DEAR READERS: I urge all veterinarians, and people with young dogs who are not yet neutered, to read this recently published study: “Assisting decision-making on age of neutering for German Short/Wirehaired Pointer, Mastiff, Newfoundland, Rhodesian Ridgeback, Siberian Husky: associated joint disorders, cancers and urinary incontinence,” by Lynette Hart, et al., published in April in Frontiers in Veterinary Science.
The report states: “Spaying female and castrating male dogs, hereinafter referred to as neutering, is a U.S. convention for the first year in the dog’s life. Research on 35 breeds of dogs revealed that early neutering increases risks of joint disorders, such as hip dysplasia, elbow dysplasia or cranial cruciate ligament tear, or cancers, such as lymphosarcoma, mast cell tumor, hemangiosarcoma or osteosarcoma, for some breeds. Joint disorder risks are heightened for some larger breeds and for mixed-breed dogs weighing more than 20 kg. Some breeds had elevated risks for cancers.”
My advice has always been not to neuter until full physical maturity. This is an issue with animal shelters, where the policy is an early spay/neuter for all pups prior to adoption. That should be revised with the new findings about adverse consequences in certain breeds, since mixed breeds may also be adversely affected later in life.
One option for shelters is to vasectomize male pups and perform hysterectomies on females, leaving the ovaries intact. (Testicles and ovaries can be removed later in life if desired, after veterinary consultation.) This practice could reduce urinary incontinence, for example, especially in young female dogs -- a condition that may lead some owners to put their dogs up for adoption.
DEAR DR. FOX: I am familiar with some of your writings about animal sentience, and I wonder if you have read this book about plants. It is an eye- (and heart- and mind-) opener! It’s called “The Light Eaters: How the Unseen World of Plant Intelligence Offers a New Understanding of Life on Earth” by Zoe Schlanger. -- C.F., San Francisco
DEAR C.F.: Thank you for informing me about this new book, which represents a major contribution to the advancement of our appreciation for other members of the planetary life community.
It is very interesting and significant that at this critical time in our evolution, and in the face of climate change and biodiversity loss and rising extinctions, there is more discovery and integration of information about other sentient beings, including plants. We are realizing their contribution to our own well-being, along with viruses and bacteria, without which we would not exist. With this realization -- and with the ethical call of reverence for all life -- the Anthropocene era is being transcended by what my friend the late Father Thomas Berry called the Ecozoic era (which I call the Ethicocene). It is a paradigm shift, indeed!
HUMANE PIG CARE OPPOSITION
In his May 26 Star Tribune article "Farm bill brings more division in D.C.," reporter Christopher Vondracek writes about the proposed $1.5 trillion Farm Bill, which includes a provision to nullify the California hog welfare law passed in 2018. That initiative, known as Proposition 12, stipulates humane production standards for all pig products sold in California. Among other things, it requires pork producers to give each sow (mother pig) at least 24 square feet of space.
Now, some members of Congress are trying to nullify that law and prevent similar measures from passing. Speaking for his Minnesota pork-producing constituents, who fear economic loss of sales in California, Republican Rep. Brad Finstad calls Proposition 12 the “use of political science to mandate wrongheaded protection standards.”
Political science? Hardly. It is based on behavioral science -- the understanding of animal sentience -- and the ethics of compassion. Finstad needs to get an education. The provision to nullify Proposition 12 should be removed when the Farm Bill gets to the Senate.
PET FUR CONDITIONER RECALLED
Spectrum Brands Pet Care has recalled FURminator deShedding Ultra Premium Dog Conditioner due to potential contamination with Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria. The product was sold online and in pet supply stores in the U.S. and Canada. (Full story: cpsc.gov, June 6)
(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.
Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)