Don't Litter - Spay and Neuter Your Pets

Poor Mac - we had him neutered on Monday. Its funny, I am very much pro-spay/neuter for pets but I can't help but feel a little sad that there won't ever be a few little Macs running around. He's such an awesome dog. He is from very good breeding lines, has good conformation, and most importantly a really wonderful temperament. I suppose I could have worked with his breeder to show him and then possibly stud him if he did well, but that's a time-intensive and not an inexpensive prospect, and his breeder would have retained breeding rights if she truly thought Mac was something special. So, he's fixed. He's still got his competitive spirit and affability, but we should be circumventing any teenage angst he might head into soon, hinder the possibility of aggression developing (though I really don't think that would ever happen with Mac), and most importantly drastically reduce the chance of certain cancers in his future.

With some trepidation I dropped Mac off at the vet Monday morning - anesthesia worries me, especially given Ayla's reaction to it last time and the fact that Mac has a difficult respiratory situation. Ahead of me was a woman with at least one cat and two crazy dogs. In fact, she rudely told me to go elsewhere while she brought her dogs in! After she left I checked Mac in. The receptionist said it was going to be a long day for her, with the crazy dogs barking in the back and all. I suggested she give Mac some cuddles to take a break, which she thought was a good idea. Hopefully he got some extra attention before his surgery. In any case, I kissed his little head and told him to be good, and he walked into the back with the receptionist with nary a look back at me, just smiling and happy to be with people.

Chris picked him up that afternoon and said Mac was very happy to see him, but didn't seem upset at all about the day and promptly went to sleep in the car. When I got home later he looked up at me, but was still recovering from the anesthesia so he didn't get up to say hi. He slept all evening, and then when we were going to bed decided he had had enough sleep and proceeded to get the zoomies and run crazily through the condo at top speed. I guess he didn't get the memo that there is to be no running or jumping for a while.

Yesterday I brought him in to work with me to keep an eye on him. His body shape makes it so he cannot get to where the stitches are, but I wouldn't put anything past a determined dog so I wanted to make sure he'd leave them alone. I have a bite-not collar but would rather not put it on him because I worry it might interfere with his breathing. Mac was a good boy though and left his stitches alone. He loved greeting the people in my office area and otherwise slept in my office all day. His gentle snoring is very comforting to me, like white noise, so I really like having him with me. Here's a couple shots taken with my cell phone.

Sleeping on his blanket in front of my file cabinet

Under my desk, where he also like to sleep

We got home and he played with Ayla and pretty much acted like normal. We take him back in to the vet in a few weeks to remove the stitches, and then he's good until his 1-year booster shots in another 6 months. Good boy, Mac.