !!!!!!! He will be no less effective as a guard dog if neutered…. ….and will be a heckova lot better than a deceased guard dog  !!!!!!! – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - –     http://www.idyllmtn.com/acd/katwala.html – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - –

His life and health must be first!! And no — that is an old myth — my GSD is neutered and it has not changed his protective nature or affected his training at all! rand

Response:

My 5 year old male German shepard has prostate disease and my veterinarian recommends neutering. I am afraid it will decrease his effectiveness as a guard dog. Any one have any ideas?

Response:

My 5 year old male German shepard has prostate disease and my veterinarian recommends neutering. I am afraid it will decrease his effectiveness as a guard dog. Any one have any ideas?

If he has a problem with his prostate already…which could lead to (if it isn’t already) CANCER, for heaven’s sake NEUTER HIM AN SAVE HIS LIFE !!!!!!! He will be no less effective as a guard dog if neutered…. ….and will be a heckova lot better than a deceased guard dog  !!!!!!! – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - –      http://www.idyllmtn.com/acd/katwala.html – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - –

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