Puppy questions

[navysurgeon]

Hi. I'm a plastic surgery resident, and frequent the GS and plastics board on SDN.

I own a one year old male Vizsla. He is wonderful.

I'm debating neutering him. I like his temperment (he is very sweet), and is becoming very muscular and strong. I hunt upland game with him, and go backcountry skiing and running with him. I've heard mixed advice about the affects of neutering a dog like mine. I don't plan to breed him. We are rarely around female dogs, if ever. Should I cut him?

Second question: what the real, rational advice on running a one year old mid-sized puppy on hard surfaces, such as asphalt. We typically run on trails, or in the forest, but do run on the pavement from time to time. Genitically, he has no hip dysplasia, xrays from his parents are excellent.

Any advise on these two topics would be appreciated.

xTNS

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[navysurgeon]

to clarify, I am NOT planning to neuter my dog myself.

i just want to know the pros/cons of neutering my dog.

 

[HorseyVet]

to clarify, I am NOT planning to neuter my dog myself.

i just want to know the pros/cons of neutering my dog.

LOL....I love that clarification

As a plastic surgeon, you probably could fit him with some of those ping-pong balls, I mean, prosthetics that would make him look like he still had his manhood.

 

[mammalmama]

There area many benefits to neutering dogs. A neutered male has no prostate problems when he gets older since the prostate shrinks into non-existance when the dog is neutered. It helps prevent testicular and prostate cancers. And to clarify the myth that dogs get fat when they are neutered, that is very untrue. As long as you have him on a proper diet and exercise program, he won't gain weight. Hope this helps.

 

[HorseyVet]

There area many benefits to neutering dogs. A neutered male has no prostate problems when he gets older since the prostate shrinks into non-existance when the dog is neutered. It helps prevent testicular and prostate cancers.

Last week I learned that the urethra doesn't pass through the prostate in dogs as it apparently does in humans. That has nothing to do with testosterone or neutering. I just thought it was neat.

And to clarify the myth that dogs get fat when they are neutered, that is very untrue. As long as you have him on a proper diet and exercise program, he won't gain weight. Hope this helps.

That's not 100% true, but it does seem to be a little breed dependent...check out a few pugs and beagles post neuter....My friend just had his pug done and I think it gained 5 lbs in the car ride home. Yeah, you usually can be proactive and manage the weight, but on those prone dogs you can kiss free-choice goodbye.

I really wouldn't have the same concern though for a vizsla.

 

[chris03333]

Last week I learned that the urethra doesn't pass through the prostate in dogs as it apparently does in humans. That has nothing to do with testosterone or neutering. I just thought it was neat.
QUOTE]
You obviously have not taken anatomy yet
Look up "prostatic urethra canine" in google you'll find lots of hits.

http://www.vin.com/VINDBPub/SearchPB/Proceedings/PR05000/PR00441.htm

You might also want to read up on the effects of SPAYing and neuter on weight.

To the OP I cannot legally give medical advice (and since I will be applying to get my license soon, I probably should not make the veterinary board mad so all I will say is that the benefits to neutering you dog may be something you want to look into. I would also suggest you talk to a DVM about it and not take advice from a vet student (which I am so take my own advice with a grain of salt) or any prevet (which some of the posters here are).

Good luck

 

[HorseyVet]

You obviously have not taken anatomy yet
Look up "prostatic urethra canine" in google you'll find lots of hits.

It's what they mentioned in a TA meeting...It could be wrong... but it was a slide I was looking at..? On the slide the two didn't intersect....They made a stink out of it b/c they didn't want the students (mostly nursing) to think that's the way it was in humans...if it's wrong it's certainly worth me telling them, although I guess since most of them won't be working in animals, it doesn't really matter for them....now I'm wondering what the heck I was looking at...to be honest it didn't make a lot of sense to me at the time, but there it seemed to be on the slide......I'll get you Fisher!

 

[chris03333]

It's what they mentioned in a TA meeting...It could be wrong... but it was a slide I was looking at..? On the slide the two didn't intersect....They made a stink out of it b/c they didn't want the students (mostly nursing) to think that's the way it was in humans...if it's wrong it's certainly worth me telling them, although I guess since most of them won't be working in animals, it doesn't really matter for them....now I'm wondering what the heck I was looking at...to be honest it didn't make a lot of sense to me at the time, but there it seemed to be on the slide......I'll get you Fisher!

nevermind I missread what you said. I do not know what you saw.

 

[wishes]

Hi. I'm a plastic surgery resident, and frequent the GS and plastics board on SDN.

I own a one year old male Vizsla. He is wonderful.

I'm debating neutering him. I like his temperment (he is very sweet), and is becoming very muscular and strong. I hunt upland game with him, and go backcountry skiing and running with him. I've heard mixed advice about the affects of neutering a dog like mine. I don't plan to breed him. We are rarely around female dogs, if ever. Should I cut him?

Second question: what the real, rational advice on running a one year old mid-sized puppy on hard surfaces, such as asphalt. We typically run on trails, or in the forest, but do run on the pavement from time to time. Genitically, he has no hip dysplasia, xrays from his parents are excellent.

Any advise on these two topics would be appreciated.

xTNS

Hi. I am an entering first year vet student, and a licensed veterinary technician, so take my advice for what it is worth .
I have Labrador retriever that I was considering breeding and did some training with for field trials. For these reasons, I did not neuter him until he was 3 years old, although in the past I had always neutered my male dogs as puppies.
I saw absolutely no alteration in his behavior, muscle tone, metabolism, etc. after the neuter. I do attribute this in part to the fact that he was well developed at the time I neutered him and also he was a relatively high-energy dog to begin with. Likewise your Vizsla, at a year old, is probably well developed physiologically. I'll also second the other posters saying that there are lots of medical benefits, particularly later in life, for neutered dogs.
As far as the running goes, I am an avid runner, and I definitely took my dogs hiking/running from the time they were 7 months or so, and I know friends that have done the same with no ill effects. Whether this is medically advisable or not, I really cannot say.
Obviously it depends on the length and intensity of the runs. Personally, I think if you plan to keep your dog as a running companion, it is best to teach them how to run when they are relatively young as it makes it a more enjoyable experience for both of you later on.
Good luck!

 

[birdvet2006]

I just wanted to add in my thoughts about heavy exercise in a young dog. I do feel funny about giving any "advice" on this subject, as I'm not yet a vet. I will be in just over 1 month, but at the moment am not qualified to give veterinary advice.

But I did want to say that I think heavy exercise is not a good thing in a young dog (and I don't consider a 1 year old dog a puppy, large breed or not). It predisposes them to developmental orthopaedic disorders.

I do think the urethra runs through the prostate, or to put it another way: the prostate surrounds the urethra. This is the root of a ton of problems! Prostatic cysts, prostatitis, benign prostatic hyperplasia, prostatic cancer...

Just my .02,

 

[Bill59]

I've heard mixed advice about the affects of neutering a dog like mine.

That’s likely because the health effects of castrating adult dogs are probably a wash. Castration reduces the risk or perineal hernia, perianal gland tumors, benign prostatic hypertrophy and obviously testicular cancer. The effects of castration on prostate cancer are not clear, with some studies suggesting castration decreases the risk while others show an increased risk. Castration may increase the risk of osteosarcoma and cranial cruciate rupture. (Almost all these studies are retrospective and have less than ideal controls.)

The best reasons to castrate dogs are for birth control and behavioral effects. Castration is quite effective at treating/preventing some common behavioral problems, such as certain types of aggression and unwanted sexual activity. Anecdotally, the vast majority of male dogs that are hit by cars are intact. This could be because intact dogs are more likely to roam although these results could be confounded by the fact that clients that neuter their dogs may be less likely to allow their dogs to run free.

 

[HorseyVet]

Ok I figured out the problem with my prostate/urethra slide. The slide is mildy confusing, but really I should have recognized that the head TA was wrong....basically if you're looking "down' the urethra/prostate in a coronal/transverse section and divide it into quarters...only one quarter of the prostate is on the slide, but the whole urethra is there. In the human slide sections the whole prostate is there (not split into sections). I didn't notice because we were using projecting scopes and so the image I was dealing with didn't reflect the slide as well...If you've ever had to focus these, you look at the screen and focus rather then the slide b/c the focus seems to translate a little differently to the screen.....anyway, I didn't notice because I paying attention to something else and the head TA had already made a fuss about how the dog is different

I actually caught another mistake he had made on a diabetes quiz....makes you wonder

Sorry for error. Here's to prostates and bad instructors.

 

[Iain]

Are there benefits for leaving a dog intact - except for the obvious one of breeding.

 

[thenavysurgeon]

Thanks for the advice. For now, the Vizsla will remain happily intact.

I must say, visiting the Vet site on SDN is like visiting another country. There are some strange cats on this forum.

Cheers.

xTNS

 

[dvm'08]

Thanks for the advice. For now, the Vizsla will remain happily intact.

I must say, visiting the Vet site on SDN is like visiting another country. There are some strange cats on this forum.

Cheers.

xTNS

ha... you have NO idea...

 

[gainor848]

I am about to begin my first year of med school and I would really like to adopt this dog I have been fostering from the humane society. Since you are currently a resident, I was wondering if you would suggest adopting an animal since I know residents work A LOT of hours. Do you think a dog is feasible in med school? in residency? thanks for the input!

 

[thenavysurgeon]

I am about to begin my first year of med school and I would really like to adopt this dog I have been fostering from the humane society. Since you are currently a resident, I was wondering if you would suggest adopting an animal since I know residents work A LOT of hours. Do you think a dog is feasible in med school? in residency? thanks for the input!

Dear about-2B-medstudent

I have two thoughts for you.

1. my fiance spends a lot of time with our dog, and i attribute his sweet temperment to her influence

2. dogs have been shown to reduce depressive symtoms in their owners. I can promise you that med school will have a significant impact on your mental health.

Get the dog ASAP.

 

[Iain]

I think the breed has a lot to do with whether a dog would be a suitable companion for medical school - hounds are likely not a good pick!!