The Benefits of Spaying or Neutering Your Labradoodle

While it’s fairly well accepted that your labradoodle will be better off being spayed or neutered, many owners still leave their dogs intact. Some owners think they might like to have a litter of puppies someday, whereas others just don’t know all the benefits there are to having their dogs spayed or neutered.

It Reduces Overpopulation

In America alone, roughly 3 to 4 million animals are euthanized each year because of overpopulation. Bearing this in mind, it doesn’t seem very ethical to let your labradoodle have or sire a litter of puppies. Even if you don’t intend on breeding your dog, accidents can happen if you leave your dog intact. Bear in mind that if your dog gets pregnant accidentally, you’re in line for a whole host of veterinary bills, not to mention the cost of feeding and raising the puppies.

It Has Health Benefits

There are a range of medical conditions which your labradoodle will either have less or no chance of getting if spayed or neutered. Males will avoid or reduce their chances of getting testicular cancer, prostate problems, perianal gland adenomas, infection of the testes, venereal tumors and certain types of hernias. Females will have less or no chance of getting mammary cancer, pyometra (an infection of the uterus), false pregnancies, mastitis, ovarian and uterine tumors, ovarian cysts, endometritis and uterine torsion or prolapse.

It Might Help With Aggression Issues

Male labradoodles who haven’t been neutered can sometimes display aggressive behavior toward other male dogs, whether in the home or while out on walks. This can be extremely inconvenient, as you may not be able to let your dog off the leash or you might even be considering rehoming one of your dogs, if they’re fighting at home. Often, this is down to territorial behavior which can be caused by hormones. Neutering your dog could completely solve his aggression issues.

It Reduces Unwanted Sexual Behaviors

It might be funny the first time your doodle humps someone’s leg, but it gets old quickly. Both males and females can show humping behaviors and not only is it annoying and embarrassing when you have guests over, it could also be potentially dangerous, for instance if your dog gets rambunctious with a child. An unneutered male will sometimes also mark his territory by urinating around the house. Spaying or neutering usually stops dogs from displaying these unwanted behaviors.

It Eliminates Mess

When a female dog is in heat, she has a bloody discharge coming from her vulva. This can mark or stain your carpets and soft furnishings and is generally quite unpleasant to clean up. It’s an unavoidable issue if your dog is left intact, but a spayed labradoodle won’t go into heat at all, which eliminates this messy problem.

It Stops the Urge to Roam

When a female dog goes into heat or when an unneutered male gets the scent of a female who’s ready to mate, they may get the urge to roam. Of course, this is all well and good if your dog is safely shut in at home, but there’s always a chance that he could accidentally get loose from the garden or run off while on a walk. If your dog roams, not only could he get lost and not be able to find his way home, he could get killed or injured in an accident or cause an accident that hurts someone else. A female could also get pregnant if she wanders off, and come back with an unwanted litter inside her. A labradoodle who’s spayed or neutered won’t have this urge to roam, thus making things safer for everyone involved.

Photo credit: byron cain/Flickr

Read more: The Benefits of Spaying or Neutering Your Labradoodle