Are Neutered Dogs Safer to Work with than Intact Dogs?

There are several factors that should make a trainer more cautious when working with a dog: low sociability, bite history, medical problems, maternal instinct, injuries, barrier frustration, sexually mature and finally, the topic of this post - sexually intact males. All of these justify more caution. I am always a bit more careful when working with intact males (higher drive means harder biting). But I still enjoy working with them hands-on. 

Some trainers are wary of working with intact males and will quote a study from a few years ago that showed that intact male dogs between eighteen months and two years of age have a greater incidence of aggression than females or neutered males. But it's not proven science that this is due to testosterone. It is just as likely that it's due to socioeconomic factors. Dogs who arrive at animal shelters intact are mostly from lower income communities. People who cannot afford to provide medical care certainly cannot afford professional training, and some even encourage aggressive behavior in their dogs in a misplaced effort at "protection training." 

In my almost 30 years of dog training experience, I've been bitten more often by neutered dogs than by intact dogs. I know trainers from military and police backgrounds who worked exclusively with intact males and have never been bitten.

Neutered male dogs have 3 times the risk of hypothyroidism - and there are more dogs who bite due to hypothyroidism than any other medical factor. 

Testosterone doesn’t make a dog vicious, it merely adds drive. All police patrol dogs and military dogs are intact – and attacks on their handlers are virtually unheard of.

A landmark scientific study found that only a small percentage of dogs realize a change in aggressive behavior after being neutered:   Neilson, Eckstein, and Hart,(1997) found that [only] 25% of adult dogs that were aggressive toward humans or other dogs in the household can be expected to have a 50 to 90% level of improvement after gonadectomy.  A 50 - 90% level of improvement can likewise be observed in [ONLY]  10 to 15% of dogs that are aggressive toward unfamiliar people or human territorial intruders after gonadectomy.

No trainer should get a false sense of security because a dog is neutered. And no trainer should ever recommend neutering as a solution to aggression.  (Of course, neutered males who have not yet fought are less likely to fight if they are neutered as a preventative measure.)

There is universal agreement among breeders of large breed dogs that, for a number of developmental reasons, it is inadvisable to neuter too young, and there are well known health risks involved with spaying and neutering dogs.  

Regarding females and any connection between spaying and aggression, Lindsay’s Encyclopedia of Dog Behavior and Training (Volume 2, p. 187) includes a study which supports the assertion that incidents of aggression are higher in spayed females than in non-spayed females. 

 My main point is this: No trainer should be "more relaxed" just because a dog is neutered.

Emotional Support Dogs for People with Alzheimer's

Choosing the right dog and the right trainer are two critical steps involved in the process of successfully bringing an emotional support dog into a family.

In her book  "The 24-Hour Rule: Living with Alzheimer's" Cheryl Levin-Folio writes, "Dogs offer unconditional love...comfort and a calming influence influenced by his emotional support animal training. 

The physical contact, we've discovered, is as important and effective as the emotional connection that comes with having dogs in the family. Lack of touch is devastating to anyone, particularly someone suffering with Alzheimer's."

Cheryl and her family worked with Carol Ross, CDBA,  to help  train Oliver, their English Creme Golden Retriever for his job as an emotional support dog for Cheryl's husband Michael.  In Chapter 8, Ross, a certified dog trainer and Director of Training for Canine Dimensions North Chicago region, describes some of the work she did with Oliver:

“I started working with Oliver when he was about eight weeks old. The window for socialization runs until they are about five months old. My first goal was to get Oliver up to American Kennel Club “Canine Good Citizen” standards. I wanted him to have good manners, be polite, and act appropriately wherever he went, no matter whom he was with. He had a little more training specific to being an Emotional Support Animal, so he’d stay close to Michael, literally touching him much of the time, place his head on Michael’s lap to help keep Michael calm as needed, and do things like “hold stay” for two hours so he could go on plane trips.

We were laying the groundwork for all of this starting at two months old. But the key piece when he was so young was introducing him to as many people and situations as possible. While working with me, he was exposed to at least 300 people, 60 friendly dogs, and wide range of environments, medical equipment, and behaviors. We went to all kinds of dog-friendly events, stores, schools, and parks, anything I could think of. We spent time downtown. We went to the airport.

A lot of this socialization was before we began to work on specific skills with Michael. In the early days, their job was just to form a strong bond. After that, we started the more formal “obedience” training. Like humans, dogs learn best when the process is simple. In this case, keeping it simple meant breaking the process down into smaller piece, and more repetition of each skill. Consistency is the key.

Through this process, Oliver and Michael learned the commands “Come,” “Sit,” “Down,” “Stay,” and “Drop It.” In addition, they mastered “Look” (for Oliver to make eye contact with Michael), “Touch” (for Oliver to gently touch Michael’s hand). “Enough” (Stop what you are doing!), and “Away” (give me a little space). Oliver and Baxter both learned “Go to Your Place” for when someone comes to the door who doesn’t really need a high-energy canine greeting committee.

This collection of commands covers most things that come up for most dogs and their people. Many dogs need additional training in this or that, specific to their situation and depending on their personalities, behavior and circumstances. A small dog that lives in an apartment and annoys the neighbors with barking can be taught to stop barking on command, for example.

Some dogs are trained specifically as service dogs for people with Alzheimer’s, which is mainly to help with a person who wanders or gets lost. But Oliver’s job is different – he’s for company, calming and comfort."