Why I waited to neuter.

Welp. It's done.

I went back and forth about this for many reasons, but ultimately decided to neuter since we do a lot of off leash work and hiking.

My goal was to wait until his reproductive system was fully developed and the growth plates were completely closed. The body is producing much-needed hormones the rest of the body needs during maturation, so this was important.

Ronin is a medium sized dog at 40 lbs (though he still has some filling out to do), so - at 13 months- his body was in an acceptable state for alteration (if he were a larger breed of dog, I would have waited longer ~ about 2 years or so).

Sex drive (the primal drive to mate) in animals is strong - especially in males during puberty and early adulthood (not too far from humans). So strong this can override training and relationship.

Male dogs can scent a female in heat from miles away; and since we do a lot of off-leash work and hiking - this could present a high risk situation in many ways. A set of risks I'm not willing to take.

*Early* spay and neuter is one of the leading causes of cancer and a host of other diseases. My beloved and dearly missed dog, Chip, was neutered by the rescue group he came from at just 13 weeks of age. Thirteen. Weeks. He was just a baby.

Despite anything he may have brought to the table genetically, I have no doubt this absolutely played into the development of his lymphoma - which inevitably stole his life at age 11 yrs. I'm confident that the exceptionally clean and healthy lifestyle he led gave him more time with us and may have even prolonged the full activation of the disease. When it did activate, he was given a few months to live. Luckily, the protocol I had him on gave us nearly 11 months longer to love him without chemo, medications, etc.

If we had more responsible dog raisers, this would be a different conversation. But we don't. So rescue groups, vets, etc. do their part by removing the risk, regardless of age and the body's state of development. Sadly, it's the dog who ends up getting the short end of the stick.

.....as with everything else.

If the dog end up with a person who doesn't: learn about how to raise them / invest in learning how to teach, train, and equip them/ and meet their needs---- and the dog ends up with behavioral issues? It's the dog who gets labeled, discarded, bounced around, heavily medicated, left outside, living in crates or separated from the rest of the family in isolation, etc. But I digress.

Ronin....I'm so sorry, bud. I know you miss "your boys", have no idea WTF is going on, and hate this cone thing (especially since you just loooove brothers and sister so much and it's freaking them out)--- I promise I'll make it up to you <3 (...and I'll be adding a new supplement to your mix. Dr. Mercola's Glandular Support. Will help with hormone balance post surgery).

You've now joined the ranks of the nad-less.