I've been told two different things now and I don't know who to believe. The breeder said between 4 and 5 months. The vet said wait till 6 months. What if we wanted to do it sooner? We can wait if that's what's best but I was just curious.

The general age to get any dog altered is 6 months old. This give them time to properly develop.

Now there are some vets out there (mine is one of them) that do pediatric spaying and neutering (meaning they do it before the puppy is 6 months old). So you could look into finding a vet that does pediatric altering.

What is your reason for wanting it done sooner than 6 months?

I work at a vet clinic and we will spay/neuter as early as 4 months. It's easier on the dogs (at least the way we do it) if you get them altered at a young age. If you alter before the males begin marking, then chances are they won't mark at all. And if you alter a female before her first heat cycle, the chance for cancer is dramatically reduced. We recommend altering at 4 months, especially on large breed dogs. They just seem to recover quicker.
Also, I recommend getting pre-anesthetic bloodwork before letting your pet be sedated.

There is good evidence that 4 months works a well as 6, but unless you are having behavior problems, I would go along with the 6 months the vet wants. There will be very little danger of her coming into season before then.

Well what kind of behavior problems are we talking about? She humps my leg a lot, and I mean she really goes to town on it. Is that odd? She's almost 3 months now.

At the humane society where I live they spay or neuter all dogs before they're available for adoption. I found it quite alarming that some of the 3 month old pups in their care where already altered.

For me, I personally wouldn't do it until 6 months unless you find a vet that knows about pediatric spaying.

As for the humping. This may not have anyting to do with sexual maturity. My border collie still humps, he's 7 years old and was neutered at 6 months. This may be a dominance issue.

Whatever you decide, good luck with your pup, she's adorable. :)

As Alty said, I believe the humping has more to do with dominance. It's got nothing to do with anything sexual especially at her age, and being female. She is trying to find her position in the pack.

When you can tell she is about ready to hump, you need to give her a quick and sharp correction right away. Make sure you are consistent with doing it. She'll get the hang of it in no time I'm sure. Yes, she is a cutie, but you sure don't want a Great Dane humping you when she's older... that would hurt, and maybe even break your leg! LOL!

Yes, she is a cutie, but you sure don't want a Great Dane humping you when she's older...that would hurt, and maybe even break your leg!! LOL!

Yes, she's learning. She doesn't do it as often anymore. I do wonder what kind of behavior problems I should be looking for. I realize she's just a puppy but she's a real handful. I've had puppies before that weren't this destructive. Lol.

Great Danes can be very destructive until they're older. But now's the time to nip that bad behaviour in the butt. The longer you wait to correct her, the harder it will be.

You can teach an old dog new tricks, but starting from a puppy is the best you can do. There's no such thing as too young to learn. In their packs they learn from the minute they are born, otherwise they wouldn't survive. You're her pack now, the dominant leader, make sure she knows that.

Also remember, she's a dog. The mistake most people make is that they treat their pets like people. They aren't people, they've simply adapted to living with us. They are happiest if there are set rules, boundaries, a clear dominant pack leader. They want to know their place in your pack, if not then they will get destructive because of their confusion.

Yes, I'm pretty much quoting Cesar Milan, but what can I say, that man's a genius. :)

Oh we're not waiting to correct her at all. Trust me. Lol. I would hate to have a 140 lb Zoe running through the house tearing everything apart. We've had private training with her and I am also taking her to puppy school every Saturday. After dinner I sit down and we go over things that we learned in training and I'll play with her or put some treats in her kong to play with. She's getting better but she still finds it necessary to jump up on the couch and throw all the throw pillows on the floor and leap onto them.

Got to love puppies. :)

My 3 month old beagle is a little stinker too, and as stubborn as my German grandmother! He's smart, he just doesn't want to do what he's told. He's constantly pushing the boundaries to see what he can get away with.

My biggest problem with him is the biting. He still has his baby teeth and he needs to chew. I've bought him a lot of chew toys that are good for teething, but for some reason our hands are still his favorite. I've tried all the tricks I know to stop him from biting, but nothing is working. Yup, stubborn puppy. ;)

Luckily, I'm just as stubborn, it's a battle of the wills, and I don't plan on losing. ;)

Lol. Yeah, Zoe has gotten A LOT better with biting. She used to bite us all the time but I make sure she's got plenty of things to chew on around the house besides us.

As soon as you see her jump on the couch, or it's even better if you can catch before she jumps up, you need to sit down, and claim the couch as yours. Sit down and give her a quick jerk on the collar, with a sharp command, and make her leave. You might have to do that several times, but the key is sitting down on the couch and making her leave, don't just pull her off and then walk away. You've got to claim your space.

I will be the odd person here and say wait till they are done growing or about 2 years old. This allows their growth plates to develop properly.

Two years? Wow! Do you know how many bad, destructive, very dangerous, and harmful habits and behaviours they can develop over a two year period? NO WAY! Especially with a powerful breed! Absolutely not!

As soon as you see her jump on the couch, or it's even better if you can catch before she jumps up, you need to sit down, and claim the couch as yours. Sit down and give her a quick jerk on the collar, with a sharp command, and make her leave. You might have to do that several times, but the key is sitting down on the couch and making her leave, don't just pull her off and then walk away. You've got to claim your space.

We don't mind her on the couch. It's the fact that she throws all the pillows on the floor like they're toys. The couch we have is MASSIVE. So there's plenty of room for her and whoever else comes over too. We just vacuum the couch off a few times a week because we have a husky that, no matter if he comes near the couch or not, manages to get dog hair everywhere.

I will be the odd person here and say wait till they are done growing or about 2 years old. This allows their growth plates to develop properly.

Wow, that's a bad idea. If you wait that long you will have a very destructive dog on your hands, not to mention the risk of pregnancy or of getting another dog pregnant. There are enough unwanted dogs in the world, let's not add any more.

What do growth plates and spaying or neutering have to do with each other? A dog doesn't stop growing when they're fixed.

we don't mind her on the couch. it's the fact that she throws all the pillows on the floor like they're toys. the couch we have is MASSIVE. so there's plenty of room for her and whoever else comes over too. we just vacuum the couch off a few times a week because we have a husky that, no matter if he comes near the couch or not, manages to get dog hair everywhere.

You're setting yourself up for bad behaviour. It's not that you don't mind her on the couch hon, it's a mental exercise for her. It will be harder to keep her from taking the pillows if you don't keep him off the couch. What she is doing is saying to you, okay, I own the couch, now I am going to push it even further, and now I own these pillows too. Pretty soon she is going to see what else she owns, until she thinks that YOU are living in HER house. She will just take over, and be so much harder to train in other areas. Also, you might not mind her on the couch now, but when she gets bigger... there won't be any room for you to sit on your own couch! ;)

My husband lets his husky on the couch. If he's allowed on the couch then Zoe is too. I'm telling you, the couch is HUGE. There will be room, even when she's full grown.

Two years?? Wow!! Do you know how many bad, destructive, very dangerous, and harmful habits and behaviours they can develop over a two year period? NO WAY! Especially with a powerful breed! Absolutely not!

Destructive,harmfull, dangerous habits and behaviours can be dealt with proper training and by the way please enlighten me with the answers. I own a working line german shepherd dog that I waited till he was 2 before I neutered him. He didn't develop dangerous, destructive, harmfull behaviors or habits because I trained him properly... end of story. The health and well being of your pet should be paramount.

Wow, that's a bad idea. If you wait that long you will have a very destructive dog on your hands, not to mention the risk of pregnancy or of getting another dog pregnant. There are enough unwanted dogs in the world, let's not add any more.

What do growth plates and spaying or neutering have to do with eachother? A dog doesn't stop growing when they're fixed.

I never said the dog stops growing when they get fixed. When you neuter or spay a dog it stops producing sex hormones. "The sex hormones close the growth plates, so the bones of dogs or es neutered or spayed before puberty continue to grow. This growth frequently results in a dog that does not have the same body proportions as he/she was genetically meant to. For example, if the femur is normal length at 8 months when a dog gets spayed or neutered, but the tibia, which normally stops growing at 12 to 14 months of age continues to grow, then an abnormal angle may develop at the stifle. In addition, with the extra growth, the lower leg below the stifle becomes heavier (because it is longer), causing increased stresses on the cranial cruciate ligament. This is confirmed by a recent study showing that spayed and neutered dogs have a higher incidence of CCL rupture(Slauterbeck JR, Pankratz K, Xu KT, Bozeman SC, Hardy DM. Canine ovariohysterectomy and orchiectomy increases the prevalence of ACL injury. Clin Orthop Relat Res. 2004 Dec;(429):301-5)."

I suggest you do your research before slam new ideas.

Eparker, I'm posting a link, I suggest you read it to see what health experts are saying about the benefits of neutering and spaying. Some vets are doing this procedure as early as 6 weeks, and no ill effects have been found.

Spay & Neuter - ESP - Early Sterilization Program (http://www.king.igs.net/~brica/esp.htm)

There are many health benefits to early neutering and spaying, including less cases of cancer.

I suggest you do your research too, before you come to a board such as AMHD and slam other members. We don't just post our opinions, we do our research. Yes, the subject of neutering or spaying is a topic with many different opinions, but if you do your research, you'll find that the majority of vets are in favor of early altering.

Good luck.

And another link.

Cesar Millan - Ask the Vet (http://www.cesarmillaninc.com/askthevet/askthevet_18.php)

Altenweg,
I have done my research for a couple years now. Here is a link for you:
Early Neutering (http://www.littleriverlabs.com/neuter.htm)

I am not slaming anybody or their ideas anymore more than mine were slammed.

To the OP of this thread good luck to whichever route you go.

Well thanks for all your help everyone. I think we're just going to wait to get her spayed when she's 6 months and at the same time get her stomach tacked. The vet said we should wait for that so we will just do it all at the same time.

The research that has been done isn't conclusive. If you read the link I posted, those vets saying to wait until the dog is 2 years of age are suggesting this because of the risk of cancer in larger breeds. They have done research, but it's inconclusive. In other words, it has not been proven that neutering your dog early will cause cancer. It has however been proven that early spaying can and does lower the risk of cancer in female dogs.

It's a matter of who you believe, and the research you choose to follow. Ask 10 vets and they'll all have their opinions and their reason for the age of spaying or neutering your pet.

If you felt slammed then I apologize. I have done my research as well, and talked with many vets about this very topic. Their consensus, it's better to spay or neuter before or on the 6 month date then it is to wait. The benefits far outweigh the risks.

Everyone has a right to their opinion. That's mine.

Good luck.

Good luck ZoeMarie! I commend you for being a responsible dog owner, and keeping her happy and healthy!

thank you! I really appreciate that =)

Spay/neuter is generally not breed specific. Most are done at 3-4mos. If you are not intending to breed it is probably a good idea to have it done "before" she comes in to her first heat or if male same, before testosterine comes in to play. Some vets are now doing it as early as 12-14weeks before anything develops. But yes generally at 3-4 months. I have been working with animals for over 23 yrs in rescue and rehabilitation.
rjmarie

Spay/neuter is generally not breed specific. Most are done at 3-4mos. If you are not intending to breed it is probably a good idea to have it done "before" she comes in to her first heat or if male same, before testosterine comes in to play. Some vets are now doing it as early as 12-14weeks before anything develops. But yes generally at 3-4 months. I have been working with animals for over 23 yrs in rescue and rehabilitation.
rjmarie

Actually I was told by our vet that with larger breeds that they might do it at 4 months as opposed to 6 months which from all the responses I've gotten so far is pretty much standard. Thanks for your help though!

Got little Zoe spayed and got her stomach tacked today. I shouldn't say she's little anymore. She's up to 82 lbs now. I'm excited to bring her home later tonight!

Wow, 82lbs already! I'm sure she will recover very quickly and be back to her normal playful self very soon! Puppy hugs from Niki!

http://www.postsmile.com/img/dogs/22.gif (http://www.postsmile.com/)

Thanks! Yeah, she's 6 months and 82 lbs. such a big baby. Lol

I know I'm a bit late for this thread but I'll add my 2c worth anyway. I'm probably going to get shot down for this but we have show dogs so ours don't get spayed until their show career is over.
As for pets the bigger the dog the younger they should be spayed. It's a lot easier to keep a 10kg puppy contained and stop her from jumping thank it is a 70kg adult. Plus there are many complications when they are older like developing cancer as well as pyrometra (sp?)

Well, Zoe isn't a show dog. She's merle so she can't be a show dog. And Zoe is only 6 months old so she's still young

Zoe, are you sure she's not a horse instead of a dog? ;)

Wow, big girl. Good to know she got through the surgery well. I'll be going through the same thing with our Chewy boy next month. A bit easier on males, but still. :)

She might be part horse. Lol. I can't believe how fast she's growing. And she likes to give hugs. When she stands on her hind legs she puts wraps her paws around your neck. I don't know where she picked that up from but she does that to me when I get home from work. I can't imagine she does that because she's seen me and my husband do that when one of us gets home, but maybe. I used to think it was a dominance thing, but she just does it for a second or two and jumps down.

Comments on this post
shazamataz agrees: I didn't mean you had left it too late, I was just throwing my opinion out there :-)

I appreciate that. I re-read my post. I didn't mean to sound like a jerk. I'm sorry.

OK so I've been checking Zoe's stitches from day to day. Sunday night you could tell she had been licking at them so Monday I took her for her e-colllar. Tonight I checked again to see how things look. Everything is red and swollen. There's no way that's normal is it?

Spaying a great dane before they are twelve months old increases the risk of bone cancer (which is more of a problem in large breeds anyway), and also gives them time to develop properly. My vet definitely recommends waiting at least 12 months before speying a Great Dane.

spaying a great dane before they are twelve months old increases the risk of bone cancer (which is more of a problem in large breeds anyway), and also gives them time to develop properly. My vet definitely recommends waiting at least 12 months before speying a Great Dane.

Please refrain from posting on old threads. This one was started in 2008.

I realize that with the new skin that AMHD is using, the search function directs people to older threads, but please look at the dates before posting.

I'm closing this thread.

Thank you.