Nuetering and weight gain - Page 1

Although many books and vets say that nuetering does not increase the weigth of a dog, i see that it does.

Roughly 10% of the nuetered males I have seen are realy over weight, 50% are on the fat side. What really causes this weight gain.

I used to think not, but working at vet we especially see it in adult dogs that are neutered.  They really need less food, and people don't make the adjustments. 

I think that for the puppies that are neutered, people just plain old just don't cut back on the food after they are neutered.  Which usually coincides with when they are done with the bulk of their growing.

Mostly, I think that people are just plain old overfeeding and not enough exercise!

My older female was spayed as an adult and did not get fat.  And this dog is an eater!   Could very well be obese living in someone else's house with how much she would like to eat!  I don't know, I'm just such a big believer in that, skinny dogs live longer!   Now if I could only figure things out for the humans in the family!    Also, had a mixed breed neutered as a puppy, also wasn't fat.  My in laws dobie mix which we I married into was fat when we got her.  Was also able to trim her down, plus she was also hypothyroid.  the dog that they have now is overweight, and I can talk myself blue in the face telling them so!  I don't even tell them to get her as lean as my guys, just somewhere in between.  Most vets are also wayyyyy too nice when it comes to the weight department!  The younger ones that I work with are great, will tell folks even when the pet is just a couple of pounds on the heavy side.  The "seasoned" ones are horrible!  LOL

There are some intact dogs that we see too that are overweight, so it's not just limited to the spayed/neutered ones. 

My uncle's nuetered labrador is also over weight or should i say obesely over weight!

crazydog, what really causes this weight gain... humans!  I have 2 cut males, 1 nearly eight years and 1 eleven and a half years; neither are overweight.

I'm rather overweight myself... I'd never inflict it on my dogs!

So, Rezkat5 that's the answer... someone to restrict humans (my) food intake! LOL

I've have a lot of dogs neutered in the last 50 years and not a single dog became overweight. Owners have 100% control over what a dog eats, how much they eat and the amount of exercise they get. Neutered dgos may require less food to maintain thier ideal weight so just feed them less and see that they get more exercise when needed. Most obese neutered pets would  be obese even if they weren't neutered. IMO we see more obese neutered pets since most pet owners tend to overfeed their dogs and most pets are neutered.

Less activity,

Move more, eat less....

Animal's metabolism change's thru the year's anyway.. including human's.

JMO

I had my youngest neutered in May when he was 3yrs, his excercise and food intake as remained the same he has not gained weight, he does have an increased appetite but has he can only eat what I give him his weight remains the same.

Pam

   As a Vet assistant we'd told  owners that "spaying your pet won't make them fat" as that was one of the reasons people gave for not altering them, BUT we'd also instruct them to reduce food intake as altered dogs are often less active and require less food.   As long as the mentality (at least in the US) is that fat dogs mean that their owners love them and are "good" owners... and that thin dogs mean that their owners are cruel and that it's abuse to the dog.  they aren't going to change it.  And the owners prefer to blame it on the Vets, or the surgery, rather than assume responsibility for providing the carefully measured amount of food to give their dog on a daily basis.  NOT free feeding !! Face it most owners are lazy, and just throw food @ their dogs rather than measure it.  My Old Aussie ate 2 1/2 cups of meal a day... if  by mistake she got 3 cups (or if my partner got a lil free with the biscuits) she'd gain weight in a matter of a week. 

So it really just comes down to overfeeding.  People don't realize how little their inactive house dogs need to eat!  Most of them eat more than my very active working dogs! 

My older bitch would eat 10 cups a day if I let her.

A while back I posted a story about her getting into the refrigerator.   My answer to that, no food for you for a couple of days.   The darn thing was still hungry.  She could very easily be a grossly obese dog in a free feeding house!

I do recall two dogs in particular that after they were neutered as adults, the owners didn't adjust the food as needed, and the dogs within a matter of a year, became grossly obese.   These dogs food probably should have been halved!