Hi Allyn. If you look at the data, you’ll see that, although it would have been better to go a bit later, the risks are quite low. For many years, dogs like him were desexed at six months of age, and the consequences were not severe in the vast majority.

Hi Ceci. The big three are testicular tumours, prostatic enlargement (and secondary constipation) and perineal hernia. The first two are curable with desexing if caught early, the third is not. Having said this, plenty of entire males get through life without either of these three occurring, so the decision is yours.

Hi Barb. It’s hard to give simple answers, which is why I included as much raw data as possible in the article so you can make up your own mind. As I did not mention mammory cancer, you can be assured that the risk is still very low with spaying at 13 months of age.

Hi Carolyn. Shelters need to work by different standards, so there’s nothing wrong with what you were told. Also, the risks of going a little early are very low.