# Zeutering



## Huly (Mar 5, 2012)

Hm not sure how I feel on this..... Thoughts?

New Procedure Offers Alternative To Surgical Neutering For Male Dogs « CBS Los Angeles

SAN BERNARDINO (CBSLA.com) — A new non-surgical procedure to sterilize male dogs is gaining attention in the Inland Empire, but some say it may not offer the same benefits as surgical neutering.

The Humane Society of San Bernardino is the first place to offer the procedure — called “Zeutering” — provides chemical sterilization to male dogs by injecting the chemical Zeuterin into their reproductive organs.

“The reason that we started using it here at the Humane Society and offering it to clients is for those clients who like the cosmetic appearance of an intact male dog,” said Dr. Amy Raines.

The procedure is non-invasive, according to Dr. Raines, and dogs are lightly sedated but do not require general anesthesia. The procedure costs about the same as surgical neutering.

But research shows the procedure is only 99 percent effective, and some vets say it doesn’t help with the behavioral issues that surgical castration tends to tame.

“The dogs could still climb fences seeking out females in heat,” said Dr. Allen Drusys of the Riverside County Dept. of Animal Services, who added that sexually-oriented aggression can still be found in some animals after the Zeuterin treatment.

Still, whether pet owners choose to neuter of “Zeuter” their pets, officials across the Inland Empire insist all pets should be sterilized to cut down on the number of stray animals on the streets.


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## intent2smile (Dec 4, 2011)

I think they have been doing this in some places over seas. From what I have read, if it is the same chemical, the effects can wear off over time. I think it is a good option if a dog cannot go under surgery because of health complications to prevent accidental mating but I would still prefer regular neutering. I like my male dogs to be neutered for their health and to reduce chances of male related behavior issues. I personally do not like dealing with dogs lifting their legs. Jaxx lifted his leg once and off to the vet he went. I would rather snip it in the bud so to speak and not worry about it again.
I also do not like the look of intact males. I do not want to see their thingies hanging all the time. I have never owned a male dog who was not neutered at 6 months. Cosmetically I just prefer the look of neutered males. 


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## Huly (Mar 5, 2012)

See I agree with it if a dog can not have the surgery due to health but I disagree with it just for a look as one why inject chemical and two the reason they remove it is testicles can get cancer etc.


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## KrystalLeigh (Aug 17, 2011)

They should invent this for human men! Haha. In all seriousness, I feel this is a bit unnecessary and a bit dangerous. If it's not 100% effective then why mess with a good thing. When I worked at a wildlife facility, the male wolves would all undergo a vasectomy, which would keep them as "natural" as possible, but stop them from mating (with their sisters... eek!). I can see the benefits of that, but I'm not sure why a domestic dog would need something similar. I imagine it wouldn't stop marking, etc. 


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## intent2smile (Dec 4, 2011)

I found a decent blog that compares the two procedures. (Included below). I was shocked that the injection is not any quicker and only reduces testosterone by 50 percent. It also seems that the injection placement has to be exact or it doesn't work. To me that screams people could think their dogs were sterile and they may not be. I can see it having a place but I will stick with neutering.

http://dogzombie.blogspot.com/2013/01/or-you-could-zeuter-dog-instead.html?m=1

The dog was on his back, sedated on a table. I was not wearing a surgical cap or a sterile gown. I held the first testicle between two fingers, pushed the needle in, and injected a little less than a milliliter of a mixture of zinc gluconate and L-arginine. Then the second testicle. And now the dog was non-surgically castrated. In a few weeks, once he was rid of the sperm he had already made, he would be sterile for the rest of his life.

This product, Zeuterin, is newly released in the US market, just starting to make its way into veterinary clinics. I was part of a one-day training at a low cost spay/neuter clinic which has partnered with the company as an early adopter. On the one hand: if we can avoid doing surgery on dogs, why wouldn't we? Isn't an injection better than cutting? On the other hand: if you have to sedate the dog for the procedure anyways, and surgical castration is so very quick and simple, what's the benefit of zeutering rather than surgically neutering them? And is the benefit to the dog (healthier) or to the human (faster and/or cheaper)?

I'm considering a few different populations of dogs: owned dogs being brought to a clinic, shelter dogs being altered on site, and owned dogs being altered on an outpatient basis. The answers to the above questions will differ for each population.

Sedation versus anesthesia: Surgical castration of a dog requires full anesthesia. Zeutering requires only sedation, and in some calm dogs can be done without even that. A dog will recover more quickly from sedation than from anesthesia, so he'll be able to go home earlier in the day. (Important in a clinic and for outpatients; not important for most shelters.)
Time: You'd think that an injection would be faster than surgery, but it isn't clear that this is so. A trained high volume surgeon will perform a castration (a very simple surgery) in just a minute or two. The injection has to be given slowly and the needle has to be positioned precisely. The time difference may not be significant.
Cost: Zeuterin is expensive! It costs $10-25 to neuter a dog with this product, depending on the size of the dog. I don't think anyone really knows how this compares to surgical castration, which doesn't have clear costs per animal. How much is your surgical suite costing you, and how valuable is it to keep a dog out of it? How much does it cost to sterilize a pack of surgical instruments? For shelters where every penny is counted, the cost of the product will matter more than in a veterinary clinic where an owner may not mind a difference of $10 one way or the other.
Using technicians: Technicians can't perform surgery. That requires a veterinarian. But a technician can give an injection. The spay/neuter clinic where I learned to zeuter are currently only allowing vets to zeuter, but they expect to start using technicians in this role as they become more comfortable with the procedure. Saving the veterinarian's time is a big bonus. Vets are expensive!
Testosterone reduction: Surgically neutering a male dog reduces his testosterone level by 100%. Zeutering him reduces it by 50%. Which is better? Hard to say! We don't really know yet whether zeutering will reduce unwanted behaviors (roaming, peeing on things) the way neutering sometimes does. (But we tell people that really training is better for that sort of thing anyway.) And is it healthier for a dog to have all of its testosterone, or only half? Testosterone is a steroid which affects metabolism and various physiologic process in many ways. I'm guessing that it does some good things for dogs and some bad things, and only time and a lot of research will tell whether it's better to have 50% or 0% of normal levels.
Aesthetics: Zeutered dogs still have their testicles, although atrophied and therefore somewhat smaller in size. Good or bad? Opinions will differ on that one.
Complications: Surgical complications can include anesthetic death and bleeding, but complication rates for this simple surgery in healthy dogs are very low. Complications with zeutering include the development of ulcerations or even necrosis of the scrotum. These complications are also expected to be low when the procedure is done correctly, but again, it's too soon to know exactly how that will shake out.
So is there a place for zeutering in veterinary medicine? I think there is, but it's not clear yet exactly what it will be. I'm not convinced that that place is in a shelter (though some shelter vets disagree with me). I'm also not convinced it's in a general practice veterinary clinic for the average owner, although I think some owners will prefer Zeuterin both for avoiding general anesthesia and for maintaining a higher testosterone level, and of course for keeping the dog's balls. The place I really see this product is for performing neutering outside of the veterinary clinic, for example, in low income areas of the US where the population has difficulty getting their animals to a veterinary clinic, either for lack of transportation or for lack of enough committment to follow through with an appointment for surgery. In other countries, trap-neuter-release programs may also find a great benefit to being able to do this procedure in the field.


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## Huly (Mar 5, 2012)

Nice article but I agree I will stay with snip snip


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## Wicked Pixie (Oct 14, 2011)

Dogs need both testicles to be shown, so chemical castration like this might be an ideal solution for show dogs. Also I think the results are temporary, so again handy for a young dog that you may want to breed from at a later date. I think it is great that there are more options, as surgical neutering is permanent.


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## Saqqara (Feb 14, 2013)

For some reason, an injection directly into the testicles doesn't sound much better than having them surgically removed :coolwink: lol
Seriously, I think I would still opt to get Cai neutered vs zeutered. My reason for wanting to get him neutered is to prevent puppies and for any possible health benefits. I don't care either way about looking at his boy parts. I had an intact almost 70lb male golden retriever before. During his later years, his umm...less than perky boy parts were not the most pleasing sight to see but still didn't really bother me. If I could deal with those, I'm sure I could deal with Cai's.


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## Saqqara (Feb 14, 2013)

Wicked Pixie said:


> Dogs need both testicles to be shown, so chemical castration like this might be an ideal solution for show dogs. Also I think the results are temporary, so again handy for a young dog that you may want to breed from at a later date. I think it is great that there are more options, as surgical neutering is permanent.


Yeah I think this would be a better option for people who show/breed their dogs. I can't think of too many other people who, "like the cosmetic appearance of a male intact dog".


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## Wicked Pixie (Oct 14, 2011)

LOL that has to be the strangest phrase ever!


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## pupluv168 (Mar 7, 2012)

I prefer snip snip. If I want to neuter my dog, I will just do the surgery. Although this could be handy for dogs with health issues or that are shown, as others said. 


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## Huly (Mar 5, 2012)

Wicked Pixie said:


> Dogs need both testicles to be shown, so chemical castration like this might be an ideal solution for show dogs. Also I think the results are temporary, so again handy for a young dog that you may want to breed from at a later date. I think it is great that there are more options, as surgical neutering is permanent.


Never thought of that good point


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