Spaying Question

daisy'smom · 05-22-2009, 03:05 PM

What is the proper age to spay a dog? I am supposed to take Georgie to get her fixed but I am not comfortable with spaying her at 4 months. If I had my say about it I would wait a little while longer to have her spayed. Boxer rescue wants to have it done through their vet that fixes all of their dogs right away. I am worried about her being put under. I feel it would be best to wait a couple more months especially since she had such a severe throat injury.

JoeV · 05-22-2009, 03:20 PM

it is belived that spaying before the dog's first cycle is best. we had our girl spayed around 6 months old and i think she was about 30 lbs. at the time.

KeeperBoy · 05-22-2009, 03:34 PM

There are really two schools of thought on this. You can spay before the first heat cycle, getting it done and over before you have to deal with her going into heat, and never have to worry about accidental puppies. Shelters spay as early as a few months, most studies show no ill effects of spaying around 6 months (or sooner).

The other school of thought is waiting until after the first heat cycle to spay. This way to dog's body can develop under the influence of these natural hormones.

We spayed Boo before her first heat. She wasn't really crate trained as a pup and she spent a lot of time with "puppy sitters". I trusted myself not to let her out without a leash, but I didn't trust my roommates (or parents). In our situation, the risk of puppies was too great. Some people are just uncomfortable having their dog go through a heat, which probably weighed on our decision a bit also. She was my first dog, and the thought of her going through heat was a bit much to handle.

boxerlover955 · 05-22-2009, 03:49 PM

Abby was spayed sometime before 5 months of age because we adopted her and she was already fixed. Now I believe in spaying/neutering a dog after 6 months of age but I would prefer to fix bigger dog like a boxer around 12 months of age and waiting for them to finish developing. But everyone is different. So yea I would wait till she is 6 months old

whitedaisy · 05-22-2009, 04:05 PM

Well, many different opinions on this. I believe it should be done before the first heat cycle. With my Daisy I didn't know the history of her dams cycles so I spayed at 6 months. With Poppy, I know the history and that it will be fairly safe for me to wait until 12 months to do it. the longer you can go before the first heat is better, but you don't want to go longer and you don't know when it will happen. I would suggest 6 months, not before and probably not after.

AussieGirl · 06-18-2009, 03:39 AM

Before their first heat cycle (generally around 6 months, we did at 5 months). Spaying before their first heat cycle reduces the occurance of mammary cancer which is the most common malignant tumor to be found in female dogs.
Found this link that explains what happens during a spay (so you will know exactly what your vet will be doing) and a little about mammary cancer.
http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body...nine_spay.html
Haven't noticed it on here but you know you should request they don't use ACE don't you?

bruinsBoxers · 06-18-2009, 07:35 AM

Early spay ( before 6 months ) has been shown to increase the risk of spay incontinance in some dogs .

Also it has been shown to increase the chance of ligament damage , especially in dogs who do performance work since they put more strain on their joints and ligaments .

As far as when to spay , you have to decide whether you can deal with a dog in heat for 3-4 weeks .Never being left alone or off lead outside . The discharge the possible change in temperment and the possibility of attracting males to your home .

Many people spay at 7-8 months, so that they can get more of the hormones positive effects but before chances of a heat cycle . There is no way to determine exactly when they are going to come into heat . Some are 9 months some as late as 16 months .