Jump to content
BC Boards

Intact male - What to expect/how to manage?


Recommended Posts

Indie is 6.5 months now - time flies - and we're bracing ourselves for adolescence. He's still a gem and compliant with our rules/commands, has yet to really blow us off or test his bounds. He's very sweet with other dogs and submissive without being the least bit shy/nervous. We've been doing classes with him since day one (now in very beginner agility) and think it's been the most helpful in developing and maintaining his focus. Now that he's past the "mark" of when some folks dive in to alter their dogs, we're being told all KINDS of things about having an intact male past 6 months old - ranging from their dog's own behaviour to how other dogs treat them.


We will be waiting until 18 months, at least and perhaps never if he stays a good boy, but would love to hear your experiences as far as what to expect in the coming year from both Indie and other dogs.


Thanks everyone!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dear Doggers,

 

Marking when a gyp (spayed or no) is nearby. Easier to train. Greater chance for conflict with clueless owners of intact gyps. Unless he gets lucky, he'll be a good boy. One mating will alter his worldview.

 

Don't do it. Pay for instruction with the money you'll save.

 

Donald McCaig

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've never seen anything change at 6 months, but between 8 mos- 1 year I would expect other male dogs to target him. as far as him, around 8 months I would start watching his behavior around others and correct it if needed, things like heavy marking, a stiff posture, humping, raised hackles while greeting. but he's not a breed I see commonly start doing those things, so just watch for it in case, but there is a good chance it wont happen anyhow.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

He will suddenly "forget" commands or be less obedient and test his boundaries. Just be firm but patient, reinforce them and expect him to be a little less obedient over the next 12 months. (Take this into account if he will be off leash.) ETA, not saying to be permissive, but to not take any chances. They take a few steps back during this period.

 

Also be aware that other dogs, other males especially, will start reacting to him differently. Neutered males may see him as a threat (many pet dogs are not used to the smell of an intact male), intact males might see him as a potential rival and females will be less tolerant of him trying to play if he gets too fresh.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think it depends highly on the individual. We've only neutered two of our male dogs (various breeds) and both were done at an older age- almost 3 and almost 7. My sister's male dog is intact and perfectly behaved and always has been. He's a great dog, very easy going and has been since 10 months old (wild wild puppy). Our other male, neutered at 7, was a pain around bitches in season or just out of season or ones that had just given birth. Very pushy, constantly marking especially when around our breeder's male dog who was also intact, humped everything. He calmed down a lot when he was neutered but also got wooly coat afterwards too. You have to keep up on that mess of a coat now. Makes me wonder if his hormones have always been out of whack.

 

Our other males- papillons, sheltie, lab, BCx, and GSDx were all intact and stayed that way. And they were no hassle at all.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

He will suddenly "forget" commands or be less obedient and test his boundaries. Just be firm but patient, reinforce them and expect him to be a little less obedient over the next 12 months. (Take this into account if he will be off leash.) ETA, not saying to be permissive, but to not take any chances. They take a few steps back during this period.

 

Also be aware that other dogs, other males especially, will start reacting to him differently. Neutered males may see him as a threat (many pet dogs are not used to the smell of an intact male), intact males might see him as a potential rival and females will be less tolerant of him trying to play if he gets too fresh.

 

I've been reading up a lot on adolescence and am largely prepared for the age related behaviour that can occur. I am most concerned with how other dogs will treat him while he's intact, as you've mentioned. He's such a social butterfly, and I don't want his "wings squished" so to speak if a dog doesn't like him while he's intact haha, or confused as to why dogs suddenly don't want to play with him like they used to.

 

 

I've never seen anything change at 6 months, but between 8 mos- 1 year I would expect other male dogs to target him. as far as him, around 8 months I would start watching his behavior around others and correct it if needed, things like heavy marking, a stiff posture, humping, raised hackles while greeting. but he's not a breed I see commonly start doing those things, so just watch for it in case, but there is a good chance it wont happen anyhow.

 

I figured things wouldn't start changing for a few months but just been thinking about recently as he's really starting to be less of my little puppy and looking more like an adult every day :(

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My puppy is just almost 9 months and I can't tell a difference yet but I keep expecting one of some kind. He is a very sweet natured little guy. Good with both my spayed female and my neutered male.

 

He has gotten pretty reactive to the neighbor's dogs. We are working on that and I think he's doing a little better.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Very helpful everyone - thanks! I feel better about the upcoming period. Other dog owners made it sound like NO dog would ever like him again and I should expect male dogs to attack him anytime we went to the park, but glad to know this isn't the case. Like I said, he really enjoy other dogs right now and I would hate for him to dog to suddenly have no friends - is that a ridiculous concern?


I do not intend on neutering him until at least 18 months but will keep keep intact for as long as life with him is manageable. I would like for him to fill out as much as possible.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am living with my first intact dog and originally planned on neutering him around 18 months, time passed and we decided there was no point as he really is the best dog we have had. He has had no issues with other dogs, our next door neighbor is a border collie / lab who is also intact and they play almost everyday, if a another dog gets snarky with him he will have a quick snark and seek my protection rather than engage but it happens infrequently and usually it's because the dog is just snarky not because Rievaulx is intact. Like most things it's an indivual thing.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Uh, no, he should not be attacked all the time. Wonder if those people just had dogs that were jerks?

 

If you are on top of him, making sure he minds his manners, he should be fine. It's the rare male who is a jerk no matter how much training you put into him. Expect and demand excellent manners and you should get them. Don't tolerate posturing, staring, marking, mounting, etc.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Uh, no, he should not be attacked all the time. Wonder if those people just had dogs that were jerks?

 

If you are on top of him, making sure he minds his manners, he should be fine. It's the rare male who is a jerk no matter how much training you put into him. Expect and demand excellent manners and you should get them. Don't tolerate posturing, staring, marking, mounting, etc.

 

Thank you! I do usually try to tell myself that these people were either exaggerating, had jerks of dogs, or didn't ever expect manners from their dogs, but I can't deny it started to scare me.

 

We've always expected and demanded Indie to be a well-behaved member of both human and dog society, and he does his best to live up to that. We will continue to hold him to these standards and think we'll be a-ok.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My neutered male is a jerk to intact males and also neutered adolescent males. He gets very pushy and bossy, growls at them, blocks them etc, even if they are easy going and non-confrontational. The issue is generally with my dog, not the intact ones - most of the time they are appropriate (with exception of the odd adolescent wanting to mount).

 

My first 2 spayed females loved intact male dogs. The oldest would not leave them alone and go nuts trying to engage them in play almost to the point of harassment.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dear Doggers,

 

Marking when a gyp (spayed or no) is nearby. Easier to train. Greater chance for conflict with clueless owners of intact gyps. Unless he gets lucky, he'll be a good boy. One mating will alter his worldview.

 

Don't do it. Pay for instruction with the money you'll save.

 

Donald McCaig

 

Trying to understand the message here, are you advocating that so long as he doesn't "get lucky" forget about neutering him? Again, just trying to understand. I've got a 11 month intact boy (with no intent to breed) and am at the same crossroads.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

Trying to understand the message here, are you advocating that so long as he doesn't "get lucky" forget about neutering him? Again, just trying to understand. I've got a 11 month intact boy (with no intent to breed) and am at the same crossroads.

 

 

 

Glad I'm not the only one - I can't understand it either. lol

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Glad I'm not the only one - I can't understand it either. lol

Dear Doggers,

 

Sorry. Raymond MacPherson (2 times International winner) wouldn't breed his sheepdogs until they'd retired from trialing because they became too interested in females and, in my experience, lucky dogs are more obsessed/annoying than unlucky ones - but it's manageable.

 

I don't castrate my males unless there's a specific health problem.

 

Donald McCaig

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is so dependent upon the individual dog and where you live. In France, very few people neuter their dogs. In addition, the dogs are off leash almost everywhere. Most dogs become accustomed to other intact dogs and most get along. The occasional aggressive dog would probably be aggressive under any circumstances. One ran toward my dog and I got in between them, yelled "GO AWAY," and he did. (My heart pounding!) Another, an English Setter, a breed that is rarely ever aggressive, stood up with my dog and nose to nose they did one of those "Your mother wears army boots" things and that was that. The owner of the setter just shrugged. Unlike Americans, the French do not get upset when dogs act like dogs and that may be one of the reasons why aggressive displays tend to be short lived and not harmful, just communication. I'd be careful in a dog run or dog park with an intact dog. Other than that, I would try to keep him intact unless he develops a health issue. Years and years ago, when dinosaurs roamed the earth and I was growing up, dogs were let out in the morning and called back at dinner time. No one neutered their dog, but sensible people kept their bitches on leash when they were in season. As in France, the dogs were used to the odor and behavior of intact males and everyone pretty much got along or avoided any possible bully.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Unlike Americans, the French do not get upset when dogs act like dogs and that may be one of the reasons why aggressive displays tend to be short lived and not harmful, just communication.

 

I have often been impressed by how well behaved the majority of French dogs I saw on my trips there. I would be interested to know how they raise and train their dogs.

 

I think a lot of Americans are naïve about dog behaviors, but some of the worst behaved dogs I’ve had the misfortune to run into had owners who very much took a “dogs will be dogs” attitude. That is their excuse for allowing their dogs to run wild, accosting other dogs, not reading signals to back off, and getting into fights. You express anger that their pit mix puppy just reacted to a Border Collie's snap to back off by launching into a fight and leaving a hole in the Border Collie’s ear. And you get told, “She’s just a puppy. She loves to play with other dogs. Dogs are animals.” Just think what a lovely canine citizen she will be when she is fully mature and stronger, has had plenty of practice getting into fights, and takes offense at a dog who doesn’t want to play with her. All while her fond, stupid owner thinks you should just relax because dogs are dogs. I think aggressive displays in the US are due at least in good part to this type of ignorance and lack of responsible ownership. If there are a lot of uptight American owners, there might be some valid reasons for it.

 

Gripe aside, I haven’t had an intact dog since the one we had growing up. He was neutered fairly late in his life due to testicular cancer and we were struck by how great it was not to have to deal with him having sex with pillows and getting into used sanitary products (we were too ignorant to use a waste basket with a lid or behind a cabinet). Maybe that was just him, but after he wsa neutered we wished we had done so when he was young and skipped those very annoying behaviors in an otherwise fabulous dog.

 

Years and years ago, when dinosaurs roamed the earth and I was growing up, dogs were let out in the morning and called back at dinner time. No one neutered their dog, but sensible people kept their bitches on leash when they were in season.

 

Unfortunately, there have always been less than sensible people around, even back in the good old days. This often resulted in unplanned litters of puppies and kittens, many of whom ended up drowned or dumped at the pound. And then there were the people who bred their dogs so the kids could see the miracle of birth. Not to mention dogs let out the door that got lost, hit by cars or “must have gone off by themselves to die.” However, the dogs that survived did in general seem to have a more relaxed attitude towards other dogs and the vast majority were intact. It was a different world back then. I would never live with a dog the way we did back when I was a kid. But he was a very happy dog and a lucky one who didn’t fall prey to misfortune when we let him out on his own.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Years and years ago, when dinosaurs roamed the earth and I was growing up, dogs were let out in the morning and called back at dinner time. No one neutered their dog, but sensible people kept their bitches on leash when they were in season.

I also wish this was the case, my boy has had a couple of opportunities to become a father but luckily for the bitchs he seems to have no interest in the opposite sex.. We were out walking and met a young cattle dog, she was really interested in him poking him and generally been bothersome in a friendly way, he just did his best to be polite while ignoring her, when we met the same dog a couple of days later her rather dippsie owner told her she was just finishing her first "girlie" session... We never told her that ours still had balls, thought it best not to worry her!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

And they were walking that dog in public because??? :o

It would be hard to put in words just how little sense this women had... I don't think she even knew that you called it being in season as she just looked at me blankly..... I do know the bitch is now spayed as I met her another time being walked by the ex-husband.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just curious since o heard it mention before about making sure your dog is minding it manner with other dogs... can anyone explain what you mean? I realize it seems like it should be a no brainer I am just not following.

I always imagine people making their dogs sit to greet another dog or something.

My boy is intact also and is already 15 month. He is a push over when greeting dog.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I used to have a Rough Collie boy that was intact until he died at 15. He was never a problem with girls or boys. Several times I had people on the street tell me they wanted to mate him with their bitch. But he was so furry I would just tell them he was neutered. He never "got lucky" and didn't seem to care.

 

I like females better that males, but if I ever get another one I'll leave him intact.

post-10533-0-24832200-1394082235_thumb.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

×
×
  • Create New...