Our puppy is getting spayed tomorrow and I feel nervous :-(

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How old?

There is new research explaining that castration is better done after bone growth is complete (1.5 to 2 years, depending on the size of the breed). That is usually AFTER sexual maturation, BTW, so you have to keep an eye on your pet during the period between sexual maturation and end of bone growth.

Bones do not all grow at the same rate, and lack of hormones will cause some to elongate while others have already finished growing, thereby causing un-natural tension on some joints, and increasing risks of neuromuscular injuries later in the dog's life.

OP's dog is female.

Can you move past the word and understand that it applies to both sexes?

Sigh.

Does this apply to both sexes equally? My understanding was that it doesn't.

It absolutely does, and that should be obvious, since we're talking about bone growth after sexual maturation. This happens in both sexes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m feeling nervous about my pup’s surgery tomorrow. Please tell me all will be well! And if you have any tips for how to help her afterward, please share them. I know this is 100% the best thing, but still. Poor little thing!

She’ll be fine! It’s very routine and we’ll be over and done with quickly. Your vet is a better source of advice than other posters regarding the age of the dog - obviously make sure you trust your vet, but it’s still typical to have this surgery done on puppies v adult dogs.

I got my pup from the shelter when she was about 11 weeks old- and they had her up for adoption and available to meet the day after her spay surgery. Not good, and honestly contributed to me picking her. She was so young and vulnerable I hated the idea of the family of screaming brats that were also looking at dogs taking her home ... I did the paperwork and paid the fees to have her taken out of the available pups but had her kept overnight so I could get a smaller crate etc (I had not planned on a puppy, and not that day, but very glad I got her!) .

The shelter gave no after care instructions and didn’t have her in an e-collar; I did take her to my vet 3 days post op for a check up and was told she should have been in the collar for the first few days after surgery, she should have been restricted to minimize activity, and I couldn’t bathe her for 2 weeks to allow the incision to heal.

I was lucky - she never messed with her incision although I put a collar on her at night the first 2-3 nights just in case. I had her in her crate a lot but she wanted to be active and play- by the first night she was home there was a small bump near her incision; it wasn’t red or infected looking but was concerning. The vet said it was from her post surgery activity & was basically fluid under the skin. I had to keep an eye on it - took ages to go away but never grew or looked worse. Something to watch for, and I recommend the e-collar & just watch her when it’s off. Mine slept in her crate from day 1 at home with me but that first night I was awake watching her most of the night. She cried a lot the first couple days but she was in a new house after the shelter and came there as a stray someone found so hard to say if she was in pain or just adjusting. I got her a puppy Kong toy and some other puppy safe toys but she wasn’t interested in anything for a few days. I also made sure the room her crate was in was super warm and I slept with a small clean blanket that I put in her crate before her first night so she had a slightly familiar scent.

General TLC and I’m sure she’ll be mostly over it quickly! Good luck

Disagree. I am a scientist and my husband has an MD, and it's pretty typical that information based on recent research studies trickles down VERY slowly to practicing medical professionals, whether it's in human medicine or vet medicine. Not the fault of the doctors or vets, they are busy caring for their patients! This means that if you read the primary research literature, or have access to reputable sources who explain it to you, you ABSOLUTELY CAN be better informed than your vet or doctor.

[Anonymous]

We're picking up a puppy next month. It states in our contract that we will not spay or neuter until at least 12-18 months of age. I'm not looking forward to dealing with a heat cycle for a female dog, but it seems this is the direction the research is suggesting at this point so we'll figure it out.

[Anonymous]

We picked up our puppy a couple weeks ago and the contract stated that she must be spayed by six months. My vet assured me that early spaying is less of an issue in small dogs than big dogs and that spaying her at 6 months wouldn't be that bad for her.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We picked up our puppy a couple weeks ago and the contract stated that she must be spayed by six months. My vet assured me that early spaying is less of an issue in small dogs than big dogs and that spaying her at 6 months wouldn't be that bad for her.

Now that inspires confidence.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We picked up our puppy a couple weeks ago and the contract stated that she must be spayed by six months. My vet assured me that early spaying is less of an issue in small dogs than big dogs and that spaying her at 6 months wouldn't be that bad for her.

Now that inspires confidence.

Well, we're planning on keeping her, so we'll be spaying her at six months. It's good to know that smaller dogs are less adversely affected by early spaying than larger dogs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We picked up our puppy a couple weeks ago and the contract stated that she must be spayed by six months. My vet assured me that early spaying is less of an issue in small dogs than big dogs and that spaying her at 6 months wouldn't be that bad for her.

Now that inspires confidence.

Well, we're planning on keeping her, so we'll be spaying her at six months. It's good to know that smaller dogs are less adversely affected by early spaying than larger dogs.

Not that early! The only difference is that some small dogs mature sexually a little earlier, so that you could be looking at a 18 months spay instead of a 24 month spay. BUT 6 MONTHS ???? That is exactly what you should NOT do. This means your breeder is not up to date on the latest research, which is concerning: what else is he not up to date about? The whole point of going to a breeder is to have the peace of mind that they know what they're doing.

Rescues and shelters are different - due to the risk of overpopulation, they spay and neuter very early, which is bad for pets but at least guarantees that they won't produce little ones destined to be euthanized.

You should contact the breeder and discuss this.

[Anonymous]

She's from a rescue, not from a breeder. The rescue requires her to be spayed by 6 months. If she were a larger dog, I might try to negotiate more time, but I think they're pretty inflexible about this, whatever size of the dog.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:She's from a rescue, not from a breeder. The rescue requires her to be spayed by 6 months. If she were a larger dog, I might try to negotiate more time, but I think they're pretty inflexible about this, whatever size of the dog.

So she's with you right now? What's the downside to not honoring the contract? That you're never allowed to adopt from them again? Done.
I would do that in a heartbeat to ensure that my puppy not develop health issues from a too-early spay. The rescue has their reasoning, which is controlling overpopulation. But they're not the ones paying ten thousand dollars (or more) at the end of your dog's life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How old?

There is new research explaining that castration is better done after bone growth is complete (1.5 to 2 years, depending on the size of the breed). That is usually AFTER sexual maturation, BTW, so you have to keep an eye on your pet during the period between sexual maturation and end of bone growth.

Bones do not all grow at the same rate, and lack of hormones will cause some to elongate while others have already finished growing, thereby causing un-natural tension on some joints, and increasing risks of neuromuscular injuries later in the dog's life.

OP's dog is female.

Can you move past the word and understand that it applies to both sexes?

Sigh.

Does this apply to both sexes equally? My understanding was that it doesn't.

It absolutely does, and that should be obvious, since we're talking about bone growth after sexual maturation. This happens in both sexes.

Obvious? Not sure why you don't get that males and females are DIFFERENT.

From Cesar Milan: "Spaying females before 6 months is less controversial than neutering; preventing the first heat nearly eliminates the risk of breast cancer which is much more common than bone cancer."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How old?

There is new research explaining that castration is better done after bone growth is complete (1.5 to 2 years, depending on the size of the breed). That is usually AFTER sexual maturation, BTW, so you have to keep an eye on your pet during the period between sexual maturation and end of bone growth.

Bones do not all grow at the same rate, and lack of hormones will cause some to elongate while others have already finished growing, thereby causing un-natural tension on some joints, and increasing risks of neuromuscular injuries later in the dog's life.

OP's dog is female.

Can you move past the word and understand that it applies to both sexes?

Sigh.

Does this apply to both sexes equally? My understanding was that it doesn't.

It absolutely does, and that should be obvious, since we're talking about bone growth after sexual maturation. This happens in both sexes.

Obvious? Not sure why you don't get that males and females are DIFFERENT.

From Cesar Milan: "Spaying females before 6 months is less controversial than neutering; preventing the first heat nearly eliminates the risk of breast cancer which is much more common than bone cancer."

Cesar Milan was discredited years ago by animal behaviorists (you know, the ones with PhDs and years of study and experience), so you're not helping your case by quoting that man.

I don't disagree that sterilization risks are different in male and female dogs. That's basic anatomy. However the breast cancer study he's quoting has since been found to be lacking, so researchers don't rely on it any more.

At the end of the day, you, as the consumer, make the decision. Don't forget you're on the hook to pay all those vet bills if neuromuscular or other complications do arise.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How old?

There is new research explaining that castration is better done after bone growth is complete (1.5 to 2 years, depending on the size of the breed). That is usually AFTER sexual maturation, BTW, so you have to keep an eye on your pet during the period between sexual maturation and end of bone growth.

Bones do not all grow at the same rate, and lack of hormones will cause some to elongate while others have already finished growing, thereby causing un-natural tension on some joints, and increasing risks of neuromuscular injuries later in the dog's life.

OP's dog is female.

Can you move past the word and understand that it applies to both sexes?

Sigh.

Does this apply to both sexes equally? My understanding was that it doesn't.

It absolutely does, and that should be obvious, since we're talking about bone growth after sexual maturation. This happens in both sexes.

Obvious? Not sure why you don't get that males and females are DIFFERENT.

From Cesar Milan: "Spaying females before 6 months is less controversial than neutering; preventing the first heat nearly eliminates the risk of breast cancer which is much more common than bone cancer."

Cesar Milan was discredited years ago by animal behaviorists (you know, the ones with PhDs and years of study and experience), so you're not helping your case by quoting that man.

I don't disagree that sterilization risks are different in male and female dogs. That's basic anatomy. However the breast cancer study he's quoting has since been found to be lacking, so researchers don't rely on it any more.

At the end of the day, you, as the consumer, make the decision. Don't forget you're on the hook to pay all those vet bills if neuromuscular or other complications do arise.

I'm sure you are much more knowledgable than I am and I'm glad to hear that you don't disagree. That contradicts the bolded exchange between us.

It's great that you wish to impart your knowledge about animals to others, but please choose your words more carefully so as not to be confusing.

[Anonymous]

Um, OP here. The spaying happened and seemingly went fine. She’s much better than yesterday, although she’s constantly trying to scratch the incision with her back legs (which the headcone doesn’t prevent). So I’ve got to keep my eye on her all the time, which is challenging. Poor pup!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We're picking up a puppy next month. It states in our contract that we will not spay or neuter until at least 12-18 months of age. I'm not looking forward to dealing with a heat cycle for a female dog, but it seems this is the direction the research is suggesting at this point so we'll figure it out.

This from my small dog breeder as well. She says it is information from the newest studies. Breeder added that they believe this so much that they likely won’t honor the lifetime health guarantee for the puppy if you break the contaract on this one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We're picking up a puppy next month. It states in our contract that we will not spay or neuter until at least 12-18 months of age. I'm not looking forward to dealing with a heat cycle for a female dog, but it seems this is the direction the research is suggesting at this point so we'll figure it out.

This from my small dog breeder as well. She says it is information from the newest studies. Breeder added that they believe this so much that they likely won’t honor the lifetime health guarantee for the puppy if you break the contaract on this one.

Getting veterinary advice from a breeder is like getting gynecological advice from a pimp.