I am new and was wondering if it true that you can neuter a squid or octopus to legthen it's lifetime ? So that it won't die breeding.

Hi and welcome to TONMO.com! :welcome:

No, that's not true.....and both males and females live about the same length of time. It's just their life span.

Nancy

OUCH !!! no, sexuality only has very little to do with the lifespan...although those monks in mongolia sure do live a long time, don't they? must be the yougurt.

Interesting theory, where did you pick up on it?

I will say that spaying and neutering dogs does statistically increase their lifespans.

David M. Frye, DVM

I don't know whether this has ever been studied, but I imagine octopus surgery would be difficult.

I have an idea - Doc Frye, why don't you become an octo vet? I mean, add this to the animals you treat.

Nancy

This idea was discussed in the following threads

[News]: Ark. students discover giant cephalopod fossil (http://www.tonmo.com/forums/showthread.php?t=205&highlight=castrated)

Why is the Giant Squid so giant? (http://www.tonmo.com/forums/showthread.php?t=16&highlight=castrated)

Basically theorizing on how or if a giant nautiloid became a giant. Being castrated by nematodes and never reaching sexual maturity it continued to grow.

I was one of the only vets in the world that specialized in poison dart frogs. This type of specialization is such a tremendous pain in the @$$, that I could not come close to describing the endless agony - of dealing with the dart frog enthusiasts.

Actually, depending on how loosely you define neutering, you can extend the life span of some cephalopods by removing the gland that controls ovarian development and brooding behavior. In a classic paper by Wodinsky (Science, 1977), he demonstrated that in Octopus hummelincki, the removal of the optic gland "... after spawning results in cessation of broodiness, resumption of feeding, increased growth, and greatly extended life-span."

Roy

OUCH !!! no, sexuality only has very little to do with the lifespan...although those monks in mongolia sure do live a long time, don't they? must be the yougurt.

NO actually it's the addition of the lubricating slime of the steppes cuttlefish to the monks diet . Apparently the secretions enable the cuttlefish to get around on the grasses etc found on the steppes! :lol:

But seriously folks.....I wouldn't want to muck around with removal or destruction of the optic gland unless I was VERY familiar with the anatomy of the octopus. I know approximately where it is but my exerience is with DEAD octopus!!!! Plus there's the issue of appropriate anaesthesia PLUS in NZ it's illegal to carry out such work without the correct ethics approval (per the Animal Welfare Act)!!!!
J

oh yes, not very nice to dissect an octo while it's crawling around.