Spay/Neuter ALL the time?

Pupcake · 09-21-2006

Im just curious if you guys say spay and neuters have to be done 100% of the time?

I agree that they have to be done if your dog can come in contact with dogs of the opposite sex, if they can get lose, for health reasons etc.

But do you ALWAYS have to alter a pet? My first pup was a cockapoo, he was the devil on earth and was not neutered. I truly wonder if neutering would have helped but I think not, he was born with that nasty temperment.

Second dog was a Shih Tzu, she was never spayed because we started showing her, and later in her life she lived in our apartment with NO acess to dogs whatsoever.

My father had a female pit, she was bred twice and then was spayed. The first was a planned litter the second an oops, but thats beside the point.

We rescued two male pups, and one pregnant female, the female was spayed and the males were not.

My mom has a Golden, she is not spayed but she does not come in contact with ANY dog as we live on a highly populated road. Her last heat there were no dogs around until her 18th day of heat and she was very secure.

With my Collie I am still thinking of spaying her. She will not be bred ever but it gives me the chills to think she could die while having a spay procedure. She does not come into contact with ANY dogs except my moms dog and shes female so I dont think I should have to spay her.

Any one else have similar thoughts?

opokki · 09-21-2006

I think that's really up to each individual to decide. Without a doubt, all of my future dogs will be spayed/neutered unless I decide to show or intentionally breed one of them, which is unlikely.
I take my dogs with me frequently...camping, parks, ect. so the chance of an "accident" happening is greater for me. Male dogs go to great lengths to get to female dogs who are in season so sometimes no matter how careful you are...accidents can still happen. I've known a male dog who actually got into someone else's home to get to their female and another who broke a 6ft wooden gate to get to a female.
I've also mentioned mammary cancer and pyometra in one of my previous posts, both of which female dogs can die from. I personally know of one dog who was diagnosed with mammary cancer, 3 who died from pyometra and one who needed an emergency spay due to pyometra. This could have been prevented with a spay operation earlier in life.
Spay/neuter operations are the most common surgeries performed by vets and the risks of animals dying during them have been minimized. My vet use to recommend presurgical blood work but now she requires it as do many other vets. There is even specialized equipment to further minimize the risks on small dogs and young puppies.
Personally, I'm more concerned about my dogs getting pyometra or cancer than I am about them dying during the surgery.

Lassie · 09-24-2006

Must admit I have never been easy with the idea of this. Most people I know who have had their pets done ahve done it for reasons which may have been dealt with by the owner chnaging their behaviour towards the pet. For example wandering which I think may have been down to the dog not getting enough exercise and so when the opportunity arises they are off for a stroll.

DoxieMomX2 · 09-24-2006

I don't think it always has to be done. Depending on the circumstances it should be the owners choice. Our dogs are spayed/neutered because we knew we wanted a male and a female, but not puppies for us!

j4m1e_57 · 09-26-2006

while yes, your dog might not be in contact with other dogs, health can be a major issue. many things can develop (i can't name them off the top of my head, but you could probably do some research). not to mention, when that time comes around, you'll have some cleaning to do
i worked at a vet's over the summer. i really think that 90% of the days i was there, a dog was getting spayed. it is the most routine surgery a vet does, no big deal at all. yes, like someone mentioned earlier, we did bloodchecks in the morning when the dog arrived, and wouldn't do surgery until it was processed and the numbers were checked. also, i know that the technicians or even the vet his/herself would be more than happy to speak with you if you called for updates throughout the day.

GSP Lover · 09-26-2006

Bo is not neutered as he is being shown. I honestly don't think I am going to get him neutered either. We live in the upper floors of a detached house and don't have access to the backyard and it isn't fully fenced anyways. The only time Bo is off lead is when he is running in an off leash park.

SeeSpotRun · 09-28-2006

I think that you should always neuter your pets if you aren't planning for them to have babies. It makes things a lot easier for the dogs, and most dogs will try to get out of the house and mate. There is also a drop in aggression. I know that my cat was almost killed when another tomcat tried to neuter him for us.

goldiesmom · 09-28-2006

The only good reason not to spay or neuter is if the dog is to be bred in the future. That said, I only have a couple of neutered dogs because I do show and breed dogs. Speutering (spay/neutering) is almost always better for pets as it ends hormonally based behaviors such as roaming, humping, and just general "bitchiness" that comes before a female comes in season. While I don't believe in the prostate cancer threat (have known MANY males to live to old age and never met a breeder who ever had a male with prostate cancer), it does decrease the incidence of prostate hypertrophy. In females, the important thing is that it takes away the chance of pyometra which is hard to detect, deadly in many of the girls who get it and the treatment is VERY expensive. Speutering is also the best way to have peace of mind that you'll never bring an unwanted life into the world.

Pupcake, if you are so worried about your dog's ability to undergo surgery, do discuss this with your vet. He/she should use an inhalation anesthesia as some collies have sensitivity to other drugs than ivermectin. All surgeries have some risk, but giving birth is frequently dangerous to the mother as well and emergency C Section vet bills are also VERY expensive.

Woof Woof · 09-30-2006

We had our dog Spayed at an early age, just in case she was to have pups.

I remember when I went to pick her up the next day, she had that look in her eye "What have you done to me", and was nt herself for a few days.

Once the effects of the operation wore off, she was fine and is a very happy go lucky dog. She still gets chased by the males though!!

I recommend spaying to any dog owner, unless the dog has some kind of health condition.

moparmindy · 10-20-2006

no,i think it should be up to the ownernot a shelter or any one else .i have 5 female dogs three that were fixed only because i had to ,the other two are not .the health thing is a vet line to get you to do it .prove to me that they live longer they cant .as fare as them getting out to have sex that they will eat your house to get out is not true eather .my two german shepherds that arent fixed one is 8 the other is 3 have never had puppies never acted any different then they do out of heat yes they raise there tails but thats part of heat .i know alot of male dogs that still want sex or try even after being fixed .its the owners fault if they get out and get pregnet plain and simple .