If you have an intact male dog, then you likely know all about how rowdy he can get at times. Once they see female dogs nearby, male dogs tend to get excited. Their hormones and instincts take over and they are not shying away from that.
Bring an intact male dog around a female dog in heat and you may see something even more intense. In that situation, intact dogs tend to become very fixated on the female in heat. They may get fixated to the point where they become aggressive and they may not even eat like normal.
But what about neutered dogs? Will they react the same way to female dogs in heat?
Learn more about how neutered dogs behave around female dogs in heat by continuing with the rest of this article.
How Do Neutered Dogs React to Females in Heat?
Your neutered dog is likely going to present one of two reactions to being around a female dog in heat. The exact reaction he’ll present will depend on how much time has passed since the procedure.
Less Than Six Weeks after Neutering
The neutering procedure removes the organs that are responsible for producing the male dog’s hormones. Once those organs are removed, no new hormones will be produced inside your dog’s body.
Crucially, the hormones that were already in your dog’s body prior to neutering will stay there for a while. You can expect those hormones to linger for about a month. Some may hang around for as long as six weeks.
During that time, you should still keep your neutered dog away from female dogs in heat if you want to keep your pet from getting fixated or over-excited.
More Than Six Weeks after Neutering
What happens if you bring your fixed dog around females in heat after enough time has passed? In all likelihood, your dog will not offer much of a reaction.
Your pet may sniff the female dog to check if he knows her, but that’s about it. After that, your dog will remain calm and composed. It’s a nice change of pace if you previously had plenty of trouble trying to rein your dog in.
Exceptions
The saying old habits die hard can apply to neutered dogs too. Because your dog got so used to being excited whenever he was around a female in heat, he may continue to act that way long after getting neutered.
He isn’t according to his hormones at that point. Instead, he’s just continuing to display behavior that has become ingrained in him.
That kind of thing tends to happen more in dogs that were only neutered when they were older.
Will a Neutered Male Still Be Attracted to a Female Dog in Heat?
Whether or not your neutered dog will still be attracted to a female dog in heat will again depend on time.
Just like before, dogs that are not far removed from undergoing the neutering procedure will still be attracted to females in heat. That will remain the case for four to six weeks.
Your male dog will no longer be attracted to a female in heat once the aforementioned period of time has passed. He may still react to the female dog if he was neutered later in life, but the level of attraction will not be there. Your pet is also unlikely to initiate mating at that point.
Can Neutered Males Still Get Female Dogs Pregnant?
The neutering procedure is recommended for dogs because it provides some long-term health benefits. It can also improve your pet’s quality of life.
Still, the main reason why you should neuter your dog is because it prevents unplanned puppies. Caring for a litter of puppies may not be something you’re capable of so neuter your dog to eliminate the possibility of that problem.
However, pet owners should know that a neutered dog does not become sterile immediately.
Similar to the hormones, the sperm cells that were already in your dog’s system before neutering will stay there for a while. It will take about four to six weeks for those remaining sperm cells to disappear.
Make sure you limit your dog’s interactions with female dogs during that time. The last thing you want is for your pet to get a female dog pregnant after he was already neutered. By exercising just a bit more patience, you can avoid that potential problem.
Can a Fixed Male Be around a Female in Heat?
Keeping your fixed pet away from a female dog in heat is only necessary for a short period of time. To be more specific, you only need to keep them separate for the first six weeks after the procedure.
Your dog may still try to mate with the female dog in heat during that time. Furthermore, your dog may still be able to impregnate the female dog if not enough time has passed. Don’t let your pet hang around female dogs in heat during that time as a precautionary measure.
Can a Fixed Male Still Tie with a Female in Heat?
Are you familiar with the term tying as it relates to dogs?
Tying is what sometimes happens after two dogs are done mating. The male dog’s penis may get stuck inside the female and so they end up locked together. The two of them may end up with their behinds facing one another.
It’s important to know that tying occurs because of a part of the penis known as the bulbis glandis. The bulbis glandis swells during mating and it locks the penis inside the female dog’s vagina. The two dogs can only get untangled after the bulbis glandis has returned to its normal size.
Don’t think that tying will no longer occur just because your dog has been fixed. Neutering is just about removing your dog’s testicles. The penis will not be altered in any way.
Since the penis can still swell up, it can also still get stuck inside a female during intercourse. The female dog will not get pregnant as long as enough time has passed, but tying remains a distinct possibility.