neutered

[wasat]

I have been thinking of having my males neutered. The are going on 3 months old now. I have 5 girls and want to be able to take them out together and not worry about having my numbers increase.
I had only two females Beulah and Mavis. When Beulah died after having a tumor removed. I got Louise and Basil to keep Mavis company.
Who could of known that Basil would be pregnant? Now added to the family there is Marie,Bets,Olive aka"Ollie", Barney,Dukes,Sarge,Fred,Target and Charlie. That's a mouthful! I want them to be able to play together when I have them out. An hour here and there during the day and evening for each sex is twice the hours. And certain ones sleep less during the day , it would be nice to take them out to play together, than to play with one/few while the other(s) look on pitifully through the cage bars.
Has anyone had their males neutered? Pros -Cons?
We have one vet here who treats my rats and said they could do them all for about $150.00. (?)

[Christy]

I have all my males neutered so that there are no accidents and to keep testosterone levels at bay. It's a fairly easy surgery for them and they recover quickly. Just be sure they stay away from intact females for at least 2 weeks after the neuter as the sperm is still active for a period after the neuter. Neutering also limits the amount that males mark territory as well as keeping any temperment issues at bay. $150 is a great price for all of them!

[wasat]

I did have them all neutered. None seem worse for the experience. Barney and Fred (biggest males) have stopped being so aggressive, biting each other( that being my biggest concern). I think they all are actually a bit more relaxed and want more personal attention (petting, massage and belly rubbing). They also have gone back to playing more again instead of starting the little quabbles over dominance. I know I am more relaxed now that I don't have to worry about chances of new litters.
The females are a little confused over it all. They get sniffed a lot and thats all. Except Marie (the female runt) she wants nothing to do with males at all. She squeals and runs for "mom", she will sit and "chitter" in my ear on and on and on (complaints I figure) if any of them even try to smell her. And your right I have seen a decrease in scenting by the males. "If" I had to make the choice to do it again I would not think twice about it, it was money well spent.

[Christy]

I'm glad to hear the neuters went well. You'll also begin to notice they turn into little piggies and will most likely gain some weight. Marie made me laugh, I have a girl like that too. hehehe

[tonifersangel]

I have read that female rats can develop cancer in their ovaries if they do not have litters. You might want to consider getting them fixed as well. I've only had one rat my whole life, so I'm not an expert or anything, but perhaps it's something you might want to look into, or at least research, for your girls' sake.

[Christy]

Quote: Originally Posted by tonifersangel I have read that female rats can develop cancer in their ovaries if they do not have litters. You might want to consider getting them fixed as well.

I've never heard of females doing this and of the 30 females I've had over the years none of them have developed this. However unspayed females are more at risk to develop any kind of external tumors. I've only ever had two of my girls spayed and that was due to an emergency surgery required due to uterine tumors. Recovery is very hard after a spay and I don't see enough benefits of it for the recovery takes for the rat. Just my opinion and two cents.

Any female rat, no matter if bred or not will have a risk of developing tumors, mostly mammary tumors. They are the most common in does, and even male rats get them, though it's rare. Spaying in MHO will not decrease the chance of them getting cancer. If the line was and is tumor prone, spaying is not going to help.

Also wanted to note that if any rat owners are considering having a spay or neuter done please outweight the risks from the benefits. Not all rats can live through anesthesia, especially Myco prone rats, who have lung scaring. Neuters if not done right can very well lead to death, with the rat bleeding to death if the veterinarian does not know what they are doing. Neuters should be done as early as possible in order to prevent hemmoraging.