DEAR DR. FOX: After losing my 15 1/2-year-old wheaten terrier last November, I got another one who is 4 1/2 months old now.

I am unsure as to when to neuter him. I've always done it at 6 months with my other dogs, but my breeder said it's better to wait a year. I asked my vet, and he said there is some controversy. I have also heard that it would be more beneficial to his health to wait as long as possible.

Since I would need to make an appointment soon if I decide on 6 months, I would very much appreciate your view on this. -- C.M., Middletown, New Jersey

DEAR C.M.: I would wait until your young dog is around 12 months of age, since early neutering may have developmental consequences affecting growth and metabolism. It may also contribute to the high incidence of Cushing's disease later in life. The jury is still out on deciding the best age to neuter male dogs -- if at all.

The emphasis on spaying and neutering all dogs to help control overpopulation, a critical issue in most communities in the past, is now over with more responsible ownership and people not letting their dogs roam the neighborhood and breed freely, as in decades past. But not all people can be trusted -- look at those communities where people let their unsterilized cats roam free. I was shocked to see on TV a tabby cat (with collar) being let outside from 10 Downing St., the residence of Britain's prime minister! Such a laissez faire attitude, or unquestioned cultural tradition, is highly irresponsible. Most shelters still insist that all adopted dogs and cats be sterilized.

Neutering or spaying German shepherds before they reach the age of 1 is associated with a threefold higher risk of joint disorders, researchers report in Veterinary Medicine and Science. The study examined records from 1,170 dogs, finding 21 percent of males neutered before 1 year of age had joint disorders, compared with 7 percent of intact males. Sixteen percent of females spayed early later developed joint disease, compared with 5 percent of intact females. "Simply delaying the spay/neuter until the dog is a year old can markedly reduce the chance of a joint disorder," said University of California at Davis veterinarian and lead author Benjamin Hart.

DEAR DR. FOX: The attacks you are experiencing from feral cat advocates leads me to ask if it is they, rather than the cats, that need the distemper shots!

My wife owns a house in Ocean Township, in Monmouth County, New Jersey. The town has a convoluted animal control policy, where you must call the police, who then call the Long Branch animal control officer, who then may or may not turn the cat over to the local Humane Society, with whom the county has a contract. It is benign neglect, which I'm sure saves the township money.

This results in a couple of my neighbors leaving food out for several feral cats who are neither part of a supervised colony, nor have any shelter. The raccoons and possums feed on their porches in broad daylight. My yard is always rife with cat feces, dead birds and mice.

Cape May and Seaside Heights, New Jersey, are the scenes of a continuing battle between the beach feral cat advocates and the piping plover protectors. How well- meaning people cannot see the cruelty to both the cats and to wildlife that a feral program presents is upsetting to me.

Again, thank you for being a voice of reason in this highly emotional argument. -- M.D., Bradley Beach and Ocean Township, New Jersey

DEAR M.D: I appreciate your support on the feral cat issue where compassion and reason do not sufficiently prevail, allowing misguided altruism to spread in a vacuum of rescue-syndrome, pro-life sentimentality.

I have great respect and concern for feral cats and an abiding affection for those whom my wife, Deanna, and I have trapped and socialized.

Without strict enforcement of municipal ordinances, prohibiting the roaming of owned cats and the neutering of same, this problem is never going to be resolved.

GENETICS AND OBESITY

Overweight or obese Labrador and flat-coated retrievers might be that way because of a defective or deleted pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) gene, which plays a role in appetite regulation and helps the body sense stored fat levels, according to scientists at Cambridge University, England. Initial research suggest that some people might have a similar genetic deficiency.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox's website at DrFoxVet.net.)

DEAR DR. FOX: My dog might have inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), and the vet wants to put him on a prescription diet for three weeks. He has been eating raw since we got him in January. I would really rather not give him kibble again, especially not one whose first ingredient is corn. Here is my dilemma in more detail:

My dog is an almost 3-year-old mutt (he looks like a shepherd) who weighs about 27.5 pounds. We have had him since January and have been feeding him raw ground beef and chicken livers/hearts/necks and cooked sweet potato. Over the past three to four weeks, his stool has been irregular -- mainly with the presence of mucus; it's sometimes soft, and he's had diarrhea, dark stool and a possible small amount of blood in his feces. It has been very inconsistent. Besides the irregular stools, he seems absolutely fine -- normal behavior, appetite and water intake. A giardia test was negative. A blood test looking for the presence of something that would indicate IBD was also negative. The vet still thinks it's IBD, and the plan is to change to a prescription diet. If that works, then we'll leave it at that and possibly transition to other food. If not, then vet wants to biopsy for IBD.

I appreciate that the vet wants to start with diet before jumping to meds or more invasive testing. However, I would prefer not to put him on the prescription food with the first ingredient listed as corn that contains other ingredients that I would prefer not to feed my dog. The food he's supposed to go on, starting today or ASAP, is Hill's I/D. At the same time, I respect our vet, and part of me says I should just go along with this temporary diet to see if he improves and transition to something else after the three weeks.

So my options are to a) just go along with the special diet that I don't really agree with or feel is the healthiest option, or b) find an alternative more wholesome, natural or homemade diet that would also help ease digestive problems, hopefully with approval from the vet. What would you do? -- R.G., Ridgefield, Connecticut

DEAR R.G.: Some dogs do not thrive as well as others on a raw food diet. It often helps these dogs to lightly cook the food and provide digestive enzymes and probiotics. Transition your dog to my home-prepared recipe (posted on my website, DrFoxVet.net), and let me know how he fares. It has helped many dogs avoid costly and unpalatable, if not dubious, prescription diets. Keep me posted.

R.G. RESPONDS: I have been feeding my dog your recipe with turkey for the past week, and his stool is back to normal! My fingers are still crossed that it continues this way, but I feel confident in the decision to avoid the "poop in a bag," as my mom called it, from the vet. I can't thank you enough for your help.

STOP DECLAWING CATS! WILL NEW YORK BE THE FIRST STATE TO BAN DECLAWING?

Some New York veterinarians are lobbying for the state to ban feline declawing, saying the practice is unnecessary and harmful. Other veterinarians, including the New York State Veterinary Medical Society, oppose the ban, noting that declawing may be the only way to prevent euthanasia in some situations. The society argues that the decision to declaw should be made between an owner and his or her veterinarian, not by lawmakers.

Declawing is illegal in some countries and certain U.S. cities, but no states have banned the procedure. For details on this unwarranted, avoidable and inhumane practice of routinely declawing cats, see my article at DrFoxVet.net.

To support New Jersey's Anti-Declaw Bill A3899, go to change.org/p/support-new-jersey-s-anti-declaw-bill-a3899-singleton.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox's website at DrFoxVet.net.)

DEAR DR. FOX: "The Underdogs: Children, Dogs and the Power of Unconditional Love" is a new book by Melissa Fay Greene about the unique relationships between children and the therapy or service dogs who help them. After more than 20 years working as a humane educator, I have seen firsthand the incredible and life-changing impact dogs can have on kids -- especially those with various challenges and disabilities. But does anyone stop and think about what happens to the hundreds of puppies bred for these programs that don't "make the cut"? The answer I always hear is that they are adopted out into wonderful homes -- but this means fewer homes are available for any of the 3 million homeless dogs killed in shelters every year.

There is no conclusive evidence that selectively bred puppies are any more successful as therapy and service dogs than dogs rescued and trained from shelters. Of the few independent studies that have been done, the overwhelming results indicate that puppy evaluations have no value at all, and the best way to predict the temperament and behavior of a dog as an adult is to assess it as an adult.

Does it take more effort, money or resources to find, evaluate, select and train rescued dogs? Probably not; you are not spending time and money raising the dogs until they are mature. Organizations that breed dogs or use bred dogs need to recognize that while they may be helping humans, they are harming dogs by contributing to the overpopulation problem. To learn more about the bond between rescue animals and children, please visit my organization's website, theshilohproject.org. -- N.K.T., The Shiloh Project, Fairfax, Virgina

DEAR N.K.T.: Since earliest times, dogs have been the victims of any commercial venture that can exploit their virtues. Certain individual dogs and breeds perform particular tasks better than others because of their size, agility and strength. But most important is their temperament and motivation, which calls for a close human-dog bond.

Many mixed breeds from an animal shelter could fill the basic selection criteria for service training. This holds true for military work. I regret that many purebreds who are not adapted to foreign climates and diseases are being deployed, rather than selecting from the indigenous population of wonderful local dogs, many of whom are adopted by troops as mascots and camp watchers.

DEAR DR. FOX: Our male, almost 1-year-old ragdoll cat, Benji, drops his last poop outside the litter box. This behavioral problem began three months ago after a procedure on his anal glands. We've tried every recommended suggestion from the breeder, vet, Google, Animal Doctor column, Jackson Galaxy website, etc., but nothing has stopped the problem. We've tried litter changes; litter boxes with high sides, low sides, covered, cover removed; and placing the litter box in the bathtub, bathroom, bedroom and playroom -- NOTHING WORKS.

He eats mostly dry food with a little wet. His stools are soft, so there shouldn't be any pain when he defecates. He urinates in the litter box and defecates all but one poop, which we are now finding in other parts of our home.

We have another male ragdoll kitten who is the same age, very docile in comparison with Benji's alpha personality. We love both our boys, but we are totally at a loss as to what to do to correct this problem, if it is correctable. -- S.W.S., Bethesda, Maryland

DEAR S.W.S.: Many people see ragdolls as adorable felines, but I prefer the "natural" alley cat-tabby with fewer behavioral and health issues because they are not so highly inbred. In fact, because of the popularity of certain breeds of cats, coupled with the proliferation of commercial cat breeding factories, we are seeing more health and behavioral problems in these pure breeds of cats, just as we see with purebred and "designer" varieties of dogs. Being very docile and relaxed -- ragdoll-like -- when handled is far from normal. Such traits are desired by some cat fanciers, but it's not in the cats' best interests.

Engage in interactive games and get your house-soiling cat physically active, especially early in the evening. Give him a deep abdominal massage for five to 10 minutes three to four times daily, as per my book "The Healing Touch for Cats." In flaccid, less active and overweight cats, a sluggish colon can lead to a condition called megacolon, where fecal material builds up and is not fully evacuated. This can lead to chronic constipation and make cats evacuate outside the litter box. You should also set up one or two additional litter boxes in quiet and easy-to-reach locations.

UNDERSTANDING DOG COGNITION

The study of what and how dogs think has gained momentum, and much of the research originates from the Duke Canine Cognition Center. Duke University associate professor Brian Hare said dogs have honed an ability to respond to "cooperative-communicative social cues," allowing them to complete tasks with minimal human guidance and priming them for jobs such as sniffing out drugs and diseases. The center's studies so far suggest that dog intelligence relates more to an individual animal than to breed.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox's website at DrFoxVet.net.)