Appropriate age for desexing dogs/cats
When is the right age to desex cats and dogs?
The traditional age for desexing cats and dogs has for time immemorial been around 6 months of age. There is, however, debate these days about whether or not this is the most appropriate age for desexing.
Desexing dogs and cats earlier has been shown to have several advantages:
reduced risk of unplanned pregnancies, especially in cats which can reach puberty as early as 4 months old
faster surgery and recovery times
positive behavioural changes (e.g. reduced fighting and marking behaviour in male cats)
prevention of testicular/ovarian/uterine cancers, reduced risk of mammary cancers
reduced urinary tract disease in cats.
Desexing post-puberty is thought to be beneficial for some dog breeds as desexing before the long bones finish growing can make them more susceptible to joint issues, such as hip and elbow dysplasia and cranial cruciate ligament tears. A recent study showed this was restricted mainly to certain large breed dogs. There also appears to be an increased risk of certain cancers in some dogs desexed prior to 6 months of age, again mainly restricted to larger breeds. This study provides guidelines for the appropriate age of desexing of 35 dog breeds.
Information on the benefits of delayed desexing of certain breeds, as well as the desexing age guidelines, can be found in the report below:
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fvets.2020.00388/full
If you would like to read more on the benefits of early-age desexing, the RSPCA has written a detailed report:
