Will my dog gain weight after a spay or neuter?

That's a very common one. Most dogs gain weight because they hit that midlife stage at the same age that they are getting spayed or castrated. Just like we all tend to put weight on in our thirties, pets can get a little heavier at that same time. There are many athletic dogs that are castrated or spayed that are not overweight. But you do have to watch what you feed them when they're not growing like puppies anymore.

It is a possibility. Their metabolism can be affected once we remove those hormones. You'd have to work with your vet and look at your animal to see if you need to adjust their diet or their exercise level if they do start to gain a little weight.

Sometimes they can. When you take away the hormones, their metabolism slows a little. In puppies especially, when they're growing, and we're feeding them like they're growing, and then they stop growing, and we spay or neuter them, it can make their metabolism slower, so they can gain weight. It's not guaranteed that an animal will get fat when they're spayed and neutered, but we just have to watch its calories and adjust accordingly.

No, spaying or neutering does not directly cause weight gain. Dogs around the age of spaying or neutering are entering adulthood, a time when they, like humans, might naturally put on a bit of extra weight. However, many spayed and neutered dogs maintain a healthy body condition with regular exercise and a balanced diet. We recommend monitoring your dog's food intake and adhering to the feeding guide provided with their food.

This is not an uncommon question. The answer is sometimes. We often are spaying and neutering dogs when they're about six to eight months of age so they're going through that rapid puppy growth and then they're slowing their puppy growth down. We're still feeding them like they're a young puppy so there is a time where we're intervening during their growth and development. They're apt to gain a little bit more weight. Often it's very controllable, we really just are more likely to just have you be more mindful of their calories. There are dogs after we spay them that just want to become fat. Some of it is because their hormones have changed and now we've taken away testosterone and estrogen, but just because we spay and neuter them does not mean they're going to get fat. If they do happen to get a little over nutritioned then we simply need to partner with you and get them to lose some more weight.

This is a common misconception. While we do remove the hormones that usually keep them active, it's crucial to remember that if your pet is less active than before, you may need to adjust their diet.