danger to my maltese in heat

Question
I inherited an 8 year old maltese bitch who has recently gone into heat. My male dogs, who are all neutered, are sniffing around her alot. They are miniture schnauzers, about 20 pounds while she is 6 pounds. Will they try to mate with her even though they are neutered and so much bigger?

Answer
Hi Ruth

It really depends on how what type of "alteration" your males had and at what age they had it done.

Castration is when both testes are removed.  If the male is castrated after sexual maturity, his sex drive may be normal even though he can't get a female pregnant.    

A bilateral vasectomy is when sterilization alone is required.  A vasectomy does not disturb normal hormonal function.

So yes, the boys may still want to play with your female, they are just "shooting blanks". The downsize is, they can do some internal damage and it's best to let her go through her heat in peace.

Good luck.