spay/neuter?

Do You spay/neuter your dogs? Why or why not?

Absolutely.

I've worked with animals for 15+ years now, with 12 of those years being an ACO.

I started adding individual animals up that I'd have to euthanize, then just did weekly totals for my own knowledge. That being too painful, I'd just count cages and kennels I had to "open up" due to lack of space- but with that being too numerous, I just went by weight taken to the landfill weekly, then just monthly.

After a while I learned that no matter the weight, no matter the number of adults, no matter the number of litters, no matter the excuse- just one is too many outside of a true emergency situation and it's too depressing to "crunch numbers".

Ah, Onyx, I feel you!. I have worked in rescue enough that when I here of peoples dogs being pregnant it just saddens, even angers, me. Why, pray tell, can people not get it? They claim to love dogs yet they keep on adding to the numbers that someone that DOES actually care has to destroy for the simple reason of too many dogs, not enough homes. There are low cost spay/neuter programs everywhere so there is just no excuse.

I'm largely passionate about responsible ownership, so yes. However at the same time, no. When Ori came to me, I had the intent on showing him as a fun activity for us both. It would have gotten me out of the house a little more, given me a hobby to pursue and have a chance to meet new people. However my anxiety got the best of me soon after, along with some personal issues that arose, and last year he was diagnosed with Hip Dysplasia. My vet has for some reason advised that besides cancers that I can keep an eye out for myself, as long as Jasmine is spayed there's no immediate reason to have him "fixed.

Jasmine however, is definitely spayed, as much as she WOULD have been show quality I just couldn't bare the thought that if she and Ori ever rutted at ANY time, I am not knowledgeable enough in breeding and I think "oops" litters are completely the fault of the owners. Not to mention the fact that Ori has Hip Dysplasia and I'm not that cruel to produce puppies who wouldn't be 100% sound. Plus the risk at every heat of pyrometra, mammary cancer which I've been told is a LOT more dangerous than testicular, the mess and the fact I am NOT financially prepared to breed correctly, is my reasons. I rent in public housing, and while I can always find the money to look after the two of them when the time arises, I'm not ready to breed. However, I have been thinking about it in the far future once I learn properly and have all my bases covered.

Thankfully, I don't have to worry too much about the mating stuff with Ori, he's much to lazy and placid to actually care about any female in heat, no matter how close she would be. This is a dog who once ran for cover from a yipping minature Silky Terrier at the dog park and runs from stuffed toys. My vet just advised me if at any time something seems off, bring him straight in, and as long as I know him well enough to be confident he won't suddenly "take off" at a first sniff, it should be okay. This was when his hips were being tested though, and he highly advised that now I know, to get Jasmine spayed ASAP, which she was at 8 months.

Do I agree that owners should have their dogs (and even cats) spayed/neutered? Yes. Especially if they don't have the knowledge to breed, the finances, the credentials, or the time to breed. The world doesn't need anymore "oops" or badly bred puppies...we have too many already. In my defense, I can at least say that my dogs are controlled at ALL times, and have been to the vet for more check-ups and tiny tiny "issues" more times than I even attended school. Lol. I'm sure my vet will be telling me to buzz off soon.

Last vet phone call as an example:

"Jasmine's head is too small for her breed, why isn't she stocky and growing? I need to change foods!"
"She's on the best food she can be, I'm sure she's fine"
"But Ori was the size he is now at her age, and she's got a tiny head!"
"*sigh* She's FINE, Amy. Bring her in if you're worried."
"How's this afternoon sound? Her hair's looking a little thin on her back strip too..."

So yeah, worry-wart mom here! Lol.

Good for you. Yes if an owner can be responsible enough to prevent that "oops" litter they can pass on the spay/neuter if they are not wanting the health benefits. However it has been proved time and again the largest part of the population can not be that responsible. I just shake my head when I hear, "We didn't even know she was pregnant." That is why I try very hard to convince people to spay/neuter if they are not planning to show their dogs. Many people do not realize AKC does not mean breeding quality. As for doing the genetic test? I think many so called breeders don't even know it exists.
As for the vet, I feel ya! One time I showed our vet a new "lump' on our dog. It was tiny. The vet asked," WHat, do you go over him with a fine tooth comb?
Your vet won't tell you to Buzz off, they like the money...

I think part of it is greed. People get a purebred (probably from a puppy mill), see the high prices these pet stores get for them, and think they can make money breeding them. They don't realise what vet care and proper feed costs, and how hard it is to sell all these puppies. And if they have a puppy mill parent, they are not going to get get quality pups. Breeding is something you do for the love of the breed, because you're sure not going to get rich doing it!

Most if not all professional breeders are in it for profit. It is a business. In a business, you always look for ways to maximize profit. All else do not matter.

Many individuals who are also look for a few extra bucks or perhaps simply looking for ways to cover the cost of owning the pets.

Some breeders definitely can get rich by breeding a specific breed in high demand with high price.

Although you also have to understand that there are many people out there simply think it is cute to have their pets producing offspring. I personally think it is ok if they are responsible enough to take care of whatever offspring their pets had produced.

This is where we get floods of dogs on the market anytime there is a breed featured in some movie or TV show, mNy of which end up in shelters later. It's the churn-'em-out puppy mills that do it for the money. A conscientious breeder does it selectively, to improve the breed, and usually has adopters lined up before they breed.

I always have my pets de-sexed.Why add to the already unwanted population out there.Some of who sadly don't get that chance of a loving life.It's a no brainer really De-sex your pet.Plus you do tend to get the added bonus of less aggression and wandering problems that seem to arise when they are entire.Also the risk of cancers although still present is greatly reduced by de-sexing ie mammary or testicular cancers.

I think it depends on the dog to a large extent.

Milo was neutered at the RSPCA before I got him.

Trinny was done when she got Pyometra. I had another bitch previously that also got Pyometra so I think my personal preference would always be to get a bitch neutered just to avoid that happening again.

Jayjay is still entire and I have little-no intention of having him neutered any time soon. He's perfectly well behaved as he is, perfectly healthy and I'm fairly sure I'm responsible enough to ensure he doesn't go and get some random bitch pregnant.

I have this theory that if you spay your dog as soon as possible then its not going to miss out on anything. Well if it doenst know how can it miss it? Me let my dog have one litter and then i spayed her.

Yes, of course. I think it should be compulsory to desex dogs with the exception of breeders who should have to apply for a special license.

In New Zealand if you adopt a dog from a shelter they will be desexed before you're allowed to take them home. I think it's important as there are so many dogs and puppies that are unwanted by their owners and consequently abandoned.

My current dog was not neutered when I got him from a "free to good home" newspaper ad. I delayed getting him neutered just because my budget was tight at the time. I kept him inside, and on a leash when outdoors, so there was no risk for making puppies.

A year or so later, the vet noticed some testicular irritation and recommended going ahead with the neutering to prevent any potential cancerous development. So I went and got him fixed. I didn't notice any difference in his aggression level, as he still barks whenever he sees or hears another dog nearby. He's a fairly mild-tempered, friendly dog, so aggression wasn't a big problem anyway.

All the dogs we have, have been neutered except for the current one we have now. I think my parents actually want to breed her later on in her life.

Absolutely. I do not want any surprise litters of puppies. Also, it's better for her health and it does slow them down a bit.

Where I live it's a requirement to get a dog license. You have to provide the spay/neuter certificate unless you are a breeder.

Our first dog (back in the 1960s) was not spayed. It was a nightmare every time she went into heat. We had male dogs jumping our back fence trying to get at her. No thanks! I don't want to go through that again.

Our dogs have always been spayed for two reasons 1) no unwanted puppies 2) to reduce the chances of them getting mammary cancer.

Our current dog, Flye, came to live with us when she was 8 years old (she's a rescue) and we were told she had been spayed (she even had the little scar on her tummy).
A short while after we had her, she started becoming very attractive to male dogs (both neutered and entire males). We took her to the vet on numerous occasions who eventually suggested that part of her ovary may have been left inside when she was spayed.

Eventually we were referred to a specialist vet who scanned her and said they could see abnormalities around her bladder and they booked her in for exploratory surgery.
During the operation, we got a call from the vet to say that when they opened her up, they discovered that she had never actually been spayed and was in quite a mess inside. She also had a small tumour on her ovary.
So she was spayed and had the tumour removed and since then, she's been problem free.

Had she ever come into season, we probably would have realised that something was up inside but the attention from male dogs was continuous rather than being intermittent as it would have been had she come into season.

Of course we were very confused as to where the scar on her stomach had come from and why we were told she'd been spayed when she hadn't. Both her previous owners (one of whom was a vet) have passed away so we're not able to ask them. Had she been spayed at a younger age, it would have saved her all the problems she had.

As I mentioned earlier, spaying a bitch before she is 18 months dramatically reduces the risk of them developing mammary cancer. Sadly, our last dog, Fen, wasn't spayed until we adopted her at two years old (she was also a rescue) and she died from mammary cancer aged 12.

Unless you intend to breed with your dog (which I feel should be restricted to licensed breeders only) I believe they should be spayed or neutered. Hormones build up in un-neutered males if they are not bred and it leads to serious confusion and often aggressive behaviour in them which is entirely unfair.
At our local country park, there is a man who walks his chocolate Labrador and he has flatly refused to have him doctored. He is a big dog and he has hurt several other dogs (my own included) by trying to mount them.

(06-11-2012, 06:14 AM)Sian Lewis Wrote: As I mentioned earlier, spaying a bitch before she is 18 months dramatically reduces the risk of them developing mammary cancer. Sadly, our last dog, Fen, wasn't spayed until we adopted her at two years old (she was also a rescue) and she died from mammary cancer aged 12.

Unless you intend to breed with your dog (which I feel should be restricted to licensed breeders only) I believe they should be spayed or neutered. Hormones build up in un-neutered males if they are not bred and it leads to serious confusion and often aggressive behaviour in them which is entirely unfair.
At our local country park, there is a man who walks his chocolate Labrador and he has flatly refused to have him doctored. He is a big dog and he has hurt several other dogs (my own included) by trying to mount them.

I'm sorry to hear that about Fen. I am lucky enough to not have to deal with mammary cancer but now that I have a number of dogs, I can no longer tolerate lax pet ownership.

I am definitely an advocate for spaying and neutering. Of course spaying can cost more than three times the price of neutering here in our country. Unfortunately some people aren't just willing enough to spend on extra fees such as this. Other's don't even have their dogs vaccinated. It's like they don't see stray dogs walking around our streets or being neglected by their owners.

I have two males and three females. The little ones have not yet been spayed but I've already asked the vets on the estimated bills and expenses regarding such. Dealing with estrus days is such a nightmare, just like what TreeClimber has mentioned.