# Spay before or after first heat ?



## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

This is one of those very difficult questions where you have to weigh up the risks and benefits. There are two articles Determining the Best Age at which to Spay or Neuter: An Evidence -Based Analysis and The Long Term Effects of Spay/Neuter in Dogs here White Papers - Animal Welfare | Animal Rights | National Animal Interest Alliance that might help you to decide the best answer for you and for Sophie.


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## sulamk (Nov 5, 2011)

Just my 2cents worth I have always spayed my girls before the first heat at around 6mths and they have all lived to over 15yrs with no health problems. most of them were large dogs. My little Marula (tpoo) was spayed last thursday and the only problem has been keeping her a bit less active! There are pro's and cons for both school of thoughts on this matter!


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## ArreauStandardPoodle (Sep 1, 2009)

My vote is before. I have read that even so much as one heat puts a bitch at risk of mammary cancer. First heats CAN be as early as nine months of age. If she were mine, I would schedule her spay for when she is eight months old.


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## sarpoodle (Dec 26, 2011)

My youngest standard is 11 months old, and is a working dog. Some recent studies have shown that waiting until 2 years of age provides for much stronger bones than those found in dogs spayed at 6-12 months. I wish I could provide a reference to this study, but now I can't find it. There is another group experimenting with working dogs whereby they perform a hysterectomy. The jury is still out on this technique, but so far, the results have been positive.

If your standard will be a working or performance dog, this may be a consideration in order to reduce bone related injuries down the road. Saydee will be doing wilderness search and rescue, and these dogs definitely can and do sustain injuries. Consequently, I will spay her at 2 years.

This may not be an appropriate criteria for you @louise, but I still wanted to share the information.

Greg


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## annadee (May 15, 2012)

This is something I think about all the time. While I can imagine that it's more convenient for an owner that's not planning on breeding, to spay before the first heat, from what I have read it seems like it's better to wait until the dog is 1.5 years old or so to spay. That being said, I'm sure there are many, many dogs that have lived healthy lives being spayed before that. It's just a matter of luck, really, considering everything is given with some probability. That mixed with environmental factors and genetics. It's a difficult decision to make.


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## miss potter (May 1, 2012)

vets will always recommend before the dogs heat at 6 months. some breeders i have heard say no let them have a heat but my self personally i dont know the reason behind that? if u have decided 100per cent that u want to neuter her id just go for it. theres no need for her to go through a heat if ur goin to get her neutered. - thats just my opinion. i got all my dogs neutered at 6 months no problems yet. my mothers dog a cavlier did go through 1 heat and then got neutered no problems either but the only resaon for this was the min she turned 6 months she went into heat to we had to wait. ill be gettin my new poodle pup neutered at 6 months as i dont intend on breeding. so to sum up - i think- if ur gona do it ya might as well just go for  ---


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

A very inadequate summary, but the main reasons in favour of neutering before the first season are to reduce the risk of mammary tumours, to avoid all possibility of an unwanted litter, and for the owner's convenience; the arguments for waiting until after the first season are to ensure the bitch is physically and sexually mature, to give the growth plates time to close, and to reduce the possibility of urinary incontinence, immediately after spaying or later in life. Once a birch is spayed, she is also very unlikely to suffer from pyometra. There is some so far not very convincing evidence that very early spaying or neutering may lead to behavioural problems, and there is conflicting research on whether spayed females live longer, or shorter, lives than entire females.

The operation itself carries a small risk, and there is quite a high rate of complications, usually fairly minor.


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## Fluffyspoos (Aug 11, 2009)

If it were me I'd do it after the first heat, I've heard of vulvas not maturing until after the first heat (since it swells and forces it 'out') and having issues with urinary infections.


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## roulette (Feb 18, 2011)

I would also consider that a spay is surgery, which necessitates sedative and anesthesia. A younger dog's immune system is not as fully developed at a young age, especially dependent on their vaccine schedule. I would guess that a "reaction" could be more likely in a younger pup. Just a consideration. If you don't own a male, a heat cycle is not that big of a deal... just take her out by herself on a leash, (armed with pepper spray in case any dog won't take No for an answer : )


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## sulamk (Nov 5, 2011)

In my rural area of South Africa there are a lot of feral and half feral dogs this also plays a part in my not letting my females have a season!


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## MollyRose (9 d ago)

sulamk said:


> Just my 2cents worth I have always spayed my girls before the first heat at around 6mths and they have all lived to over 15yrs with no health problems. most of them were large dogs. My little Marula (tpoo) was spayed last thursday and the only problem has been keeping her a bit less active! There are pro's and cons for both school of thoughts on this matter!


I read a recent study that looked a breed specific spaying and also compared males and females. They determined that there was no major risks in spaying female standard poodles earlier but found it's better to wait longer for males. My pup just turned 8 months and we really don't want to deal with her going into heat. We spayed our previous poodle at six months and her only health issue was sebaceous cysts and needing several surgeries through her life for burst ones. She lived 14 years 4 months and 11 days and was otherwise healthy. no issues with her growth or joints.


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## cowpony (Dec 30, 2009)

I'm closing this thread, as it dates from 2012 and only one of the original participants is still active on the forum. The topic is interesting; it's just best not to continue a discussion based on posts and information from a decade ago.


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