Over the long holiday weekend, Aaron and I finally did right by our pup and had Rasta neutered.
I really feel that we did the right thing. Male dogs that are neutered get rid of any chance of having testicular cancer, as well as other male-related diseases I can't remember the names of right now. Neutering also gets rid of their desire to wander in search of a mate--meaning, he is much less likely to run away. It also reduces his testosterone levels, making him less hyper and excitable (hopefully making life a bit easier not only for US, but for him. Who wants to be hyper ALL of the time?)
Even so, after his 2-hour recovery period, as the nurse walked Rasta out to the waiting room, I burst into tears; he instantaneously peed on the floor (I'm assuming his version of bursting into tears). He looked so out of it; drunk, almost. He couldn't walk in a straight line and he could barely hold his head up. After Aaron laid his feeble 62-lb. body in the back seat, he whimpered, obviously in pain. The whole way home I questioned my decision to put Rasta through this.
However, the next day, my beloved pooch was already back to normal. Although we were under strict instructions to keep Rasta from running or jumping, he was (of course) defying us and running up and down the stairs (to Aaron's and my absolute horror!). He was already attempting to disembowel the stuffed cow and monkey we had bought him as "sorry we got your balls chopped off" presents and completely annihilated a flavored raw-hide. So, as much as I had regretted my decision the day before, I felt that the surgery really hadn't been all THAT bad--in fact, I'm now counting down the days until his testosterone levels drop to a more reasonable amount.
Anyway, what I'm saying is that having my dog undergo surgery was quite a horrific ordeal, and it got me to thinking about how I would handle it if my own human-child got sick, or had to be hospitalized, or had to have surgery. It scares me to think about, and reminds me that I am nowhere near ready to have a child--at least, not until I am mature enough to be able to handle disasters without having a mental breakdown. I know that my children will need me to be mentally strong enough to be their strength when they are weak; and right now, I am much too selfish and immature to be able to be that person.
I know that you feel the same way that I do about animals, and I have to reassure you that what you did for Rasta was definitely the right thing. If he WERE to get out and find a "mate" un-neutered, there would be a preggie dog out there making more puppies than are necessary. I'm sure the last thing you'd want is for a mommy pup to have a litter of unwanted baby-things. :) We haven't gotten Ichi neutered yet, but.. he can't get outside by himself.. so we're okay with it for now. Soon, though.. he will be neutered because you're right, it decreases their risk for testicular cancer. I've seen a dog die from testicular cancer, and it's really depressing to see.
ReplyDeleteI'm assuming Rasta is just fine now, as this was posted a few days ago.. and is back to normal chewing up everything in his sight. :) I've heard from a lot of people that sometimes neutering them doesn't make them less active or hyper, and it's just an age thing. He'll grow out of it eventually. Ichi is almost one (on the 30th) and he's matured a lot more than when he was a wee pup.
Oh yeah, he was back to normal the very next day! And you're right, it was definitely the right decision...it was just hard to see him like that.
ReplyDeleteAnd I've heard that neutering doesn't necessarily make them less hyper, either...but I was REALLY hoping it would, lol! I just did not expect him to get so big, and it's much harder having a hyper BIG dog than say, a hyper teacup chihuahua, lol...
Hahaha. I definitely understand. Ichi is a bit of a handful when he gets hyper, so I can only imagine having a Rasta sized dog all hyped up. I'd probably put him in the closet. :)
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