Spaying

What are peoples thoughts on spaying? what age is it best to have it done.

We dont want to breed Poppy but as i have only ever had spayed older dogs not sure on pros and cons of having it done when young or leaving it for a while.

I think 6-8 months is best. I have had no probs, but I also haven't spayed an older dog either so I don't know the other side.

I would not spay until at least 2 years old if at all, firsty they are just puppies at 6 months old, its very traumatic. Secondly, they need to have the hormones produced in seasons to mature and grow, thirdly vets fill your head with crap about how they need done early because if you had a look at their records you would find that spay/neuter makes up about 75% of their entire business. Its money, not the heatlh of the animal that is paramount to them. If you don't intend to breed then as a responsible owner you won't let her get caught out and won't have any problems with puppies.

Totally a personal choice, both my girls where done, first before her first season and Moo after. Completely up to you.

It may 75% of vets cash flow but RSPCA and PETA also reccomend spaying dogs and cats early and I do not believe that they would reccomend something detrimental to the animal.

If you want to spay wait until after 2/3 seasons or 2 years old   Spaying early can cause bladder problems.

AllOfUS wrote:It may 75% of vets cash flow but RSPCA and PETA also reccomend spaying dogs and cats early and I do not believe that they would reccomend something detrimental to the animal.

RSPCA also kill healthy dogs and PETA don't think you should treat any animal anyway so im not going to take their advice tbh..

My sister was recommended to spay her bitch before her first season by a vet and it has still resulted in bladder incontinence issues   Unfortunately you cannot always trust the professionals so its best to do the research yourself and then make an informed decision.

AllOfUS wrote:It may 75% of vets cash flow but RSPCA and PETA also reccomend spaying dogs and cats early and I do not believe that they would reccomend something detrimental to the animal.

The R$PCA will neuter as early as 12 weeks! Horrific! PETA are just a bunch of dangerous loonies. Just my opinion, of course.

Spaying early will result in the growth plates closing later, therefore producing a leggier, narrower dog (ie a pitbull 'type'). It can also 'fix' any nervous issues, produce 'permanent puppy syndrome' and stop the genitals from forming properly. This last problem mean that a bitch's vulva will not be big enough to cope with an adult's volume of urine. That results in urine burn and leakage (incontinence) requiring washing the area several times a day.

and by Fix issues im assuming Caryll means make them stick, not stop them.

RSPCA cannot save every animal sad but true. Think what you want of PETA but they do save lives. At the end of the day you can google anything and find pros and cons also people with different experiences. Some people will have issues with desexing and some people have dogs that go absolutely mental when on heat or wanting to mate. My aunty has dog that is unbearable to be around when on heat. Her dog has the worst time with it.

Hayley wrote:and by Fix issues im assuming Caryll means make them stick, not stop them.

Yes, exactly. I mean that the behaviour becomes fixed & won't go away.

AllOfUS wrote:RSPCA cannot save every animal sad but true. Think what you want of PETA but they do save lives. At the end of the day you can google anything and find pros and cons also people with different experiences. Some people will have issues with desexing and some people have dogs that go absolutely mental when on heat or wanting to mate. My aunty has dog that is unbearable to be around when on heat. Her dog has the worst time with it.

I know the R$PCA saves lives, but they also spend far too much times doing bugger all, and ignoring things that are too much effort or don't carry enough publicity.

As for PETA, I don't trust a word they say. As I said, just my opinion.

Regarding the cons of neutering, the things I quoted aren't 'googled' they are facts. Waiting until a dog/bitch is mature is far, far better than neutering early.

Of course RSPCA could do better but they are out there trying, I'm sure we all think if only we ran the world hey.... Yes but the facts are also that some dogs are perfectly fine after with no issues, another fact is some dogs have a really crappy time being on heat and wanting to mate, and puppy wise it's better to be safe than sorry.

And I would far rather wait until maturity. You do it your way, I'll do it mine and continue to advise people to wait for full mental and physical maturity.

After all, 18 months/2 years isn't that long to wait to make sure you get the best for your dog in the long run, and to avoid the pitfalls. If you're responsible, the issue of unwanted pups won't arise anyway.

Think i need to do some research on the pros and cons, i do know that i will not be doing it before her first season, but not sure on how long to leave it as i know there are 2 full males one next door and one 2 doors up, and we def dont want puppies.

This may also be of interest   

https://staffy-bull-terrier.niceboard.com/t12763-long-term-health-risks-and-benefits-associated-with-spay-neuter-in-dogs?highlight=risks

Speaking purely from experience - when I got my first bitch (a Dobermann) 35 years ago, the received wisdom was that one should wait until after the first season before spaying, the assumption being that they were reasonably mature then. I was showing my bitch so didn't spay her until I gave up showing her and her 3 seasons all resulted in phantom pregnancies. She was then about 2 years old, but had urinary incontinence for the rest of her life. My second Dobermann bitch was much the same - she too suffered from phantoms after every season and was spayed after 3 seasons. However, she was much more continent regarding wee, which I can't explain except that everyone is different!

Seasons can be a pain regarding the mess (but at least "nappies" are available these days), and avoiding the attentions of male dogs during the 3 or so weeks when they are "interesting" is another pain, but if I had another bitch I would still put up with it until she was fully mature.