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French Bulldogs ~ Spay and Neuter

We advocate Spay and Neuter for puppies purchased from us.

Male Dogs

Can be territorial and dominant. Even before puberty, these behaviors are attributed to male hormones. After puberty, if they remain unaltered, these classical masculine traits get even more exaggerated. This makes training male dogs more difficult.

More active and more destructive. Blame it again on the male hormones. More prone to aggression with other dogs. Dogs that are the same sex, size and age are more likely to see each other as rivals and show signs of aggression. Has the instinctual urge to roam. An unaltered male will actively seek out females to mate with. This often results in escaping his environment, which can increase the risk of being hit by a car, injured, or lost.

An altered male will make an excellent pet. He will become similar in temperament and affection as a female. Neutering makes him significantly calmer and far less aggressive. It will also diminish his tendency to roam.

Female Dogs

May be more demanding of affection. Females tend to focus their attention strongly on their human companion.

At puberty, female hormones can cause changes in behavior. It can increase possessiveness, alter mood, and increase the need to den.

During a female's heat cycle, They will bleed and they will actively seek out males. This motivates the female to escape from the house or yard, putting them in danger of being hit by a car, injured, or lost.

Spaying your female dog is beneficial because it will prevent your dog from being impregnated, eliminate the biannual heat cycle, and keep your dog from wanting to escape.

Similar Behaviors

There are no differences between the two sexes regarding watchdog barking, playfulness, and excitability In most ways, choosing between male and female dogs is a matter of personal preference.

Responsibility

Pet owners who decide not to spay their bitches and neuter their dogs certainly have the right to make that decision. However, they bear a responsibility to prevent their intact pets from adding to the population of pets that wind up in animal shelters. So, if there is a pregnancy, owners must be prepared to:

1. Provide the best nutrition and vet care for the bitch,

2. Remain with the bitch during the births to clean and dry the puppies,

3. Deal with a problem pregnancy or delivery, ( Most c-sections start around $2000.00)

4. Keep the puppies warm and the whelping area clean,

5. Keep the puppies for at least eight weeks,

6. Provide basic health care and socialization before the pups go to their new homes,

7. Provide training and behavior information to puppy buyers, and

8. Take back or help place any puppy that doesn't work in its original home.

Obviously, unless a pet owner is also a dedicated breeder - it's cheaper, healthier, and far more practical to spay the bitch.

Spay or Neuter surgery

Spay and neuter surgery to sterilize dogs and cats has been hailed as an expedient method of pet population control. The idea, obviously, is that sterilized pets can't breed and produce puppies that end up in animal shelters to be adopted or euthanized.

Many shelters and virtually all rescue groups sterilize dogs before making them available to buyers, and many shelters that do not do the surgery before the animals leave do require that the new owner do so.

Some advocacy groups have gone so far as to demand laws that require spay and neuter of all dogs and cats unless people buy permission to keep their animals intact. Others seek to require shelters to spay and neuter all animals that leave their premises to avoid unwanted litters in the future.

Many pet owners consider a spay and neuter requirement to be an infringement of their rights.

Many think that sterilization is cruel; they project their own feelings about loss of reproductive capacity on their pets. Many men have a difficult time dealing with neutering of their male pets.

And many pet owners and welfare advocates say that the cost of surgery keeps many families from having it done.

There are many myths about canine reproductive needs. Chiefly among these are the suspicion that neutering turns a male into a sissy and spaying causes a female to get fat and to lament her lost capacity.

The truth is that male dogs are usually better pets if they are neutered. They have less desire to roam, to mark territory (including furniture), or to exert dominance over family members. They are also healthier pets: no testicles means no testicular cancer, which is not uncommon among aging intact male dogs.

Females also tend to be better pets if they do not experience a Heat cycle every six-to-nine months. Heat cycles bring hormonal changes that can lead to personality changes. Repeated heat cycles subject the reproductive system to uterine and mammary cancers and uterine infections. Some bitches experience false pregnancies that can be a bother to deal with and uterine infections that can be fatal.

Males and females do not get fat simply as a result of sterilization surgery. Like other mammals, they gain weight if they eat too much and exercise too little or are genetically programmed to be hefty. Weight gain that seems to follow spay or neuter surgery is most likely a result of continuing to feed a high energy diet to a dog that is reducing his need for energy as he reaches his adult size. Excess energy in the food becomes excess fat on the body.

As far as we know, dogs do not lament their lost capability to reproduce. This is a different species than ours; they reproduce to ensure survival of their kind, not to nurture a pup for 18 years, watch it go off to college, marry, establish a career, and produce grandchildren. Bitches nurse their pups for a few weeks, teach them to behave like dogs, and go on. Males know nothing of fatherhood; they do not recognize pups as their own.

POTTY TRAINING DOGS - MARKING TERRITORY

For young dogs, marking territory starts to occur at between four and nine months of age for most breeds, especially if there is more than one dog in the house.

Generally, marking territory is a hormonal driven behavior that male and female dogs engage in to establish their dominance. If a new dog, baby, pet or other change occurs in the house you may find that a previously house trained dog will begin marking territory.

Marking territory is dogs way to indicate that the house is his or her territory. Outside dogs will mark the areas of their domain such as fence posts, lamps, or even bushes, shrubs and trees in the yard or neighborhood. Unfortunately some dogs also want to mark their territory on the inside of your house and this is certainly not a desirable behavior. Marking territory as a hormonal driven behavior will indicate that the dog is reaching sexual maturity.

In about 50-70% of male and female dogs, altering them will prevent the likelihood of future marking behaviors.

Cleaning and using an enzyme based product that will completely eliminate the odor of the urine will assist in preventing future issues. If the dog has been altered but still continues to mark territory there are a few simple potty training tips that you can use to deter the behavior.

While some behaviors are directly related to the marking, others are more specific to establishing that you are the dominant member of the family, not the dog. Try the following to help with preventing further marking behaviors.

POTTY TRAINING TIPS TO OVERCOME MARKING

Ensure that the dog has lots of exercise prior to being left alone. Encourage him to mark outside by providing interesting places to sniff and mark. Remove or completely clean any furniture or items that the dog previously marked. If you cannot remove the furniture place a piece of aluminum foil over the area in a flat sheet. Simply attach the top to the furniture with tape or small pins. When the dog attempts to urinate on the area the spray hitting the aluminum will make a noise that will startle the dog and may assist with preventing the behavior. The resulting spray will also be unpleasant to the dog and will often stop the behavior.

Take the dog to dog training classes or work with him on a constant basis to help the dog understand that he is not the top dog on the pecking order in the family. Once the dog understands that he is not dominant the behavior will often stop.

If there is a female dog in heat in the house or area the intact dog will mark to establish a territory. Remove any female dogs in heat from the area to prevent this hormonal driven marking. Altering will help with this behavior as well. If there appears to be no change in the dogs marking behavior after using these techniques try working with a professional trainer or consulting with your veterinarian. Occasionally some hormonal imbalances may cause the behavior and can be controlled by drug therapies. Also remember to be calm and patient in dealing with a dog exhibiting this behavior. Just continue to be firm and I believe that you will overcome this behavior in no time.