I'm over in the US. I have a 4.5 month old chocolate lab. My veterinarian is pressing me to spay the dog. I am going to spay her, but I've read conflicting things about age. Some say to let the dog go thru the first heat, vet says going thru heat ups her chance of mammary cancer. Vet is saying to do the spaying at 6 months old. The dog's breeder says that is much too young (I am inclined to listen to her). She said her dogs dont go thru heat until 12-14 months. So should I wait and do it around 11 months so that she doesnt go thru heat, but that its much later (not at 6 months!). Or are most people just letting the dog go thru a heat first? Here's my problem. My husband didnt really want the dog. He's head over heels for her now, of course. I've never had a female dog before. He has had a few as a child and he had a female dog when we first met and she died a few years ago. So he considers himself an "expert" in the area of girl dogs and reminds me of that constantly. If the mess from going thru heat is awful I will have to listen to him talk about how he was right and I was wrong for a month. Of course I want to do whats best for my dog too. I HAVE to get the dog spayed. She is from a limited AKC registration and I am not allowed to breed her (nor do I want to). I dont have a fenced in yard. I've never taken care of a dog in heat before. My last lab was a male and I had him neutered at 6 months old. That was back in 2002. I know that advice has changed since then and now I am reading that spaying too early can lead to joint problems and all that bad stuff. Is it pretty true that you can look at your dogs lineage and take the ages of first heat off her relatives and come up with a timeframe for your dog? If all this breeders dogs didnt go into heat until 12 months, what are the chances that mine will go thru heat at 6 months? I obviously have time to think about this. I am going to cancel the appointment I made to have it done at 6 months and wait longer, I'm just not sure how much longer to wait.
Re: Age for spaying? I'm not sure there's a right or wrong answer for this, I've seen differing opinions of it online and even on here. We just got Rue spayed, and she's 6 months, and she did great overall. Since we just had it done, I can't speak for post spay complications as she grows, but dogs get spayed at that age often with no problems. Fellow US resident, by the way!
Re: Age for spaying? Over the years I have had five bitches, but can only remember about 4! Two were spayed after their first season and those were the two who became incontinent at times later in life, but medication sorted that. The other two were spayed at about 8 months.
Re: Age for spaying? ;D Another US resident here... There was an article posted on the main sight just recently about spaying and the current research out there...it was an interesting read. My vet too quotes the mammary cancer point....but more compelling to ME is the fact that if you do spay before the first heat...the tissues are MUCH smaller - the uterus and all the vessels heading that way are still tiny. They recover so much faster. I've almost exclusively had female dogs my whole life, and I always spay before the first heat, and as early as my vet is willing. Usually it's around 5-6 months. I've never had to use a cone, and they are always up and about very quickly. The one exception to the rule was a heeler that we bred twice and then had her spayed. The only issue we had with incontinence was a REALLY fat girl, and when she lost weight...the incontinence went away. I'm an advocate for the early spay personally...in case you couldn't tell.
Re: Age for spaying? I waited until Harley had her first season. She was due to be spayed in September but due to developing pyometra she was spayed 4 weeks after her first season (5 weeks before she was due to be spayed). I was strongly advised to wait to ensure she had fully grown etc. I think it's more common in the uk to wait til after their first season.
Re: Age for spaying? I think it depends on your vet. I don't want to generalise, but I think younger vets tend to say do it at 6months/before the first season, and older vets say wait until after. Lilly was always going to be spayed early, we did it at 6 months, and it was easy and uncomplicated. I didn't even know about the different issues and controversies at that point. To be honest though, I would probably do the same again. No way are we in the business of accidental puppies. Too many intact males in our circle.
Re: Age for spaying? Where I live (Australia) bitches are routinely spayed before their first heat, at 6 months, as it's a much simpler operation and totally removes the risk of unwanted pregnancy. In most States it's also compulsory (unless you apply for a special licence) however that probably doesn't apply where you live The health evidence about a spay before a first season is equivocal (there are pros and cons that seem to balance each other out). But the health evidence is more clearly in favour of a spay before the second heat. So definitely get her done before the second heat. Given that the health evidence about a spay before the first heat isn't strongly for or against, but will definitely be easier for the dog and will definitely remove all chances of puppies and will prevent husbandly gloating ( ) I personally would get it done before 6 months. That's my view anyway However if you're in doubt and can definitely, guaranteed, keep her away from entire males then it won't hurt her to wait.
Re: Age for spaying? [quote author=Oberon link=topic=9171.msg131513#msg131513 date=1419026706] The health evidence about a spay before a first season is equivocal (there are pros and cons that seem to balance each other out). But the health evidence is more clearly in favour of a spay before the second heat. So definitely get her done before the second heat. [/quote] Guide Dogs are doing a large study to find the answer to this. They are in the unique position to be able to follow dogs from birth. Gypsy is part of this research and is one of the pups to be spayed at 6 months. All went well, I can't even see the scar 3 weeks on
Re: Age for spaying? [quote author=Oberon link=topic=9171.msg131513#msg131513 date=1419026706] The health evidence about a spay before a first season is equivocal (there are pros and cons that seem to balance each other out).[/quote] Not according to this study. Apart from mammary cancer I count far more cons than pros. http://www.naiaonline.org/pdfs/LongTermHealthEffectsOfSpayNeuterInDogs.pdf "Spay/neuter of immature dogs delays the closure of the growth plates in bones that are still growing" "Spay/neuter before 5 ½ months of age is associated with a 70% increased aged-adjusted risk of hip dysplasia" "if done before 1 year of age, significantly increases the risk of osteosarcoma (bone cancer); this is a common cancer in medium/large and larger breeds with a poor prognosis." "The traditional spay/neuter age of six months as well as the modern practice of pediatric spay/neuter appear to predispose dogs to health risks that could otherwise be avoided by waiting until the dog is physically mature" Also a behaviour twist: http://www.apbc.org.uk/system/files/private/summary_sheet_of_spaying_risks_and_benefits_bitch.pdf and that leaves me firmly in the camp of waiting. I accept there is no absolute right or wrong answer all we can do is check for research like the above and draw our own informed choices. It's a shame we can't trust our vets on this. My own gave me the hard sell to spay before first heat to eliminate mammary cancer but only when I pushed him did he admit it increased the risk of spay incontinence ("but we gave give you medication for that" sureeeeeee ££££kerching!) and then he agreed it wouldn't be such a terrible thing to wait until after anyway. [quote author=sunsetpines link=topic=9171.msg131489#msg131489 date=1419018272] There was an article posted on the main sight just recently about spaying and the current research out there...it was an interesting read. [/quote] Indeed: http://www.thelabradorsite.com/should-you-spay-your-dog-a-look-at-pros-and-cons/ Just a shame it doesn't directly address the subject of when though. Some of the reference documents linked at the end do though, so they are worth a read.
Re: Age for spaying? I checked with an insurance company and the premiums are the same for before and after. If they don't have the data favouring one over the other, then it probably doesn't exist. I would go with the breeder's advise.
Re: Age for spaying? For me, the primary reason for desexing a dog is so that they can't make puppies. The data on that is very clear
Re: Age for spaying? Our vet won't spay before first season, he did explain growth plates etc but I wasn't listening too closely as I agreed with him before he started speaking, then they are done 3 months after the first season. I would worry doing it 6 months, how do you know how close that is to the first season ? it's much more dangerous to spay when a dog is in season and most of my girls have gone into their first season around the 6 month mark so could well have suffered excessive bleeding if they had been done then.
Has anyone had experience with a sort of doggie chastity belt? I think our little girl doggie Milou is going into early heat - she's only 4 1/2 months! She was scheduled to be spayed at 6 months (recommended by our vet as she is the daughter of our 6-year-old entire male JF), but suddenly last night JF tried to mount her several times. Then they both started pining. I separated them for the night and will phone vet first thing in the morning, but reading your posts I am worried about early surgery. Keeping them apart for a month, however, will be nigh impossible...
Annie is having laparoscopic spay surgery when she is 6 month old (around May). I have looked at all the research and I think that is best for her.
I spayed Moo after her first season. She was very small and very silly so i left her a bit longer after reading around the subject. Her first season was very strange and made her really ill off her food etc. She felt terrible and I didn't want her to have to go through that again so I had her spayed when I could. She's still very small and just as silly at 13 but I found that giving her that bit of extra time to mature helped her in the long run. Shes a funny little dog
The early spay (before the first season) will protect your bitch against mammary tumours. After the second season there is no benefit. A spay at any age will protect your bitch against pyometra. But, the latest studies show that the earlier the spay the greater the risk of orthopaedic problems and of a whole range of other cancers. These risks were worse in some breeds than in others. Labradors came out better than golden retrievers for example. As for the mess - in most bitches this is minimal, not a big deal at all - I have had four or more in season bitches in my home at one time (they usually come on heat together) and most casual visitors would be completely unaware that they were in season. All you need do is restrict your bitch to rooms with washable floors using a baby gate. Obviously spaying removes the risk of pregnancy, but so does supervision. If you can't provide this, then an early spay sounds like a good idea The fact is, there is no clear cut answer as to when you should spay your dog. You have to weigh up the evidence objectively, look at your lifestyle factors - including the feelings and opinions of other family members, and decide what is best for you in your personal situation. By the way, no one can predict when your bitch will come on heat for the first time, not your breeder, nor your vet, nor anyone else. They can guess, but it is only a guess. Many slim, healthy dogs won't come on heat until the end of the first year, but some will come on heat at 6 months. There are no guarantees. Lots more info here: http://www.thelabradorsite.com/neutering-your-labrador/
Guide Dogs are undertaking a large, scientific research programme to find out more. They have had 500 bitches spayed at 6 months old and the control group are 500 bitches who were spayed after their first season (which is GD normal practice). Of course they also have a large group of unspayed breeding stock too. They will follow these dogs life-long - and they are in a unique position to do this as they are GD stock form birth to retirement and beyond. My two pups, Gypsy and Twiglet were both in the programme and spayed at six months. I can honestly say they have had no adverse affects at all (of course time will tell, it's early days) The operation itself was very small and they recovered as soon as they came round. The hardest job was keeping them calm for two weeks! The scar was so small that you couldn't see it on either within two weeks! Gypsy is two in May and the steadiest of working Guide Dogs already. Twiglet is 10 months and as normal a pup behaviour-wise as you can get. So, on my small sample of two, I am positively disposed towards early spays. My next pup will be spayed, as normal, after her first season as the programme is now completed apart from following the dogs and collecting the data. .
My breeder used the doggy "pants" with his bitch and it certainly worked inasmuch as Ruby didn't get impregnated by the dog in the house. I couldn't say how much separation/management they did, though. Having siblings (one male, one female) in the house, and reading up as best I could about the health risks for early vs delayed spaying, I decided to go ahead with a spay before the first season, at six and a half months. Our boy, Shadow, went to stay with friends for two weeks whilst Willow had her stitches in, to avoid roughhousing which could have split them. This worked really well. However. Willow was a confident puppy and is now a rather nervous and sensitive adult. I can't say for sure, obviously, whether this was anything to do with the spay, or is just her nature. It is enough, however, to make me rethink what I'd do with another bitch and, if I had to make the choice now, I'd opt for them to go through a season before spaying. The practicalities wouldn't be much different; Shadow would go and stay with friends for a little longer, maybe, or I'd just separate them when they couldn't be supervised. Shadow has little interest in the bitches in season that he has met, so it might work out OK, anyway. Another thing which may be a consideration is possible effects on her joints. Again, this is wholly anecdotal, but Willow is very tall and leggy compared to both her mother and the two female littermates I see regularly, all of whom have more traditional Labrador proportions. Whether this will have any detrimental effect later in life remains to be seen. You have to look at all the evidence and your home set-up and do what's best for all of you. We can only do what we think is the right thing, given our circumstances.
Just to add confusion Juno was spayed at 5.5 months of age as recommended by our vet. She is round about the size we would have expected factoring in the size of her parents and hasn't shown any temperamental changes. Considering the impact of elbow dysplasia and surgery on her life from before 6 months of ages to a year old, for me the early spay prior to a first season was a good decision and one less condition fir Juno to deal with.
