When is the best time to spay?

12584 Views 28 Replies 18 Participants Last post by wishpoo, Jan 10, 2010

aprhj

Discussion Starter · Jan 4, 2010

Poppy is nearly 6 month old. When would be the best time to have her spayed? She is still kinda small for a standard but much bigger than a mini. Would spaying her now have an effect on her size?

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KPoos

· #21 · Jan 8, 2010

wishpoo said:
Considering everything I read so far and being a biologist, I know that I personally would wait till 8 mos to a year at least - possibly longer.

Removing ANY gland in the body has tremendous effect on the development of any animal and downplaying that fact is silly, in my humble opinion.

Just because we do not see effects with the naked eye, does not mean that they are not happening.

Anybody who went through a puberty, pregnancy or menopause should "reflect" and would get just a glimpse of how much sex-hormones effect the body AND the brain.

You know this brings up a really good point to make. I once spoke with a breeder that wouldn't let any of her pets go to their new homes without being fixed first. That meant if you were going to get your new puppy during a good bonding time, 8 weeks, either you got a spayed/neutered dog at a very young age or you had to wait until they were old enough to be spayed/neutered which meant you missed out on the good age to bond with puppy. Some will disagree with me about ages to bond with puppies but there has been research done on when a good time to rehome puppies is and 8-10 weeks seems to be the mark.

I had Harry neutered when he was about 14 months or so and he never made it to hike the leg status and he still humped the rescue I got that was in heat. I don't think humping has as much to do with sexual energy as it does pack status. That's often a misconception people have about dogs humping each other because neutered dogs and even females hump other dogs to show dominance to that dog.

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Raena

· #22 · Jan 8, 2010

my BC mix was a rescue i got him when he was 9 weeks and he was already healed!!! ugh, thats way to young! My vet keeps telling me to spay her earlier (6 months) to reduce the chance of mammary tumors and all i want to tell her is then why don't we spay people before they have their first period to reduce the chance of breast cancer? Yeah that would never fly with anyone!! so why would we do it to the dogs? Thank you wishpoo for bringing up that just because we don't see it doesnt mean that a problem doesnt exist. like feeding ol'Roy and saying my dogs coat looks good so he must be healthy!! or not. sorry for the rant... so spay between 9 and 12 months (i don't want to push my luck with the breeder)?

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Raena

· #23 · Jan 8, 2010

Have any of you noticed coat changes after altering? If so what kinds?

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Purple Poodle

· #24 · Jan 9, 2010

wishpoo said:
Considering everything I read so far and being a biologist, I know that I personally would wait till 8 mos to a year at least - possibly longer.

Removing ANY gland in the body has tremendous effect on the development of any animal and downplaying that fact is silly, in my humble opinion.

Just because we do not see effects with the naked eye, does not mean that they are not happening.

Anybody who went through a puberty, pregnancy or menopause should "reflect" and would get just a glimpse of how much sex-hormones effect the body AND the brain.

Yes but dogs not are not human and its unfair to compare them to one another.

As I have stated before I have any many dogs spayed or neutered at all ages and I have to say I prefer to have it done young, between 4 and 6 months. Temperament and health wise.

Yes if affects them but the pros far outweigh the cons, especially in America.

If you as a dog owner and can be absolutely SURE you can keep your dog from becoming pregnant or from impregnating another dog then by all means wait until its about a year or so but for 95% of people its not possible so I would rather risk some small complications that might never happen then adding to the pet population.

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KPoos

· #25 · Jan 9, 2010

Purple Poodle said:
Yes but dogs not are not human and its unfair to compare them to one another.

As I have stated before I have any many dogs spayed or neutered at all ages and I have to say I prefer to have it done young, between 4 and 6 months. Temperament and health wise.

Yes if affects them but the pros far outweigh the cons, especially in America.

If you as a dog owner and can be absolutely SURE you can keep your dog from becoming pregnant or from impregnating another dog then by all means wait until its about a year or so but for 95% of people its not possible so I would rather risk some small complications that might never happen then adding to the pet population.

The thing is you have to weigh what is most important to you and how responsible of a person you are. If you feel you can be 100% responsible for a dog in heat then wait until the dog is over 1 if you feel it needs to be physically mature before getting spayed. Not everyone has the kind of time to commit to something like that so naturally spaying before a heat cycle is important.

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taxtell

· #26 · Jan 9, 2010

I know people will disagree with my advice, but, this is what I was taught and believe:

It is actually healthier for your dog or cat never to experience a heat as it reduces the animal’s chance of getting mammary cancer and decreases the animal’s stress and risks due to pregnancy and delivery.

Now I know there are a lot of people on this forum that are very passionate about what they think is right, but after seeing one too many mammary tumor removal, I would spay my female before her first heat, without a doubt. And while the vet is in there, I'd have him tack the stomach.

Of course everyone has their own opinion, some of my clients are so ridiculously blind to fact they just follow whatever old fashioned advice some vet gave them 20 years ago. :rolffleyes:
I had one client lose her dog to mammary cancer (she spayed her at 5 years old due to pyometra, another reason to spay!), and still insisted on waiting for her new dog to go through 'a few heat cycles' before she spayed her.:doh:

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wishpoo

· #27 · Jan 9, 2010

Yes- dogs are not humans - nobody ever made that comparative. I was referring to the animal physiology ( and we are animals too ). Removing ovaries or testicles before sexual maturity does alter development of any animal - human, dog, hen or a fish - period !!!

Anybody who ever took any basic Physiology class would know that.

NOT removing glands at all also increases chances of getting estrogen or testosterone induced cancers - breast and ovarian cancer in humans and ALL other mammals, testicular cancer in males.

It is absolutely advisable to "fix" animals once they finish development if one has no intention to breed them.

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brittwink21

· #28 · Jan 10, 2010

I also have been told by two different vets that you should not wait for a heat, that doing the neuter before hand reduces the risk of cancer a great deal and risks of other health issues. I have never heard anything about it stunting their growth that would suprise me. I am planning on getting my puppy spayed late this month when she will be 5 months, since some toys come in heat at 6 months...

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wishpoo

· #29 · Jan 10, 2010

Yes - estrogen and progesterone long term exposure will increase incidence of mammary cancer by 8% ,but removal of the ovaries can increase risk of other health issues in your dog.

Here is just one of the newest research papers "out there"

http://www.gpmcf.org/respectovaries.html

As with any medical issues, we have to do our own "homework" and make the best decision we can. Same as not all doctors are at the "edge of the newest research" so are not all Vets either :rolffleyes: We always have to look at the whole picture and put % in perspective.

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