Spaying

[rhoward]

How long should I wait after a heat to have Sadie spayed? I was hoping we could beat the first heat but that's ok. I also wanted to wait one year but may have to do this sooner. Is there an amount of time after the first heat? Thanks.

 

[Tula]

I am following this thread with interest. Piper will be a year old 11-20-11, and our contract prohibits spaying prior to the fist birthday. Let me know what you decide, Kim

 

[ardeagold]

I think they prefer to spay between heats...and heats usually occur every 6 months. So...3 mos. Is there a reason you want to spay her so soon? If you can wait until after the second heat, medical studies say it's better.

 

[blaue_augen]

With an adopted Dane we had, the vet asked us to wait a month after her heat finished before spaying.

 

[rhoward]

I think they prefer to spay between heats...and heats usually occur every 6 months. So...3 mos. Is there a reason you want to spay her so soon? If you can wait until after the second heat, medical studies say it's better.

Thanks. We will wait a bit. We would like for Sadie to participate with the Barkley Play Program. Until she is spayed she cannot be with the other dogs. This is their policy. I refuse to leave her in a room all day if we stay the night somewhere. It's not fair to her. I have let her do swim camp but it's only 30 minutes before she is put back in her room. Dogs should play and have fun. Especially, my Sadie who is always full of energy.

 

[BlackLightning]

Thanks. We will wait a bit. We would like for Sadie to participate with the Barkley Play Program. Until she is spayed she cannot be with the other dogs. This is their policy. I refuse to leave her in a room all day if we stay the night somewhere. It's not fair to her. I have let her do swim camp but it's only 30 minutes before she is put back in her room. Dogs should play and have fun. Especially, my Sadie who is always full of energy.

That sounds like a pretty strict policy, wow. I can understand not having bitches in season, but to require that they be altered is pretty strict. I can see where they are coming from I guess. I wouldn't alter my bitch for that reason though (not saying that you are doing that - sounds like you are good with waiting). We waited about a month after Ayasha's first heat for spaying. Her first heat wasn't until 20 months of age.

 

[Thehallk]

I think they prefer to spay between heats...and heats usually occur every 6 months. So...3 mos. Is there a reason you want to spay her so soon? If you can wait until after the second heat, medical studies say it's better.

I had thought that medically it was better for them to be spayed earlier? Our contract has us to wait until after her first heat, and it had been explained to me (by my breeder and confirmed by my vets) that this is for growth reasons and a good idea, but I was under the impression that with each consecutive heat cycle the likelihood of having breast cancer (is that what it's called in dogs?) goes up. I'm curious now! (and i have to go check my contract because I think it only specifies that we wait a year to have spayed, not necessarily her first heat)

To answer the question though, my sister's NN pup went into heat a few days before her scheduled spay, and they suggested to wait about a month after her heat cycle before having the procedure.

 

[ardeagold]

I had thought that medically it was better for them to be spayed earlier? Our contract has us to wait until after her first heat, and it had been explained to me (by my breeder and confirmed by my vets) that this is for growth reasons and a good idea, but I was under the impression that with each consecutive heat cycle the likelihood of having breast cancer (is that what it's called in dogs?) goes up. I'm curious now! (and i have to go check my contract because I think it only specifies that we wait a year to have spayed, not necessarily her first heat)

To answer the question though, my sister's NN pup went into heat a few days before her scheduled spay, and they suggested to wait about a month after her heat cycle before having the procedure.

Here's something you might want to read, it explains a lot of your questions. And there's another study that's more specific that I have somewhere but can't find. LOL I'll post it if I find it:

http://www.newf.net/Forums/showthread.php?t=53945


OK I found the other study too! (I've been looking for it for days) This one discusses behavioral and physical effects of spayed/neutered dogs:

http://www.caninesports.com/SNBehaviorBoneDataSnapShot.pdf

Here are a couple of features of the second study that I found to be very interesting (from the charts);

Figure 1. Aggression scores in male dogs neutered at different ages compared with intact male dogs. There was a significantly higher aggression score in neutered dogs as compared to intact dogs regardless of the age at which the dogs were neutered.

Figure 2. Aggression scores in female dogs spayed at different ages compared with intact female dogs. There was a highly significant increase in aggression score of dogs spayed at 12 months or earlier as compared to intact dogs.

Figure 3. Fear and anxiety scores in male dogs neutered at different ages compared with intact male dogs. There
was a significant increase in fear and anxiety scores in neutered dogs as compared to intact dogs regardless of the
age at which the dogs were neutered

Figure 4. Fear and anxiety scores in neutered dogs compared with intact dogs. A, all intact females (green) compared
with all neutered females (red). B, all intact males (green) compared with all neutered males (red). C, all intact male and
female dogs (green) compared with all neutered male and female dogs. D, all intact and neutered females (open triangle) compared with all intact and neutered males (open circle). In all cases, spayed or neutered dogs had higher excitability

And the summary which was the most interesting, IMO:

Summary

The above data is just a small sample of the significant data that were determined in this study.

By using larger sample of dogs than any used previously to examine behavior in dogs, we found significant correlations between neutering dogs and increases in aggression, fear and anxiety, and excitability, regardless of the age at which the dog was neutered.

There were also significant correlations between neutering and decreases in trainability and responsiveness to cues.

The other three behavioral categories examined (miscellaneous behavior problems, attachment and attention seeking behavior, and separation-related behavior) showed some association with neutering, but these differed more substantially depending on the age at which the dog was neutered.

The overall trend seen in all these behavioral data was that the earlier the dog was neutered, the more negative the effect on the behavior.

A difference in bone length was found between neutered and intact dogs, suggesting that neutering has an effect on bone growth, which may be related to other orthopedic effects documented in the literature. Examination of changes in bone length of gonadectomized dogs is continuing.

 

[mareserinitatis]

I had thought that medically it was better for them to be spayed earlier? Our contract has us to wait until after her first heat, and it had been explained to me (by my breeder and confirmed by my vets) that this is for growth reasons and a good idea, but I was under the impression that with each consecutive heat cycle the likelihood of having breast cancer (is that what it's called in dogs?) goes up. I'm curious now! (and i have to go check my contract because I think it only specifies that we wait a year to have spayed, not necessarily her first heat)

To answer the question though, my sister's NN pup went into heat a few days before her scheduled spay, and they suggested to wait about a month after her heat cycle before having the procedure.

I spent a lot of time looking into this after my vet wanted to spay Ada before 6 mos. The likelihood of breast cancer is actually fairly low relative to other problems that newfs have, many of which can be exacerbated by early spaying. (I think one of the worst was incidence of bone cancers, but joint problems were worsened for large breed dogs, as well.) My vet specifically brought up the breast cancer issue with me, too, but there seems to be a severe overstatement of the likelihood of breast cancer in dogs which comes from misunderstanding some of the statistics in the studies. If I remember correctly, a lot of vets say there is a 1 in 7 chance as though the number is absolute, but it's more relative to dogs who do get cancer (or something like that).

It's nerve wracking when your breeder and vet don't agree, but I'm finding I trust my breeder more than the vet.

 

[Jeannie]

Thanks. We will wait a bit. We would like for Sadie to participate with the Barkley Play Program. Until she is spayed she cannot be with the other dogs. This is their policy. I refuse to leave her in a room all day if we stay the night somewhere. It's not fair to her. I have let her do swim camp but it's only 30 minutes before she is put back in her room. Dogs should play and have fun. Especially, my Sadie who is always full of energy.

We have a lot of intact bitches that board here. I ask the owner if the bitch is in heat and if not when was the last heat cycle. It amazes me how many don't have any idea how to even tell if the bitch is in heat. I make them sign a paper stating the dog is not in heat, or if the bitch is in heat and they also have to state the last heat cycle if known. It also releases us from any responsibility if the bitch accidently gets bred or any STDs. I cannot be responsible if an intact male somehow gets out of his kennel at night and breeds the bitch. Yes they can breed through a fence. If I get a bitch that is intact I've learned to check her daily if the owner has no clue. I've had 2 that have silent heat cycles and the only way I knew was the swelling. There was no blood in the kennel at all. The owner has to sign a paper if they want their intact bitch to play with other dogs that could include intact males. Although we do all we can to seperate them. Any bitch that we know is in heat is put out alone or with other bitches and neutered males. She is also boarded away from any intact males. My kennel is divided into 2 parts with a door between the kennels. Anytime we are not around the door is closed so hopefully a male will not get to a female. Needless to say we do everything we can but no matter how careful any kennel or daycare can be accidents can happen. I do understand why most will not take an intact bitch or dog. I know we it causes a lot of extra work. But then again, that is what we get paid to do - care for the dog. If a bitch is in heat I do charge an extra care fee because of the number of times I have to disinfect the kennel and watch the bitch. It is not fun having an intact/in heat bitch boarding.