Libby is almost 4 months old. We have never had a female dog before and I had always heard that you spay at about 6 months. My vet told me that new studies show, for the larger breeds, to wait until they are about a year old as it somehow helps with joint problems later in life. I'm not sure what is involved in having a female dog in heat and wondering what others here have done as far as when to spay.
I would wait until three months after the first season. I've had three Guide Dog pups now and two were spayed at six months. My pet dog was spayed after her first season. The early spay was so much easier for me, and a simpler op with very quick recovery, but I do feel it probably kept them immature and puppyish for longer than their contemporaries who were spayed at the normal time (Gypsy and Twiglet were part of an extensive research programme into this very question - results due in 10 years, they are following the bitches life-long) Twiglet is staying in training for two extra months due to her puppyishness, her trainer thinks it *could* be due to the early spay. ...
There is a useful article here: http://www.thelabradorsite.com/should-i-have-my-labrador-neutered-the-latest-evidence/ I have a 6 month old Labrador bitch - I'm in no hurry to have her spayed. I don't know when (or even if) I'll have her spayed. I don't think managing a bitch in season is a big deal. Keep them on washable floors, don't let them off lead, walk them on-lead where you are unlikely to run into other dogs. Make sure you supervise her, and if she has access to a garden it is completely secure. I also have an entire dog, which complicates things, but the plan is he will go on holiday with my partner. It's this inconvenience that might make me decide to spay, but I definitely won't do it early.
A good reason for spaying is for health reasons, reducing mammary cancer and removing entirely the risk of pyometra. I see no point in keeping a bitch entire unless you decide to breed from them. Probably the best time is three months after the first season, it can be done earlier, but then you are never sure when they might have the first season and it not a good idea to spay when everything is turgid! I have had bitches spayed before first seasons and after and I didn't notice any difference, except strangely enough the bitch who was spayed later, was the one who became incontinent in later life, though medication for that solved the problem.
I have found by reading questions on spay/neuter on here that there is a difference between the norm in the UK and North America. UK seems to be more common after 1st season and here the norm is vets spaying early - around 6 months. Most dog walkers and doggy daycares in our area require dogs to be spayed/neutered, which of course results in people making the decision to do so earlier. We had Quinn spayed at 6 months - I felt that I did not want to limit our options for care if our work schedules changed, read positive things about reducing chances of mammary cancer, and did not like the idea of being responsible for keeping her away from other dogs for her first season - she was getting humped at the dog park a ton after 5 months and I was so nervous I wouldn't be able to tell her first heat.
I had Willow spayed before her first season, at 6.5 months. I did this because we had an entire male in the apartment, and no way of easily separating the two, without sending Shadow to live with a friend for weeks at a time. Now our circumstances have changed and we have a second property, if I had the chance again I'd probably wait until after the first season and then decide from there what I wanted to do. I think if you don't have an entire male, it's far easier for you to manage a bitch in season, but people still do get on with it with boys in the house. Having not been through it, I can't say how difficult it is - I suspect it depends a lot on the individual dogs. Anecdotally, I know two other girls from Willow's litter, who were both spayed after their first and second seasons respectively. She is far leggier than both of them and they both have much more compact / solid frames. Of course, that may have absolutely nothing to do with the spay - I do wonder if there isn't a hint of dwarfism in there somewhere, because one of them is really quite short. I think it's very difficult to make your decisions based on health - the evidence just isn't clear-cut one way or the other, as explained in the article that Julie linked to above. Hopefully the GD research will go some way to resolving that for us.
Winnie is nearly 7 months and was spayed last week. We thought long and hard before making that decision. She was always going to be spayed it was just when. The breeder said after her first season, the vet gave both pros and cons of going early or waiting. Ultimately for us it was about day care, we've got great day care but they couldn't have her in season because of the other dogs they have. Whatever you decide there will be pros and cons, you just have to be happy with your decision.
I had Xena spayed at 6 months. She uses daycare intermittently and my mum is pet sitting for a week over Christmas so I just couldn't risk leaving it. She had her stitches out yesterday but the vet recommend to keep her on leash for another week which is driving me potty.
Yes, there is a big difference. Lots of pet dogs in the UK are not neutered and many pet owners will agonise over the decision, lots of people don't take it for granted that it's the right thing to do. In some European countries it's still illegal to neuter a dog - it's viewed as a form of mutilation which has to be justified by special circumstances.
We had Ella spayed early at six months. This is the recommended and "normal" thing to do where we are in Australia, plus it was required for our compulsory council registration . I can't say that I'd definitely wait until after the first season next time but I would do a bit more research and try to make my own decision. One issue we've had with Ella is that she has a slightly recessed vulva which has made her more prone to UTI's. I've since discovered that this may have resolved itself if we'd waited until after her first season. I still feel rather annoyed that the vet never mentioned this to us (neither the fact that it was recessed nor the possible resolution).
We had the same dilemma, and waited until after Coopers first season. Having a puppy in heat was not much of a problem. We just had to stay away from dog parks and unknown dogs for a few weeks. Not messy at all, but if you have light colored carpets you might want to keep her out of those rooms. There is actually very little blood. The biggest question, is when is she actually fertile, since that is the only time she can get pregnant. She should only be fertile for about one week but it is not real clear when that week starts and ends, especially the first time. Not knowing the pup well you have to err on the side of caution and keep her away from intact dogs for about 3 weeks starting with her first bleeding. Tilly was spayed at 6 months and it was easier than it was for Cooper at 15 months, but we wanted for her bones to be fully developed before we had it done.
Yep, I live in Germany most of the year and while I don't think it's really illegal per se, it certainly is extremely ill-regarded to neuter or spay (especially neuter). It isn't allowed in shelters, which I found astonishing at first but now understand. Quite a culture shock for me as an American - to me responsible dog person = spay/neuter. However, along with my acquired love of quark, I've come around to the German way of thinking on neutering and won't do it unless there are other as yet unforeseen reasons that come up. I think it would be a harder decision if i was still in the US as there are so many unwanted pets and a very different dog culture, but hopefully it will work well for me in Germany once I get my pup. Of course I'll have a learning curve managing an un-neutered male for the first time and am anticipating some surprises for me!
Zaba is a 3 year old entire male. He's no trouble at all. Twice we've met bitches on heat and he was only vaguely interested, Tatze sniffed them more! (no stud dog, Zaba!)
We went for an early spay at 7 months. This was after the vet gave of pros and cons of both. For me I just wanted to rule out the risk of womb infection given we had no plans to breed from her. Whilst I know it is rare in a dog so young, it can happen, so I thought I may as well just go for it.
Yes, definitely a boy. I actually would love a female just as well but with a Labrador it's the size thing as I need a dog of a certain height and weight. Just as if I chose a Rottie it would have been a female as the males are too massive (my boy Brogan was a mix so the size of a small Rottie female, only 32 kg). No progress the last week in the breeder search as I've been visiting family in California and it's been a little crazy. But fingers crossed I will make better headway when I get back to Germany next week! I'll be back asking for advice here! @Boogie - I don't really anticipate any trouble per se from having an intact male, just that it will be a new experience for me - as will having a Labrador for the first time! It is just important to me personally to do (or NOT do, as the case may be) as Brogan had so many health issues which have a strong correlation to early neuter. Maybe the intact thing will make no difference at all - beyond the obvious physical differences as I'm not used to seeing anything "down there".
Just to confuse you, my male and female are pretty much identical size and weight. Don't worry, it very rarely stays "down there". Generally, those furry nuggets are on display to all and sundry, whether it be laying spread-eagled to get some sun on them, or standing on your lap and waving them in your face
Re: M/F sizes... that's really interesting. Good to know! Honestly, if the size weren't an issue I'd be happy with either sex. "Waving them in your face"??!!! Really? Ee gads, I have a lot to learn.
That's just not the case Emily. All rescue dogs are neutered in Germany, if not at the shelter then it is stipulated in the purchase agreement that the dog must be neutered. There is definitely a no-kill policy in shelters though, apart from dangerous dogs. Personally, I am finding it harder and harder to come up with adequate reasons for neutering or spaying dogs routinely; the convenience aspect doesn't outweigh the health questions for me.
