Will my dog stop running away if I neuter him? – Advanced Animal Care
It is a good possibility. Many male dogs are out looking for a girlfriend. If they smell another dog in heat, and they can smell that from very long distances, they will go after that dog. Thats one reason why its a great idea to neuter if youre not planning on breeding your dog. It can help avoid any unnecessary accidents like being hit by a car or getting lost. Contributed by
It is useful to remember that dogs’ living ancestors, the wolves, roam for a living. For them, roaming is a natural behavior that involves scouting, hunting, exploration, and discovery. Home, the den is reserved for family affairs but all other good things in life are procured by skillful exploitation of their home range. Typically, a wolf’s or wild dog’s home range covers several square miles and nature has equipped them (and their domestic dog descendents) with a “Cadillac” North Star navigation system that enables them to create and store mental maps. Essentially, they never get lost and can always find their way home. With these awesome skills, all they need is a good reason to go and they’re gone.
The third step is to ensure that the environment in which you leave your dog is “user friendly.” There is any number of ways to do this and they all involve various forms of environmental enrichment plus dutiful attention to the dog’s basic needs. Environmental enrichment measures include providing your dog some company while you are away, ensuring he has plenty of aerobic exercise every day, making sure he has a sensible diet, and making sure he has a meaningful job to perform while you are with him Another more helpful measure is to make home as rewarding a place for him to be as possible – literally. Put your dog on a long line and feed him small meals often by the back door. Later, even if the frequency of meals is reduced he will hang around the vicinity of your home – just in case a meal is in the offing.
But when the neighborhood is concrete or tarmac and is seething with automobiles and trucks, this can present a problem. Free-ranging dogs get into a lot of trouble in our society and a good number of them wind up in the pound. For this reason, a wandering dog is not a good dog is not a happy dog – not in the long run anyway. If the trucks don’t get them, and they don’t bite or get bitten, the animal control officer will eventually track them down.
No one in his right mind would allow a dog to roam the streets these days. There’s just too much trouble out there – not to mention leash laws. Attending to a dog’s basic needs, making home a fun place, fencing in the yard properly, and having your dog neutered will all help to prevent escapes. And if your dog is one of those incorrigibles who are likely try anything to escape whatever you do, then you should make sure he is properly identified with tattooing, identification collars and tags or a microchip, so that he can be safely returned in the event of the inevitable escape.
The second most important measure is to have your yard fenced with a sturdy solid fence to prevent your dog’s escape and unwanted visits from neighboring dogs. Ties, runs, and electric fences are not as good as real fences because they don’t keep others out and seem to increase territorial aggression in some dogs.
Neutering Stops A Dog From Running Away For Romance
The main reason a male dog runs away from home is that he wants to chase a female. Dogs can sense from a considerable distance when a female is ovulating in the neighborhood. So, neutering your dog will help with that. Once you neuter him, it’s quite likely that he’s reasons for running away will be gone along his hormones.
Now, the only problem is that the reason your dog is running away might be another one. In this case, neutering won’t help at all. Still, neutering also makes males less aggressive and agitated, which can also contribute. The biggest advantage is that you’ll be eliminating the main reason why a dog runs away from home.
So, you should definitely consider neutering your dog, if he’s running away all the time. The chances that he’ll even consider running every time you leave the gates opened are slim. Ideally, you do this when your dog is still relatively young to increase the odds of it working.
Another advantage of neutering your dog is that it’ll make him calmer. Calm dogs are less likely to run away because they don’t have the same need to explore and fight with other dogs. Sometimes dogs run away because they see another male on what he considers his surroundings. So, he runs away to pick up a fight. When your dog is neutered, the chances of this happening decreases.
Now, always remember that the earlier in your dog’s life that you do this, the more likely it is to succeed. The good thing is that the changes are noticeable right way, with some things changing in the following months of such procedure. Since you’re getting a calmer dog that hasn’t the same needs to go after females, neutering seems a good option.
So, all you have to do is to consult a vet to better analyze the pros and cons. Some people don’t like the possible side effects. It’s nothing major but without the same level of hormones, your dog may get fat faster or have less energy.
It’s important to remember that your dog is still a dog. This means that as much as neutering will stop him from running away in most situations, you still need to be careful. That’s why you still need fences. It’s important to keep an eye on your dog to make sure he doesn’t run away. Remember that anything that your dog does it’s on you.
The best thing that you can do is to put fences on your yard or get a dog gate. They prevent your dog from running away even when the door and gates are opened. This is an effective way to keep your dog on your property. Fences also prevent your dog from running away and attacking the neighbor’s pet.
So, make sure to put a nice fence or pet gate whenever your dog is around. This will avoid a lot of headaches and problems with the neighbors. They’re also really easy to install. You don’t need more than 5 minutes. The Midwest Foldable Metal Exercise Pen is a great dog fence, if you were looking for an option this is the perfect one. Check it out here.