# Spaying dilemma



## plumcrazy (Sep 11, 2009)

Spaying and neutering are possibly the most routine of all pet surgeries. I rather agree with your vet that if you are proactive and spay her now, while she's healthy you can avoid future problems that can occur if she still retains her uterus.

I work with a woman who had a beloved little yorkie who got pyometra when she was 7 years old (they never bred her, but also never spayed her and her uterus got an infection) Lorena took Panda to the vet because she wasn't feeling well and they recommended euthanasia that same day!!! There was nothing they could do to save her because the infection had spread so far and so my friend lost her dog in a horrible and preventable way.

If I were in your shoes, there would be absolutely no hesitation or question in my mind. I would have her spayed (yes, it is a surgical procedure, but my dogs have always bounced back from it within a matter of days - and then it's done and you don't have a time bomb waiting to go off!!)

Good luck with whatever you decide!

Barb


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

According to the research that I have done, the main benefits of spaying are:
Removes risk of pyometra - a life threatening infection of the womb
Reduces risk of mammary tumours, if performed early enough
Removes risk of unwanted puppies, and the associated risks to the mother
Removes the risk of the female straying to look for a mate, and of dogs straying to try to get to her
And you don't need to avoid male dogs for 3-4 weeks twice a year.

The main disadvantages of spaying are: 
There is some evidence that oestregen has a protective effect against some other diseases
Spayed bitches often develop urinary incontinence, especially as they get older
Weight gain, if attention is not paid to diet and exercise
Some breeds - particularly the spaniels - suffer from coat change, which can become woolly rather than silky.

More detail here: Neutering - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


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## bigpoodleperson (Jul 14, 2009)

Since I was just involved on Monday in an emergency pyometra surgery on a Very Sick dog, I recommend spaying!  It was a young 4 year old golden who was bred A.I. a few weeks previous. I would not want to chance that on any dog that is not used for breeding (well, any dog really...). Think pop can big uterus horns full of puss/infection.


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## nlrussell (Mar 13, 2011)

bigpoodleperson said:


> Since I was just involved on Monday in an emergency pyometra surgery on a Very Sick dog, I recommend spaying!  It was a young 4 year old golden who was bred A.I. a few weeks previous. I would not want to chance that on any dog that is not used for breeding (well, any dog really...). Think pop can big uterus horns full of puss/infection.


Oh my heavens. That is the same age as Glory!


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## Sookster (Apr 11, 2011)

nlrussell said:


> My little Glory is 4-years-old and is not spayed. However, she cannot have puppies. From what I understand, she had one litter of puppies after seeing a fertility specialist. Her puppies were Champions, so to her owner's dismay, Glory couldn't have more puppies.
> 
> Now I have Glory, and while she is never around other dogs other than once a week in class, I'm considering whether to spay her or not. She evidently has a silent heat and keeps herself very clean. (She finished her heat right before I bought her.)
> 
> ...


I have to say go ahead and spay. I was a pre-vet student for the past 4 years, worked with a vet for two years, and went to Costa Rica this past summer on a spay/neuter campaign where I, along with 20 other students, spayed and neutered about 500 dogs and cats. Spaying is an incredibly simple procedure these days, and chance of anything bad at all happening is rare. 

I do have to recommend finding a vet that uses the more advance "laser surgery" procedure. This reduces recover time and pain significantly. The two female Spoos that I have raised for a service dog school over the past two years were spayed using this procedure, and they were both back to work within two days. Also please spend the extra money and do pre-op bloodwork. One of the most common causes of things going wrong during surgery is that the dog had a pre-existing condition that the owner/vet was unaware of. Don't risk it, and have bloodwork run prior to the surgery just to be on the safe side. 

Good luck, I'm sure in the end you will make the decision that you think is best for your girl


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