# Neutering has made my dog CRAZY



## surftb15 (Dec 23, 2009)

I am getting very frustrated here.

I got my Aussie neutered on his one year old Birthday last Wednesday. I got him neutered because I am adding a female to the pack in the enxt few weeks. Otherwise, I wouldn't have considered it.

Ever since his neuter, he has been acting insane. He still wants to practice frisbee and whatnot, but does not want to listen to any command and is acting out of line. He even growled at me when I took his Raw Meaty bone away. His herding instinct on sheep has not changed.

Now my vet said to give it two weeks for the hormones to change.

Has this happened with anyone else?


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## agility collie mom (Jan 26, 2008)

It takes thirty days post neuter for hormones to level off. Plus he is still a young puppy who will go through other stages of maturity. I don't think that what you are seeing is the results of being neutered rather it is a part of just growing up. Don't get discouraged this stage will pass with consistency from you.


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## surftb15 (Dec 23, 2009)

Well, it has to be attributed to post neuter. The morning he got neutered, I had him out practicing frisbee and he was very attentive and focused. Now, this morning, I had him out on frisbees and he ran away. 

There's not even a week difference in time there.


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## Cracker (May 25, 2009)

I agree with ACM. You likely are seeing social maturity start to kick in and the dog's personality will fluctuate around this time, it's most likely coincedence that you are seeing this around the time of his neuter. My friend's bc client became a real PITA at a year and then calmed down considerably (keeping in mind what calm IS to a bc) by two years. Consistency and training is key.



surftb15 said:


> Well, it has to be attributed to post neuter. The morning he got neutered, I had him out practicing frisbee and he was very attentive and focused. Now, this morning, I had him out on frisbees and he ran away.
> 
> There's not even a week difference in time there.


He may be experiencing discomfort from the surgery or something may have spooked him (like being neutered on his birthday? LOL) one incident does not a behaviour change make.


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## surftb15 (Dec 23, 2009)

True.
I guess I just have to wait until the hormones die down a bit.
He has been just acting nutty. Much different then pre surgery.
And the vet told me he was going to calm down.


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## LuvMyAngels (May 24, 2009)

At a year old he's still such a puppy and going through so many different phases...mentally and physically. My 18 month old Saint boy (intact for the moment) is the same way. One day he'll be this sweet angel, hitting every cue perfectly...the next he's Satans spawn and has the attention span of a flea.

Be consistent and give him time to grow up and you'll be rewarded with the awesome dog thats lurking inside on his bad days


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## Mrs.K (Aug 28, 2010)

Actually, it can take much much longer than thirty days for the hormones to change. Every dog is different and every surgery can leave a dog traumatized. With my bitch it took more than three months for her to recover not only fro the trauma of the surgery but for her hormonal change. 

Give him time. Lots of time, a week is not going to cut it.


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## grab (Sep 26, 2009)

My guess would be hormones, they should level off soon. It's also positive that he's "getting his woolies out" due to being confined for a bit after surgery. I know my more active dogs can be a bit goofy if they've had to be cooped up


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## surftb15 (Dec 23, 2009)

I spoke to the breeder and she told me that one time, she had a male Aussie neutered and he turned into a horror. She wasn't able to feed him inside anymore and he was kept outside in a crate. She was considering putting him down , but after 2 or so weeks, he became a lot better. So thats encouraging.

I really think its pent up energy as well.


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## Shell (Oct 19, 2009)

surftb15 said:


> I spoke to the breeder and she told me that one time, she had a male Aussie neutered and he turned into a horror. She wasn't able to feed him inside anymore and he was kept outside in a crate. She was considering putting him down , but after 2 or so weeks, he became a lot better. So thats encouraging.
> 
> I really think its pent up energy as well.


Yikes, that is jumping the gun to consider putting a healthy dog down for what sounded like a very resolvable training issue. And any dog would likely get "nutty" if kept outside in a crate (pent up energy, lack of attention, loneliness). 

I would seriously rethink taking advice from this breeder.


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## surftb15 (Dec 23, 2009)

This breeder is a hall of fame kennel.
The dog would get plenty of work on livestock, but was destructive in the house and towards family memebers. So she kept it in a kennel outside.
There is nothing wrong with that. The dog was older as well.


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## spotted nikes (Feb 7, 2008)

Who was the breeder?

Agree with those that told you in no uncertain terms that neutering does NOT make a dog crazy.


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## wabanafcr (Jun 28, 2007)

You neutered the dog less than a week ago and tried frisbee with him today? Ouch. Give him some time.


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## surftb15 (Dec 23, 2009)

Frisbee? He's an Aussie, he needs that stimulation. I didn't try anything crazy that I have been working on though, just catching a disk.

Anyway, I spoke to the vet. She said he just seems worked up. The half life of testoserone is about 3 months, so it takes a few weeks for the dog to calm down. under her guidance, he went out to play with my friends Border Collie. I have never seen him run so fast in my life.


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## TheBearCat (Jun 5, 2010)

wabanafcr said:


> You neutered the dog less than a week ago and tried frisbee with him today? Ouch. Give him some time.


Agreed. When our shelter dogs are freshly speutered they're limited to frequent short walks for a while. No running, playing, jumping or anything that may stress the area.


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## Mrs.K (Aug 28, 2010)

surftb15 said:


> Frisbee? He's an Aussie, he needs that stimulation. I didn't try anything crazy that I have been working on though, just catching a disk.
> 
> Anyway, I spoke to the vet. She said he just seems worked up. The half life of testoserone is about 3 months, so it takes a few weeks for the dog to calm down. under her guidance, he went out to play with my friends Border Collie. I have never seen him run so fast in my life.


While most vets say that the dog shouldn't run or jump in the first week I would not let him fetch the frisbee yet. There are different possibilities to stimulate and tire out a dog. He underwent a surgery not even a week ago. Give that dog some time and a break. It needs to heal properly. In my opinion you are playing a dangerous game with your dogs health.


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## indiana (May 27, 2010)

I think it's pretty normal for a dog to be crazy right after neutering. Mine HATED not being able to run around and was horrible to have around until he was able to run. HE felt fine after two days, but had to be calm for 8 more after that. I wouldn't play frisbee with him less than a week after a neuter, but I also wouldn't be surprised if he was a brat until everything was healed.


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## grab (Sep 26, 2009)

active dogs need stimulation, yes, but you'd be far better off giving him things to keep him busy mentally for another week (puzzle toys, stuffed Kongs, etc). It is a simple surgery, yes, but a surgery nonetheless. Stretching muscles and tissues that are still healing can end up delaying the healing process or causing complications. Particularly as he was an adult when neutered. I'm not sure if you've had any surgery, but humans are given the same restrictions for much the same reason.


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## surftb15 (Dec 23, 2009)

UPDATE:
B has calmed down to pre-neuter levels.
FOr some reason, he has a hightened herding drive now. Observed by two people.
Weird.


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## ThoseWordsAtBest (Mar 18, 2009)

He might have a herding drive because, and I know this sounds crazy, he is a Shepherd.


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## Pynzie (Jan 15, 2010)

surftb15 said:


> UPDATE:
> FOr some reason, he has a hightened herding drive now. Observed by two people.
> Weird.


Haha, again, I don't really think this has something to do with being neutered, if that is what you are implying. Like everyone else was saying, he's still growing up and changes are to be expected.


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## Willowy (Dec 10, 2007)

Or, possibly, since he's no longer thinking about girls now, he's concentrating more on his career. . .


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## surftb15 (Dec 23, 2009)

Willowy said:


> Or, possibly, since he's no longer thinking about girls now, he's concentrating more on his career. . .


I think that is precisely it. Wish I had a digital camera, but today they had some alpacas for kids to pet in the park near me. B was getting them all wild up herding them from outside the pen.
Luckily, the alpacas didnt spit


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