does spaying and neutering make your dog fat?

[Nightshadows]

In light of another thread that has migrated into this subject, what do you think? Does spaying and neutering cause your dog to become fat and lazy?

[Nicole]

Here's a really interesting article (although a bit long ) that talks about a true study done about this very subject, instead of our anecdotal information that we could share. I thought it was really interesting - and I'm trying to find the study done by Angell Memorial and see if that's online too. Mind you, it was cats done in this study, but I talked it over with a animal medical friend of mine and she stated that the results that they were seeing would be consistent with dogs too.

www.winnfelinehealth.org/reports/early-neuter.html

[Adkins]

Nightshadow,
Not up to reading that article, so hear is my information. Yes, most of the time your dog will gain weight once spayed or neutered. All 4 of my dogs did along with all the dogs I've delt with over the years. You may want to cut back your dogs food. The weight gaining deals with the change in hormonal balance which also deals with their matabalism(? spelling).
Hope this helps. Adkins

[ShepVet]

I've been forever told that Spaying/neutering causes the dog/cat to gain weight....

I will have to disagree with this (in many cases, not all) based on experience with many rescues and my own critters.

I watch the diet with my spayed dogs/cats the same as with my intact ones, with about the same exercise levels. My performance dogs have higher needs, my couch potatoes need less so I do not overfeed.

I've seen that a sensible diet (each indv. dogs requirements are different and so the diet needs vary) and basic exercise (even a walk around the block and time to play outside) keeps the weight even.

Many spayed/neutered dogs go from an active lifestyle to one of leisure. If they are not encouraged to do some form of exercise (which is important for ANY dog's health) they CAN become fatty's in a blink of an eye. An intact dog can do the same if left to lay on the couch or by the fireplace.

Now that said. I've had CERTAIN dogs that were prone to carry weight if I so much as turned around. This has been true for my intact dogs/cats as well as a few spayed. The actual Spaying caused no real change as they were prone to carry extra weight to begin with.

So my honest thought is that is truely depends on the dog/cat both in diet and in health (off hormones can REALLY cause problems) and the lifestyle/exercise.

If they are prone to carry weight or have low metabs (which might need a visit to the vet to determine the cause), you will need to be more careful diet/exercise wise but I truely have NOT seen much weight gain JUST because of neutering/spaying. Usually I've seen it as a combo spay/lifestyle change.

<shrug>

But this is just my point of view based on hands on exercise over the years......

[Anakin & Phoenix]

Heck no! Only one of my dogs has even been 'fat' and it was her genetic makeup...not her spay. I've had two neutered males and my Anakin is a 'bean pole' that is hard to keep weight on. I actually feel I neutered him too early and that by doing so kept him from filling out properly.
All my dogs up to this point have been spayed or neutered. Only my little Phoenix is intact at this point.

I forgot to add that my working line female that was spayed and had Addisons Disease was wired and didn't slow down even in the depths of fighting her disorder.

[Vani]

Good points!!

I think anything that doesn't eat and exercise properly including us can gain weight. I had my tubes tied several years back and I started gaining weight