My dog, an Australian Shepherd, is 10 months old. She used to be really sociable and would happily go up to people. She was very playful, but for a few weeks now... she’s been scared of everything and everyone... noises in the street, a motorbike or a car going past... She's even scared of my friends coming over to see me at the house, even though she’s known them since she was a tiny puppy.
It’s as if she’s depressed...
As soon as someone arrives at the house, she goes and hides wherever she can... in corners... behind my legs... and most of all, she bolts into the garden, terrified, and hides behind a tree... Even if they try to call her over to reassure her and give her a stroke... it's no use... She wasn't like that with them before... Her fears started after she was spayed (at 6 months old... I don't know if there's a link)... She was so sociable before and always went up to people... She's not playful anymore either... She's only 10 months old... what should I do?
Thanks for your advice
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Exactly, my main issue with the studies published on this subject is the bias, particularly the risk of confounding factors.
Basically, whether a dog is neutered or not might be linked to other things that impact their behaviour or health—like being a city dog versus a country dog, which you explained so well this morning.
A decent study really needs to break down the characteristics of the groups involved (neutered vs intact): where they came from (a rescue vs a breeder, for instance!), their lifestyle, and so on. It also needs to ensure those characteristics are evenly spread across both groups.
Until that’s been done, honestly, we haven’t really proven anything at all.
I’ll give that a read, Balista 👍
Yes, Kainate, it’s up to everyone to do their own research as best they can and try not to fall into the trap of going to extremes. I think there are quite a few underestimated biases in this field too (like with the weight gain we were talking about this morning). The problem is that the stats don’t tell us which dogs were actually being studied...
"However, I think it’s actually quite healthy that we’re questioning the narrative that’s prevailed for the last few decades. It allows everyone to properly think about the consequences, rather than just following the crowd and automatically getting all their pets neutered."
Yeah, unfortunately, when you challenge a concept that was once widely accepted by everyone, there’s always a period where things swing to the extremes before finding a bit of a middle ground again. That’s pretty much where we are now. You end up with the "pros" and the "antis", when really, you don't have to be either. It’s more about being aware of the benefits and the risks—whilst keeping them in perspective, because I feel like the effects, both positive and negative, are usually far less noticeable than people expect! You’ve got to remember that the vast majority of people who get their dog neutered don’t actually notice any change at all, for better or for worse. It’s all about tailoring the decision to the specific context.
I suggested this on Flip-Cockwood's thread, but I’d really encourage you to read the book by Dr Joël Dehasse (a veterinary behaviourist) on the subject if you haven’t already.
He doesn’t just dismiss all the benefits of neutering out of hand, but the book shows that things aren't quite as black and white as we’re usually led to believe.
Specifically, you learn that neutering often leads to more behavioural problems than it solves. The same goes for certain health issues (particularly lymphomas, and bone or tendon diseases). It also highlights that the common belief that neutered dogs live longer than intact ones is actually quite biased in several ways, especially regarding the age at which they were neutered.
Another thing to consider for this decision is the dog's breed. It might sound a bit strange, but it turns out that neutering can be quite detrimental for certain breeds, such as Vizslas, Boxers, and giant breeds in general.
Yes, mind you, I don't think at all that the change in the OP’s dog has anything to do with hormones. Mainly because it takes quite a while for the hormones to leave their system after the op, so any hormone-related changes would happen gradually, rather than overnight as soon as they’re back from the vet.
However, I do think it’s quite a good thing that we’re questioning the narrative that’s been the norm for the last few decades. It means people can actually weigh up the consequences for themselves instead of just following the crowd and automatically getting all their pets spayed or neutered.
I’m still a bit sceptical about the anti-neutering "backlash" we’re seeing these days.
After years of being championed as the solution to every behavioural issue and the only way to effectively manage population control—with pets being done at younger and younger ages— the pendulum has now swung the other way. Neutering is now being blamed for just about every problem going, which I think is a bit of an overreaction.
While it’s right to keep in mind the various theoretical psychological and physiological effects of hormone deprivation, I think we need to keep a level head: we’ve been neutering all sorts of species for centuries, and the fact is that in the vast majority of cases, the body manages perfectly well to find a healthy psychological and physiological balance without those hormones.
"Theoretically", hormone deprivation could make an animal less confident, and a few studies do seem to suggest this (though there are some biases to account for). However, in practice, I hardly ever see owners complaining about their pet becoming more fearful after being neutered.
In the case of the OP's dog, we can’t rule out the role of neutering, of course, but these behavioural changes can easily be explained without it. This fear period in adolescent dogs (known as the "second fear phase") is a well-known phenomenon that you see in entire dogs too. It’s usually particularly noticeable in shepherds; it’s actually at this age (around 6 months) that many start becoming wary of strangers and develop their guarding and protective instincts. I went through it with my own dog who, despite being well-socialised, started lunging and barking at strangers when he was about 6 months old.
There’s no "magic fix": you just have to keep taking the time to socialise your dog, exposing them to as many situations as possible with gentleness and patience. It can’t be said often enough, but socialisation—especially with a shepherd—isn't just for puppies; it needs to continue right through adolescence and into adulthood, as nothing is ever truly "set" before then. Protective instincts, guarding, prey drive, and so on, are all behavioural patterns that emerge as a dog grows and can undo all the socialisation work you’ve put in previously.
@Jcne, interesting that these are actually physiological effects, if I’ve understood you right? So, following that logic, neutering could be a good thing if there’s an underlying imbalance, but might actually cause an issue if everything was balanced in the first place?
I suspect it's even more complicated than that, unfortunately... I actually thought of you when I spotted this post. It gives you a few different perspectives on neutering.
Neutering or spaying is never a trivial matter and plays a major role both physiologically and behaviourally. Testosterone and progesterone are key to an animal’s emotional state, acting on the brain through specific chemical reactions they produce. Notably, they help inhibit fear, anxiety, and stress. It’s not unusual, for example, for many vets to suggest neutering a dog described as "too dominant" to curb their behaviour, and it often does work—but you have to understand the real reason why. It’s simply because the dog loses confidence in its own abilities. From an emotional perspective, it’s not great, but it suits the owners because they focus more on what is visible (the behaviour) than what is invisible (the emotional state—how the dog is feeling psychologically). In some cases, the chemical reactions produced by progesterone or testosterone maintain the balance between fear and confidence, and neutering simply breaks that balance. It’s also worth noting that some Nordic countries have banned the neutering of animals as it’s considered a breach of animal welfare on these grounds and is a criminal offence punishable by prison.
This is so depressing for me as I had no choice but to get my dog neutered...
For the time being, there are no negative side effects to report, but it really bothers me that I was forced to do it.
Evening,
Mine went through the exact same thing between 6 and 9 months old. She was scared of everything, even the sound of the radiator.
It just went away on its own in the end. I reckon it’s more to do with their age than anything to do with her being spayed. We just kept taking her out and socialising her as usual.
She’s eighteen months old now and everything’s back to normal. I must admit I was really worried at the time, though—the thought of her behaviour changing like that.
Hang in there.
That’s interesting that these are actually physiological effects, if I’ve understood you correctly?
So, following that logic, neutering or spaying could play a positive role if there’s an underlying imbalance, but then potentially cause an imbalance if everything was naturally balanced to begin with?
