Should I have my boys castrated???

[Petitepuppet]

I have two 16 week old baby boys. I have never had any of my rats castrated before but it seems to be the popular thing to do at the moment and I wondered why, and at what age it can be done. If it will benefit my boys then I will go for it!!!

Dappy



Puffin

 

[lilratsy43]

Its not nearly as benifical to boys as it is girls. I do it mainly because I had a lot of males with aggression issues with other rats, also I wanted my boys to be able to live with my girls.

The only reason I didn't do the girls instead is because I have way more girls then boys and it is more expensive to have girls done.

In the age department, that is completely up to your vet. Some will do it younger then others, so you would have to discuss it with them...

 

[jorats]

I believe that a neuter completely takes a way all hormonal stress on the boys. They remain young at heart and some vets would go as far as saying that it extends their lifespan.
BUT!!! I would only do this if you had a great exotic vet. Vets need to be experienced with rats and know what they are doing.
If I could afford it, all my males would be neutered.

 

[SQ]

It isn't necessary unless you have unspayed girls in the house or they become aggressive to other rats when they hit their teens (bad breeding).

There are benefits in that:
- neutered males do not produce buck grease,
- their hair stays soft,
- people with allergies are not as sensitive to the rat urine
- they don't urine mark as much as intact boys

If you do intend on having rats under go surgery, make sure the vet you choose is experienced at sucessfully completing rat surgeries.
Make sure you read the sticky: Things to discuss prior to surgery.

 

[Petitepuppet]

I live in the scottish borders where it is very hard to even find pet rats. I dont even personally know anyone who keeps rats apart from myself. I had to make a 2 hour trip to get my 4 boys. I will ask around and see if I can find someone with rat experience.

 

[mamarat]

I only neuter my boys if they are aggressive towards their cagemates or their humans. Your boys are cuties. :heart:

 

[sausage4ever]

I have four boys and have no problems but if one was aggressive, I would neuter him. Also if I had girls they would be spayed as unspayed girls have lots of issues.

 

[Moon]

I think that neutering is a very very nice thing to do if you can afford it and have a vet who can do it safely. It's nice to do earlier instead of later, BEFORE problems arise. Sometimes hormonal issues can become behavioral issues if things become a "habit".

BUT... it's not a risk I'd take if I didn't have a vet who was confident in doing the surgery.

It's great that you are thinking about it, though!

 

[Arkeld]

I have two boys and so far, I have not had them neutered. My reasoning is that there is little benefit to be gained from it unless they start displaying problematic behviour. Thus, I conisder neutering an unnecessary risk (and yes, I know it's a very small risk if done properly, but still).

It's like your appendix or your tonsils. You could have those removed before they cause problems, but nobody does.

 

[ryelle]

I have two boys and so far, I have not had them neutered. My reasoning is that there is little benefit to be gained from it unless they start displaying problematic behviour. Thus, I conisder neutering an unnecessary risk (and yes, I know it's a very small risk if done properly, but still).

It's like your appendix or your tonsils. You could have those removed before they cause problems, but nobody does.

Im exactly the same. Maybe its a European thing? lol. I've had 3 rats to date, and only 1 of them is going to get neutered, and that's because he turned into a little bully. I will have more rats in the future, and will probably only get them 'done' if there is a real reason to.