to spay or not to spay?

foreign_correspondent

yes, I would always spay - up to 50% of unspayed b1tces will develop pyometra at some point in their lives which is a fast developing infection of the womb and can be fatal, spaying also reduces the risk of diabetes and certain tumours, as well as unwanted attention from males, accidental matings etc etc..

unspayed b1tches who develop phantom pregnancies can also become very depressed, snappy and go off their food.. my mums dog was like it till she was spayed.

eta - till my mum's dog was spayed, not my mum, obviously!

Shoshannah

Pros

Spaying a b1tch EARLY will reduce the chances of her developing mammary cancer later in life. Spaying before the first season almost completely eliminates the risk. After the first season, you reduce it by about 80%, and so on each season. By the time a b1tch has had 4-5 seasons, you are unlikely to change the risk and you will need to monitor carefully for any lumps or bumps.

Spaying eliminates the possibility of pyometra - a womb infection that can develop following a season and is fatal if untreated. Treatment for this condition is to spay, but you will be spaying an older, very poorly b1tch as opposed to a healthy young one. Much bigger operation!

Spaying will eliminate the risk of other ovarian and uterine conditions, ie cancer.

No seasons for you or the b1tch to deal with, and no chance of false pregnancies which can result in behavioural changes, milk production and sometimes mastitis.

No chance of an accidental pregnancy if you do not plan to have pups from the b1tch.

Reduced risk of diabetes mellitus as progesterone is implicated in this hormonal condition.


Cons

The b1tch obviously has to undergo a general anaesthetic and surgery - but see my point above about spaying a healthy young b1tch, in between seasons and well prepared for the op, as opposed to rushing an older, dehydrated toxic b1tch into emergency surgery to take a pyometra out. I know which surgery I prefer, anyway.

Weight gain can be a problem in some dogs, as the metabolism tends to slow down. You may need to cut food down and regular weight checks are important.

Urinary incontinence, which can happen to any b1tch, is more common in spayed b1tches. The condition is very treatable, but you should obviously be aware it can happen.

Early spaying has been linked with a slightly increased risk of bone cancer, as has early neutering in dogs.


As for behavioural changes post-spaying, logic would suggest that there will be little change; after all, a b1tch is not in season for most of the year and is therefore not that influenced by hormones most of the time. By spaying, you are converting 'most of the time' to 'all of the time'.

However, the above posters are quite correct in pointing out that you will not know for sure until after the operation, and I would never tell an owner that 'yes' or 'no' their dog's behaviour will change, though I would think it unlikely.

irishsymphony

I always say to any pet owner - if you have no intention of using the dog to partake in responsible breeding (ie if you show her and she goes well there, as opposed to backyard breeding with the neighbours pooch) then spay, spay, spay.

In the longrun, it'll definitely save more unwanted / untested pups being brought into a world that is already daily putting to sleep thousands of dogs. And, as others have pointed out - it can reduce health risks, which could only be a huge positive.

Best of luck with your decision though

Katiehound

Just in case you haven't seen this, here's a neat way of explaining how many pups you can get:

Stitch in time: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUFbdU_U2vw

thegirlintheattic

For health and cost reasons I'd say yes, unless she is a show dog or one you are planning to bred from (obviously).

popadom

I think shes having a phatom pregenacy. I was going to call the vet last friday to book her in but shes producing milk. How to i go on from here. This has happend before.

madmexican

we have a 13 year old chihauhau and although we didnt want to breed, was scared of putting her through the op, 2 years ago she had lots of water around her back end and it was the start of the womb infection, so had to go through an op at the age of 11. was all fine, was kept in over night coz of her age, but much better to spay a younger healthy dog. friends younger dogs have been back same day

hope this helps, also get them microchipped while they are under

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