# Spay Questions



## kdiamond (Aug 10, 2017)

Hi Guys, 

Ellie is now a year old and is currently going through her first heat. We're looking ahead at when to spay, given the recommendations of spaying three months after her heat, and trying to decide between spaying this summer or waiting until over Christmas break. I'd love to hear about your experiences with recovery. 

How long did your vet recommend limiting activity? How limited does that mean? 
How long did your V actually stay limited? ; ) 
How long will she need to wear a cone for/protect her stitches? 
When would you feel comfortable going out of town on a road trip with your V after the surgery? What are follow up appointments scheduled like and how fast was the overall recovery, essentially? 

We have a few big road trips planned around the end of June-July, so if we do it this summer we are trying to figure out if we have a long enough window after potential surgery dates before leaving town. The road trips will be all trail running related, so lots of camping and outdoor time, and no room for her crate in our tent. There will also be other dogs at the trail races. We could probably stay home for around a week after surgery before leaving on these trips. 

Our other option is to wait until our Christmas break (we're both teachers), which would allow Ellie to go through her second heat as well. However, --and I feel very silly asking this--now that she has gone through her heat, could she theoretically breed at any time? Or is it only while she is actually in heat that she could get pregnant? We do not want puppies! : ) We definitely wanted to wait until she was at least a year old and had at least her first heat to spay, but now I'm not really sure what that means in terms of breeding... 

It seems most doggy daycares and kennels require dogs to be spayed after a certain age, and we do need to board Ellie late July/early August for a trip that requires us to fly. We're looking for a less kennel, more in home care approach, so not positive on spay requirements, but that is something else we have to take into consideration. If anyone knows a great place in Eastern Washington or North Idaho please do let us know! If we have to go with a place that requires her to be spayed, though, we'll need to do it late June/early July. 

Finally, what questions should I ask my vet about spaying? What type of spay procedure they do, recovery recommendations, follow up appointment protocol...anything I should ask about that I am not aware of? I might be calling a few vets' offices, as I don't dislike our vet office but certainly don't love them either. They pushed us to spay super early, which we did not. Would you trust a new vet, meaning one we haven't been going to, with spaying? I honestly don't even feel like our vet knows Ellie from the next dog either, though. If anyone is from Spokane and has a vet recommendation I'm all ears!

Thanks so much for reading this super long post! I appreciate any and all advice, insight, and experiences on this topic!


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## einspänner (Sep 8, 2012)

My dog is not yet spayed, but I'm going to take a stab at your questions anyway.

So she did have surgery to remove a bladder stone a couple years back, not quite remove an organ level of surgery, but I believe the recovery times are similar. I want to say there isn't typically follow-up, beyond a phone call, unless there is a concern that pops up. Can someone verify? She was back to her normal energy levels the day I picked up, so two days post surgery. The vet used laser sutures, so there was no stitches to worry about, the wound healed very cleanly, and in her case she didn't require a cone of shame. I restricted activity for a week or so and we had a road trip from NH to SC two weeks post surgery where she played fetch on the beach and bounded after deer in the dunes. Back to normal.

On timing, typically you have 6 months between cycles, but it's not like clockwork. My dog tends to go 7 months between, but it varied the first few. If she is on time, then you're looking at Oct/Nov for her next heat which puts Christmas break 2 months after that. It may not give you enough time. So if you're okay potentially delaying the surgery beyond two cycles, I think it's good to wait, but it would be easier to plan on doing it this summer. And she can't get pregnant while not in heat. 

I haven't boarded mine, so I haven't dealt with spay requirements yet. I'll just say that unless they require proof, they can't tell from looking at her if she is spayed and since you presumably won't be boarding her during a heat cycle, what business is it of theirs? Decide for yourself what is ethical here. 

The most common type of spay surgery removes the ovaries and uterus. 

There is an alternative surgery called *ovary-sparing spay*, that only removes the uterus and this means they can't get pregnant, but they do keep producing all those beneficial sex hormones. Most vets don't do this, so if you're interested you'll have to seek out a vet that does. On facebook there is a group called OSS and Vasectomy, I believe, that has a list of vets that do this variation as well other resources. Two potential downsides to OSS are that it requires the largest incision and that if they didn't properly remove all of the uterus, your dog would be at risk for stump pyometra. 

A third type of spay and the least invasive is the *laparoscopic spay*. In this they only remove the ovaries and can do so with a small incision and use of a scope. So I'd ask your vet which surgery they do normally and discuss the pros and cons of each. 

And lastly, I was between vets when my dog needed the bladder stone surgery which added considerably to the stress of it all. I ended up going back to the first vet we tried even though I didn't love that practice because for a number of reasons I trusted my dog in her hands the most. I'd say speak to a few and go with whichever one makes you the most comfortable. It is a routine surgery, that any licensed vet can perform competently, so just go with your gut!


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

The limited exercise is 10-14 days. Walking is good for them durning that time, so lots of on leash walks. It's running, and jumping that you need to keep them from doing.
You can use a cone, or a donut collar to keep them from licking the surgical site. 
The vet will want to take a look at her in about 10 days. It's just to see how she is healing, and they normally call to check on them.
If the use normal sutures, the vet will remove them. A good many vets are going with the sutures that dissolve, so they don't need to be removed.
I don't know if the is out of the ordinary. We have had 3 foster dogs that had the stitches that dissolve, and all 3 had a reaction to them. Not a bad reaction, but 2-3 weeks in all developed tiny blisters at the stitch. A round of antibiotics cleared it up. I've just started telling them not to use them, as it's caused a extra step in the healing process.


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## lilyloo (Jun 20, 2012)

texasred said:


> The limited exercise is 10-14 days. Walking is good for them durning that time, so lots of on leash walks. It's running, and jumping that you need to keep them from doing.
> You can use a cone, or a donut collar to keep them from licking the surgical site.
> The vet will want to take a look at her in about 10 days. It's just to see how she is healing, and they normally call to check on them.
> If the use normal sutures, the vet will remove them. A good many vets are going with the sutures that dissolve, so they don't need to be removed.
> I don't know if the is out of the ordinary. We have had 3 foster dogs that had the stitches that dissolve, and all 3 had a reaction to them. Not a bad reaction, but 2-3 weeks in all developed tiny blisters at the stitch. A round of antibiotics cleared it up. I've just started telling them not to use them, as it's caused a extra step in the healing process.


Our girl had a reaction to the regular/traditional sutures as well. She was allergic to the suture material and her wound wouldn't heal all the way until they were removed. Just never know...


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## kdiamond (Aug 10, 2017)

texasred said:


> I don't know if the is out of the ordinary. We have had 3 foster dogs that had the stitches that dissolve, and all 3 had a reaction to them. Not a bad reaction, but 2-3 weeks in all developed tiny blisters at the stitch. A round of antibiotics cleared it up. I've just started telling them not to use them, as it's caused a extra step in the healing process.





lilyloo said:


> Our girl had a reaction to the regular/traditional sutures as well. She was allergic to the suture material and her wound wouldn't heal all the way until they were removed. Just never know...


Texasred and Lilyloo, would you recommend not planning on leaving town for more than a week after the procedure then? 



einspänner said:


> My dog is not yet spayed, but I'm going to take a stab at your questions anyway.
> 
> So she did have surgery to remove a bladder stone a couple years back, not quite remove an organ level of surgery, but I believe the recovery times are similar. I want to say there isn't typically follow-up, beyond a phone call, unless there is a concern that pops up. Can someone verify? She was back to her normal energy levels the day I picked up, so two days post surgery. The vet used laser sutures, so there was no stitches to worry about, the wound healed very cleanly, and in her case she didn't require a cone of shame. I restricted activity for a week or so and we had a road trip from NH to SC two weeks post surgery where she played fetch on the beach and bounded after deer in the dunes. Back to normal.
> 
> ...



Einspanner, thank you for all the input!


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## Canadian Expy (Feb 27, 2013)

I just had my female spayed before the Easter weekend. The vets instructions were short leashed walks were okay after 7 days, and her post-spay check up was scheduled for 14 days following the procedure. She was not allowed to run, jump, etc until then. At the 14 day visit the vet cleared her to gradually return her to normal Vizsla life. 


If it was me, I would not plan to leave town a week following the surgery. If it was a male then you would be fine, but the spay procedure a far more extensive procedure. You want to keep your dog as comfortable, and calm as possible to allow for recovery. Traveling to new places likely won't help with keeping her calm (if she's anything like mine!). Although it is a routine procedure, as with any medical procedure, there is always the risk of complications. 


My girl had the dissolving stitches and did not have any issue. I have noticed though that all of my foster dogs (who come from the US) have had dissolving stitches used during their spay, and almost every one had a reaction to them. It wasn't a reaction that required medical follow up, but it certainly took the incision longer to heel. 


Whichever method you decide to go with, make sure you are comfortable with and confident of the individual who will be performing it, as their experience can greatly impact the outcome of the procedure. 


Also, sedatives were a life saver for us for the first few days.


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