The question of the sterilization of dogs is complex and often able to warm the spirits: if for females it is simpler (we tend to do it routine, especially when the animal lives in urban contexts), for males there are those who say that it is equally important, but also those who on the contrary claim that they are only a cruel and dangerous act for the lack of production of Testosterone following the intervention.
We try to explain to you what are the pros and cons of sterilization, but we would like to point out first of all this study published on BMC Veterinary Research from the Parsemus Foundation, which could solve the dilemma once and for all.
What is the problem? Reiterating that in this article we will speak only male dogsthe problem has a name (English): “SPAY-NEUTER SYndrome“, which we could generically translate as” sterilization syndrome “(“spay” And “neuter“They refer respectively to the females and male). It is a series of physical and psychological consequences, linked to the fact that, In addition to removing the reproductive bodiessterilization also eliminates a series of essential hormones for dogs, above all testosterone (and estrogen for females).
The absence of testosterone from an early age causes a strong vulnerability to certain diseases in dogs: Cancer, incontinence, obesity, hyperthyroidism… Furthermore, a male to whom testosterone is removed is more likely to become anxious, reactive, frightened and even aggressive. Obviously, do not sterilize a male dog, especially in an urban context, brings with it a series of other problems, first of all the relationship with other whole males. But if this can be train or in any case keep under control, i physiological and psychological damage due to sterilization remain.
Alternatives to sterilization. That’s why you are trying to study alternative methods to classical sterilization, which remove the reproductive skills of dogs without removing testosterone. But these are still experimental solutions, and above all not applicable to dogs that have already been sterilized. That’s why the Parsemus Foundation, an NGO that is dedicated to the welfare of pets, has attempted another way: Testosterone therapy that allows sterilized dogs not to lose this fundamental hormone.
Simple and low cost. The therapy is very simple to explain: it is simply about inject testosterone into sterilized dogs, so as to “cover” the physiological lack due to the operation. The test, which planned to treat several dogs with different doses of testosterone, proved to be very positive: there were no side effects on dogs, which however were able to benefit from the presence in the circle of the hormone that had been removed.
The team also noticed a reduction in the LH hormone, linked to several health problems, cancer in the first place. In short, Treating dogs sterilized with testosterone could be a quick and low cost solution for the SPAY-NEUTER SYndrome.
