Pets
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I encourage you to neuter him, [mention]Nkwkfld [/mention] ! I used to work for a vet, and partnered with rescue organizations. Not only is it our most important tool to control populations of unwanted pets that have to be euthanized, there are some correlations with health issues including cancer that should be considered. Please consult your vet about this, as I’m almost positive they will agree.
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Thanks @sabergirl I always thought that was the case but my partner and I have talked to multiple vets in UK and France (Chicken is registered in both countries) and they actually said there was no rush. I'm sure Chicken is not going to become a father because of how we carefully manage his interactions with other dogs and he won't be at risk of the cancers until later in life. We won't hesitate when it's necessary but there seems to be no reason to do it now. One of the arguments in favour of waiting is that the hormones help with growth and development, especially in terms of confidence. For a small dog if he gets scared he might become aggressive. With more hormones he actually ends up calmer because he feels confident.
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Big tongues car ride and doggles training -
Sometimes Chicken is up, sometimes he is down.
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Breeders always have that opinion as it is in their best interest for their progeny to sire more dogs.
As for the rest, I suppose I just knew vets who strongly hold the opposite view.
No, in our case it has nothing to do with more progeny and everything to do with health. Breeders actually do not want the puppies they sell to breed, unless they are the rare show quality specimens. Most breeders will have you sign a contract saying you will not breed the dog. Just for kicks & giggles, here's the article the breeder asked us to read on the subject:
https://grca.org/about-the-breed/health-research/effects-of-early-spay-or-neuter-in-golden-retrievers/It might be specific to GR.
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I've been chatting with a sighthound breeder about the Azawakh and Sloughi, and she recommends not neutering them before 12 to 18 months. Her concerns were about ligament damage, much as the PDF said, especially as her dogs often run in coursing competitions. But I think that it's a fairly generic recommendation for larger breeds.
Then again, a breeder of the Xoloitzcuintli in Western Australia often has her puppies neutered at ten or twelve weeks, before they travel to their new homes.
(Yeah, I like all the weird, obscure, and rare breeds!)
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Great shot. Ian.
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When it’s too hot for playing fetch, I like to tire him out by getting him to use his brain. And with so much of a dog’s brain being dedicated to scent, there’s no better way to do that than by getting them to find things with their noses.
Here he’s locating a penny that I throw into the garden. When he locates it he goes into a down. I wind him up by asking him to ‘show me’ where it is again to reinforce the association with the penny even more. I also deliver the food to the penny, rather than his mouth, so that he thinks it’s a little miniature dinner plate and turbo charges his desire to find it.
He’s getting too good at this. So next step is figuring out how to train him to distinguish different scents and find specific items when multiple objects are hidden.
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Now the weather’s cooler, it’s back to games of fetch!
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This old man won’t fetch. All about belly rubs. -
