Spaying or neutering your Dachshund is one of the first big decisions for dog owners. Fixing your dog earlier than later is expected to make them more loyal and less likely to roam.
Whether this is factual or just a selling point for veterinarians is debatable. Conventional dog training with rewards and positive reinforcement will also yield these desired results.
One thing is for sure. Different breeds require different neutering regimens. Dachshunds should be neutered after one year to prevent developmental delays and disabilities. Waiting until 18-24 months will allow for full development and maximally reduce the risk of IVDD.
Dachshunds are predisposed to IVDD and IVDH. IVDD is a condition that causes dehydration in a dog’s spinal disks and is typical amongst breeds with shortened legs. Dehydration of a dog’s spinal disks can result in a ruptured disk which is no fun for you or your sausage dog.
Are you concerned that your Dachshund is getting too territorial and humping everything in sight? These common problems are easily solvable with proper training and discipline.
Neutering may help with these short-term problems but may also negatively impact your Dachshund’s health later in life. What trade-off do you value the most?
Why Should a Dachshund be Neutered After 12 Months?
As you already know, wiener dogs take on the shape of a hotdog. Although this body type offers maximum cuteness, it can cause issues later in your Dachshund’s life. For this reason, your Dachshund should grow into its adult-sized body before getting castrated.
Neutering your Dachshund after 12 months will decrease the risk of health-related issues associated with IVDD. Health issues such as IVHD, or Intervertebral Disk Herniation, occur in Dachshunds due to a prematurely aged disk.
So, how do we safeguard against disk herniation from happening? It all starts from the very beginning of your pup’s life. Be proactive by addressing the developmental issues your Dotson is already predisposed to.
Skeletal muscle, tendons, and ligaments may be compromised in the developmental stages if hormone levels are unbalanced. Neutering your Dachshund before 12 months will undoubtedly disrupt its hormone levels.
No matter the dog’s breed, sticking with the recommended neutering regimen will give your dog the growth factors needed to grow from its adolescent body into a fully developed adult.
Myths of Neutering Your Dachshund Too Soon
1. Early Neutering Decreases the Risks of Cancers and Health Issues
FACT: Dachshunds already have a relatively low risk of developing cancers than other dog breeds. Neutering your dog too early can INCREASE the risk of testicular cancer.
Hormone levels must remain stable to send the chemical message to their target cell effectively. Underdeveloped hormone levels may lead to hypopituitarism, a disorder in which your pituitary gland fails to produce one or more hormones.
Early neutering increases the risk of hypopituitarism in male Dachshunds. With the loss of testosterone, your dog is more prone to hormone imbalance issues, including testicular incontinence problems, prostate enlargement, loss of libido, and metabolism changes.
2. Dog Loyalty
FACT: Loyalty is a trait that is important to dog owners and goes along with the saying a dog is a “man’s best friend.” Rightfully so, our human relationships seek loyalty, so it is only natural to want that same connection with our four-legged friends.
However, loyalty is earned in several ways. Early neutering around six months may be appropriate for specific bully breeds to prevent bad traits such as roaming and aggressiveness. On the other hand, Dachshunds are an entirely different breed, pun intended.
Wiener dogs need their sex hormones to correctly grow into their abnormally shaped bodies and elongated tail bones. Sure, your sausage dog will likely become more co-dependent on you if neutered before 12 months.
However, co-dependency and loyalty are two different concepts. Co-dependency is developed while loyalty is earned. Not to mention, your dog has no say in the manner.
Early neutering removes testosterone from the equation, thus stripping away some of your furry friend’s natural dog instincts. If loyalty is what you are seeking from fixing your dog early, think again.
3. Early Neutering Will NOT Affect its Personality
FACT: Noticeable changes occur after undergoing the neutering process. Unsurprisingly, these changes can translate into your dog’s personality. Early neutering diminishes your badger dog’s natural guarding instinct, giving them daily purpose.
If you plan on keeping your Dachshund outside during the daytime, this can present a problem. Your Dachshund may likely develop destructive habits if left to their own devices. Without your sausage dog’s natural instincts, it will be misguided on what to do with its pent-up energy.
4. Early Neutering Carries Few Risks
FACT: Neutering your Dachshund too early can cause obesity problems in some instances. Altered hormone levels change how the metabolism regulates itself. Given their smaller frames and elongated backs, this puts higher importance on wiener dogs to grow into their adult-size bodies complication-free.
Early neutering for Dachshunds does have its pros, just as with other dog breeds. Pros for neutering your Dachshund earlier include decreasing the risk of rabies, decreasing aggressiveness, eliminating reproduction needs, and reducing the overpopulation problem.
Do the pros outweigh the cons? That’s up to you to decide.
Final Words
What time is best to neuter your Dachshund? That depends on your needs as a dog owner. It would help if you considered what is essential to your lifestyle. Is your wiener dog an inside dog or an outside dog?
Do you have little children running around in your home? Everything is worth considering to determine what you value most from your family pet.
Generally speaking, neutering your Dachshund after 12 months will decrease the risk of health-related issues associated with IVDD. Waiting 18-24 months for fixing will maximally reduce the risk of IVDD.
By now, you better understand the pros and cons of neutering your Dachshund early, before 12 months. Hopefully, the information will serve you and your family dog well to live a long, happy life. A little knowledge goes a long way.