Katie Herzog never planned to become a dog person and she definitely never planned to agonize over her goldendoodle's testicles. But when it came time to neuter Moose, she couldn't find a good answer to a simple question: why? What follows is a reported journey through canine bodily autonomy, the surprisingly short history of spay/neuter as gospel, and what the best available science actually says about cutting off your dog's balls.

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THIS EPISODE FEATURES:

Ben and Lynette Hart — U.C. Davis School of Veterinary Medicine

James Serpell — U Penn School of Veterinary Medicine

Hal Herzog, Katie’s dad who happens to also be an emeritus professor and scholar of human-animal interactions

LINKS:

Hart et al., "Neutering of German Shepherd Dogs" / golden retriever study (PLOS-One, 2013)

Hart et al., 35-breed analysis

Hart et al., mixed-breed analysis

AVMA statement on elective spaying and neutering

Meghan Daum, "Big Dogs, Big City"

Hal Herzog, Some We Love, Some We Hate, Some We Eat

Blue Cross of India

CREDITS:

This episode was written by Katie Herzog and produced by Andy Mills, Simon Adler, and Matthew Boll

Music for this episode was composed by Simon Adler and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Peter Lalish⁠⁠

Reflector artwork by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jacob Boll

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