Will Neutering My Yorkie Calm Him Down? (Read This First)

The Yorkshire terrier, more commonly called “Yorkie,” is among the smallest dog breeds of the terrier type and any dog breed. It makes good pets for humans, although it has excessive unwanted behaviors. A popular question among pet owners is: will neutering my Yorkie calm him down?

Neutering, a surgery performed on a dog to disable his ability to reproduce, can help calm undesirable behaviors in high-energy Yorkies. This procedure will alleviate your Yorkie’s stress, eventually calming him down.

Concerned with your Yorkie, you might be wondering what causes these certain unwanted pet behaviors and how effective neutering is to address such considerable issues. Feel free to dig in more below to find out.

Will Neutering My Yorkie Calm Him Down?

Generally speaking, neutering doesn’t immediately affect a dog’s personality. However, it influences its mood and makes certain behaviors more or less likely. The surgical castration for male dogs (spaying is commonly reserved for female animals) ceases their production of the male hormone known as testosterone.

As this hormone causes some untoward or somewhat negative behaviors in dogs more likely to occur, stopping it from being produced can dramatically reduce the “testosterone-mediated” behaviors. These behaviors linked to this hormone are predominantly excessive — it will surely make you wish for something to calm it down, even for a while.

Yorkies’ Characteristics

Yorkies are merely like most tiny dogs — hyperactive and full of bouncing energy that would certainly make your day! On some occasions, their high-energy behaviors would eventually make you wish for them to chill out a bit. You would desire a more relaxing time with your adorable Yorkie.

Especially with the young Yorkshire terriers — they love to chase smaller creatures such as squirrels and play with toys. These are cute as long as they’re not too unrestrained; otherwise, you will need to consider minimizing such behaviors. With this, “neutering is a recommended procedure for male pets that could impact your Yorkie’s behavior significantly”.

Neutering Defined

Neutering is a surgical procedure performed on male dogs to remove their testicles. It can considerably relieve their stress on roaming around or getting out to seek a mate. Thus, without being sexually frustrated, your Yorkie is relatively calm — happier and healthier, and so are you.

On the other hand, if they will not undergo neutering, these high-energy Yorkies will more likely display anxiety and unfavorable and neurotic behaviors. Moreover, neutering can prevent health problems like testicular cancer and most prostate diseases.

The surgery eliminates the dog’s fertility and terminates testosterone production. This male hormone has a wide variety of effects. It is responsible for producing secondary sexual characteristics during puberty — increased muscle mass, a larger head, bigger bones, and deeper bark.

Although the effects of testosterone on dogs’ behavior are much more subtle, their testosterone levels can jump tremendously. When this happens, they start showing distressing behaviors associated with this hormone.

What Are “Testosterone-Mediated” Behaviors?

These behaviors are relatively common in all male mammals. However, these are prevalent in dogs to at least some extent. The most significant ones are the following:

• Intensified Aggression

Once your Yorkie becomes aggressive, it’ll take him longer to calm down than it would for a neutered one. It does not relate to fear-based aggression.

• Enhanced Confidence 

Testosterone leads to improved confidence, generally expressed as heightened risk-taking and lowered fear response. It is why male dogs are more likely to be involved in road or traffic accidents. Hillcrest Animal Hospital suggests that entire dogs are less likely to undergo fear-based aggression than their neutered counterparts.

• Territorial Actions

Yorkshire terriers are distinctly territorial, as many Terriers can be. They will scrap to defend anything they discern as one of their possessions. This territorial nature of Yorkies leads to more barking than some other breeds.

• Highly Increased Sex Drive

If not neutered, your Yorkie will be wandering around seeking a mate. It can be possibly dangerous, with sporadically messy outcomes. Furthermore, unwanted behaviors such as masturbation, mounting, and humping can embarrass several owners.

Your neutered Yorkie will have a significantly lower sex drive than he was intact. Therefore, the procedure will undoubtedly reduce those undesired behaviors such as masturbation, humping, mounting, immoderate roaming, and other dominance-related behaviors. He will mark less indoors and outdoors since he is less incentivized to announce his presence.

As for your Yorkie’s basic personality, you don’t need to worry about it, as it won’t be affected by neutering. If he is a cheerful and outgoing dog, he’s probably to stay that way. Another good thing is that he will likely have fewer fights with other dogs.

With a neutered Yorkie, you’re likely to have more relaxing moments — with much lesser stress from extreme pet behaviors. He’ll likely be calmer with less testosterone in his system, so you’ll also be calmer.

3 Things You’ll Need Post-Neutering

1. A soft bed – Check the price at Amazon for my top pick soft bed for a Yorkie.
2. A backup cone – Check the price at Amazon for a perfect-sized cone for a Yorkie.
3. A distraction blanket – Check the price at Amazon for a distraction blanket for your Yorkie.

The Top 3 Frequently Asked Questions For Neutering Yorkies