# When to Spay?



## nick

We were told by our vet that she could be spayed at 6 months. Our trainer says that's too early and to wait until one year claiming there is a danger of side effects. What are you folks hearing about this?


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## kmcnearney

We get our V at end of Feb or beg of March. We are getting a male and were told by our breeder that we should not neuter until he is AT LEAST 18 months old. Has anyone else heard or experienced this?


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## raps702

Hey Nick that question came up a few days ago, you can go to the left side of the sceen and type the word "neutered" in the search engine and you will see some replies to that question. hope that helps....


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## raps702

Actually my mistake, you asked about "spaying" not neutered. My appologies.


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## sarahaf

I think actually the latest data indicate that it's preferable to do it younger from the standpoint of protecting your female dog from future reproductive tumors, and that there are really no differences in side effects when all the available studies are considered. 6 months has been a pretty standard age for a while, but now it's sometimes done even earlier than that. I'd go with your vet's rec. We had Rosie's surgery when she was 8 months (which was considered pretty last minute, given that she could have gone into her first heat at any time). http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/spayneuter/early-spay-neuter.aspx


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## Bernie

Our Vet recomended at about 6 months. We took her advice and had it done right a 6 months. Three months later Morgan is doing fine and she is loving life.


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## JillandDan

We just had Holley done at 6 months per the vet's recommendation. We were not sure when would be best. We read all the pros and cons of waiting and going at 6 months. Our main concern was not knowing when she may go into heat and if they do then health concerns jump significantly. After a long conversation with the vet, we settled on 6 months. I think Holley is just fine. She is back to her old jumping, lovey self. The worst part for me was seeing her walk out of the back room that night. She was so out of it. It broke my heart but the next morning she was trying to run around and be herself. I knew she was good.


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## Mischa

This has got to be the mot controversial topic when it comes to dogs...
Some think it's down right mean to spay at 6 months, and some swear by it.

Apparently it's best to spay them before their first heat and also best after the first, and also best after a few... see where I'm going with this? lol

We decided to go in between what everyone was saying and had her spayed at 8.5 months. She had not gone through her first heat.


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## nick

thanks folks...that helps. for those that got spayed, were there noticable behavorial changes?....and if so how long for it to show up? I think like everything else in life....there are differences of opinion and not enough data to prove the case either way. I think we will take our chances on what our Vet recommends....which is just after six months.


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## sarahaf

The only behavioral change we noticed was that she was fearful of going to her daycare/playgroup although she had been fine with it (even loved going) before her operation. But that could be simply that she was home with us for a week recuperating and wasn't used to going anymore. Possibly she somehow mixed up the male who runs the daycare (and picks her up) with her male vet who performed the operation--because strangely, she was not afraid of the vet the next time she saw him...


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## Macaroni

From most I've read and been told..(by those whom opinions I trust --> my vet my breeder, my sister (a vet), etc), it is best to have your dog spayed or neutered before their first heat cycle (female) or prior to hormonal changes (male). For one the behavioural problems often associated w/ this stages in the dogs life are never allowed to happen, and therefore the dog is not aware of the experience (some females go through faux heat cycles after being spayed), as their are actually more health benefits than side-effects to neuter/spaying early, admittedly depending on whom you speak w/ or what you read.

I firmly believe that the earlier the better...but everyone has their own opinion. A great source of info beyond my breeder and vet I have found from well know author/vet Bruce Fogle. His most recent book is full of info on this and other topics "Dog: For the Complete Care and Understanding of Your Best Friend"

Cheers


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## JeffKish

I am currently waiting for my V to be born... I will get a boy.
I like to plan ahead. Therefore, I am currently in doubt on when is "really" the best time to neuter a dog.
The breeder I am getting the dog from as well as another breeder (also a DVM) told me that is better to wait until the dog is fully grown (18 months) before neutering him. That way all the bones and muscles are fully grown, developed and his male characteristics are set.

On the other side "behaviorist" and most vets recommend to neuter at 6 months (or before) and claim there is not adverse effect on health or physical development (even though I have read multiple articles where neutering/spaying does more harm than good in the long term health of dogs).

I have to admit that the idea of waiting for full growth to end before neutering a dog make more sense to me. And at this point I am more incline to wait longer before spaying a dog.

As far as I have seen V's are quite mellow and eager to please. I am not that worry about the undesired "behavior" resulting from the extra hormones if the dog is left intact a little bit longer. 

More discussion and posting on this issue will be great! I don't expect to see a definitive answer but the more postings and experiences the better....

Thanks to all for this great outlet,
Jeff


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## Macaroni

Everyone will form their own opinions...but here's a good article in regards to the discussion. As I menitoend before it is by Bruce Fogle from his veterinarian practice website (Portman Veterinary Clinic)
- http://www.portmanvetclinic.co.uk/archives/293 -

He is pro neutring earlier in the dog's life so take it w/ a grain of salt....but it is what I will be following w/ my new pup...picking him up next week!

Much appreciate the discussion


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## Kingwilly

8 months for our boy. His breeder, who works at a vet, told us that they try to get them neutered before they start lifting their legs and marking territories. Plus the social aspect of really starting to hump away. He is doing great.....there was ZERO change in personality. It looked like he didn't even notice. He never touched his stitches and was up and running around in a day or so (not recommended by the vet). We tried to keep him calm and on a leash for the first 5 days.....NOT GOING TO HAPPEN WITH A V!!!!!

KW


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## nick

Thanks for your replies. Molly saw the vet this week and was told do the spay thing at six months....definately don't let her go into heat. Vet also said i would have to keep Molly calm for ten days after surgery. Someone please tell me what planet the vet lives on! I think I will need a lot of pot....for the dog.


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## SunnyGirl

Sunny was spayed last Friday. 8 1/2 months. She has done great. We've tried to limit activity but as you said that's almost impossible. I was more afraid of the cancer thing than the behavior aspect.

Whatever you choose will be the right decision for you!


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## SunnyGirl

BTW, we did pay a little extra also. The vet said the amount of pain is reduced.


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## JillandDan

It is very hard to limit activity but what worked well for us was keeping her confined to her crate for the first couple days. We only let her out to eat and go to the bathroom. This was difficult though because we live on a 2nd floor and they can not do steps for the 2 weeks so we had to carry her everytime. After the first couple days, we had her on a leash in the apartment. It worked really well and she healed up beautifully. We were worried because she needed to be better for her obedience class that started 11 days after surgery. The vet had recommended 25mg of Benadryl to try to keep her calm. It didn't really have any affect on Holley but its worth a shot. Good luck.


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## sarahaf

Our vet kept Rosie inpatient for the first night, then sent her home with us the next day with fairly moderate instructions regarding activity. They said just to avoid a lot of running and jumping--which admittedly is tough with a V. So we kept her home with no long walks. She would have hated being crated b/c she never really loved her crate. She did do more bouncing around than we would have liked, but couldn't get going too fast indoors and fortunately, healed okay.


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## JillandDan

We thought Holley was going to be way worse with being in the crate but she did really well. We knew that if she had the chance she would do her laps through the apartment at a high rate of speed and we couldn't risk anything with the class coming up. They all seem to have their challenges. Haha.


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## Mischa

I was shocked at how sleepy Mischa was for the first few days.
The timing worked out well, sort of...I was home that week with a back injury so we spent a few days laying on the floor together. lol

After about 5 days she had enough and was back to her crazy self, but the wound was not healed yet. We were about to take her to the vet because it looked like it was going to split open when she'd jump up. A day or so after that, the healing was back on track, but we still had to try to keep her calm. 

Best thing was buying a bag of frozen bones from a butcher. That kept her occupied and on the floor, not up in the air!


We had to keep the walks short, and on leash for 12 or 13 days total.


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