Opinions on neutering

catkins

[QUOTE=Paradigm;
A dog in season isn't that hard to deal with, for 3 weeks keep her on a lead &, if you have too, change your walking times to avoid the "dog walk rush hour".

All dogs are different but she's likely to have only one season before she's 12 months old, not that much hassle to make sure she gets the best start is it?[/QUOTE]



I know from posts on other threads that the OP lives somewhere it is practically impossible to avoid other dogs. It's the same where I live. I had a dog reactive dog and I tried walking him at all different hours (5.30am though to 11pm) and I hardly ever had a walk where we didn't meet any dogs.


I have a young dog now who gets far too excited when he sees other dogs in the street so ideally I would walk him when there are not too many other dogs around. That though is impossible. It doesn't matter what time we walk or what route we walk we always see other dogs. An average walk would be maybe 5 or 6 dogs but some days is more like 15 or more dogs

neveranymoney

Thanks to all replies, it's all definitely food for thought.

The way it fell, due to Christmas, her puppy classes finished last week after a two week break and we are starting the kennel club good citizen for pups tomorrow night so I will ask around up there and the vet told us we are sent a letter for a six month check which will be in the next few weeks so I can discuss it fully then.

Krylr, our breeders are very much no nonsense country folk who would think we would be off our rocker, suburbanites and would only really consider spaying on health grounds as they have the room to separate in season !!!!!es or they have family to assist.

Catkins, it is like dog central round here and it's enough of a job keeping her from other dogs as it is as she wants to play and as you say, there are times we pass 10+ dogs doing a twenty minute toodle, never mind the glen, beach or fields.

My gut feeling is to leave it as long as possible but it will be a right royal pain, as I (try) to type, I have her behind stuck in my face. We are all on the settee watching Sherlock and she is disgusted there's no room for her and she's just gotten too big to get herself comfortable on anyone's lap.
Wombs. More trouble than they are worth.

krlyr

Another option to look into to tire her out during the 3 weeks could be hydrotherapy. I would check with the vet/hydrotherapy place that it's safe for a !!!!! in season, but I know several places do 'for fun' sessions cheaper than for medical purposes. It'll be different to her usual exercise, so mentally stimulating, and initially may wear her out more than usual due to the different muscles in use.

neveranymoney

I don't know wether there would be anything like that where I live and she hasn't learnt to love the water yet, is a polite way of saying it.

At the beach, which is more of an inlet with a not very strong tide, she won't even consider a paddle and nearly pees herself when a teeny wave dares to come near her! We met a lady with two older labs and she said her girl dog took almost a year to take to the water but now she loves it so I'm not concerned.

We have only properly bathed her a few times as unless they are completely filthy, I don't think they are necessary and she wasn't the greatest fan.

We have the brain games for dog book and whilst it is great for mental stimulation, she is a bouncy, (that's all I hear when I tell people I've a lab - an intake of air through the teeth and then, 'ohhhh labs, they're very bouncy, aren't they?') energetic dog and I am at a loss as to how I would properly tire her out. We do play with balls and toys but I don't think that would be enough for three weeks.

krlyr

A hydrotherapy place should introduce her to water, they'll have experience of wary dogs. It may be a bit more pleasant than a beach too - the water will be warmer, they'll likely have a shallow ramp in the pool, use lifejackets to support the dogs until they're confident and so on. It could be worth looking into - this is one near-ish me that a friend has used, that offers fun sessions, just so you can get an idea of what's available
http://dippingdogs.co.uk/facilities.html

Lots of dogs have to be on restricted exercise for various reasons, and often the least expected ones cope the best with it! You may experience a few bad days, but I imagine after a few she would twig and start to be a bit calmer. And at least with no injury or illness, you're not limited much by what you can do at home - so you can get her to do mad zoomies around the garden and so on.

I'd teach things like the go crazy and freeze game - the go crazy bit will help with her bounces, and overall it's aimed to teach self-control which will help in your situation.

I imagine the videos on pamelamarxsen's Youtube channel may be good - perhaps a bit better for a zoomy pup than Kikopup's (which are great for mental stimulation but may not always exert much physical energy)
http://www.youtube.com/user/pamelamarxsen/videos

Crate games will help teach her to enjoy being in her crate, which will be good for encouraging some quiet time during the 3 weeks too. There's some conditioning exercises, which may help maintain her body condition whilst on limited exercise, teaching her door manners at the back door (which can then be applied to the front door when it's safe for her to go out too), teaching her rear leg awareness combines a mental challenge with a physical one and so on.

If you don't have secure places to drive her to, even just putting her in the car and going around the block will give a change of scenery - crack the window for some scent stimulation too.

Arrange playdates - if you know of local dog owners with females or neutered males, you can drive to theirs or invite them around so pup can have a crazy play session.

Personally I think it will be more managable than you think. I've had to do it with all 3 of my dogs at some points, at various ages. My previous GSD had severe hip dysplasia so her exercise had to be quite restricted, at just 3 years old. Current GSD has split nails and cut paws on several occasions so had to rest for that, and Rottie x has not long been on restricted exercise for a shoulder condition. We've survived all occasions, with minimal issues

teddysmum

This forum obviously doesn't like the correct term for a female dog.


I have males, now, but if I had females, again, I would not hesitate over getting them spayed as I have met far too many cases of friends (and mine, as I mentioned) nearly losing them through pyometra.


The disease can fester for some time, before symptoms show and these can come on very rapidly. This happened to the friend who nearly lost the puppy and the aunt of the lady who bred my dogs. This dog was only saved as the aunt happened to visit her niece and mention that her dog was not well.


Open pyometra , where infection oozes out as smelly dark fluid, is obvious, but in the case of closed, (amazingly) even some vets miss it. My husband's friend rang me, saying that his daughter's dog was unwell and not responding to vet treatment with antibiotics. Alarm bells rung for my and I suggested they try my vet, who diagnosed and operated immediately on a Saturday morning.

neveranymoney

Ha ha, yes Teddysmum, there's a whole lot of exclamation marks floating about. Female dogs as their title it is then.

It is very hard to know what to do for the best, years ago dogs of both 'varieties' were neutered ASAP but that certainly isn't the norm now.

One of my chums has just gotten a 9week old pup and asked me how long it took to toilet train shadow and I replied bar the odd mishap, about a week and she was staggered. I told her I didn't use papers or pads and she replied she had been told she wasn't to take the pup out until it's second set of jabs and it hadn't even been down their garden yet, so it was doing its business on paper. This was told to her by the vet!!!! You can see how people get all into a big muddle with so much conflicting advice.

catkins

neveranymoney wrote: »

I don't know wether there would be anything like that where I live and she hasn't learnt to love the water yet, is a polite way of saying it.

At the beach, which is more of an inlet with a not very strong tide, she won't even consider a paddle and nearly pees herself when a teeny wave dares to come near her! We met a lady with two older labs and she said her girl dog took almost a year to take to the water but now she loves it so I'm not concerned.

We have only properly bathed her a few times as unless they are completely filthy, I don't think they are necessary and she wasn't the greatest fan.

We have the brain games for dog book and whilst it is great for mental stimulation, she is a bouncy, (that's all I hear when I tell people I've a lab - an intake of air through the teeth and then, 'ohhhh labs, they're very bouncy, aren't they?') energetic dog and I am at a loss as to how I would properly tire her out. We do play with balls and toys but I don't think that would be enough for three weeks.

If you google hydrotherapy for dogs you may well be surprised how many there are.


When my dog was a young pup (about 12 weeks) my dog trainer suggested hydrotherapy as she said it is very good exercise for dogs and with young ones it doesn't put a strain on the bones like walking too far can do.


My dog is a breed not known for swimming (none of my previous ones could) but they wear a flotation aid and at least the first few times either you (if you go in with your dog) or the member of staff in with them walk along while they swim and, if necessary, hold the jacket loosely.


I was told swimming wears most dogs out and they sleep the rest of the day although needless to say it didn't have that effect on mine!

JencParker

All my girls (Labradors) are intact until the time comes when I make a decision on whether to breed or not and then not until fully mature which would be around 2/3 in a labrador. But, I would always wait until after first season. The hormones are responsible for closing the growth plates, which if removed can result in elongated bone growth, which can put pressure on joints - something I would want to avoid in a breed that can have joint problems (were her parents hip and elbow scored?). Spay incontinence is not uncommon amongst !!!!!es that have been spayed before maturity due to underdeveloped infantile vulva and urinary sphincter.

This is worth a read so you can make an informed decision.

http://www.caninesports.com/uploads/1/5/3/1/15319800/spay_neuter_considerations_2013.pdf