Has anyone had experience of having a bitch spayed with laparoscopic surgery rather than traditional surgery?

If so can you tell me how you found it was? Was there definate benefits etc?

I have a friend whose vet does this and she has had 4 of her own bitches done and would never go back to having a bitch done in the conventional way.  She now has people contacting her for advice and her vets details to have there own bitches booked in to be done.  Not many vets provide this service so people are travelling quite a few hundred miles to have there bitches done.

I know when my older girl is going to be speyed she is going (with my own vets approval) to have this surgery.
Big bonus seems to be less time under aenesthetic and quicker recovery time and only two little incisions.

Would be interested to know how to find vets that spay this way has anyone got any info

http://www.ayrton.org.uk/ 

This is my friends vets web site, have a look under services and there is some good info available.

Reading the info on the site the spay leaves the uterus there and only removes the ovaries? can a bitch still get pyometra if she has the uterus? or will the removal of the ovaries prevent this happening some how?

>can a bitch still get pyometra if she has the uterus?

Yes. There is an unusual condition known as 'stump pyometritis' when a conventionally-spayed (full ovario-hyserectomy) bitch can get an infection in the stump where the uterus was removed; because the bitch is known to be spayed the idea that she might have pyometra is often not considered. If a complete uterus is left intact the chances of this becoming life-threatening are far greater.

I didn't know spayed bitches cold still get Pyo. Thats useful to know. I wonder what the risk is for pyo after the laparoscopic spay? I don't suppose enough have been done to find out.

> I didn't know spayed bitches cold still get Pyo. Thats useful to know. I wonder what the risk is for pyo after the laparoscopic spay? I don't suppose enough have been done to find out.

Surely that defeats one of the main reasons that people have their bitches spayed.Better to have a few more days recovery time than still have the risk of pyo.

> Surely that defeats one of the main reasons that people have their bitches spayed.Better to have a few more days recovery time than still have the risk of pyo.

i am inclined to agree, pyo is life-threatening so that would be a major reason for a spay in the first place for me :)

Could it be that certain breed types are more suited to this technique (those that could be considered more at risk with full surgery).
I to would want to know as much information as possible !

What Causes Dog Pyometra?  following paragraphs were taken from this site
(http://www.dog-behavior-training.co.uk/dog_pyometra.html)

Pyometra in your dog will happen or start only at the time of the dog's season (heat). This is because when a female dog reaches this time, eggs are released from the ovaries for fertilisation. If the dog then gets mated and the egg is fertilised by the sperm, an embryo will develop and the bitch becomes pregnant. These embryos then travel down into the womb where they will wait for up to seven days for a placenta (afterbirth) to develop and attach to the side of the womb so the embryos can have food and oxygen from the mother. In the time that the embryo is not attached to any food or oxygen source in the womb, a fluid is produced from the wall of the womb to accommodate for this and help the placenta grow.

Pyometra happens when the cells that line the womb and produce food and oxygen for the embryo are overactive and produce too much fluid. This then makes an ideal environment for stray bacteria from the body to breed, which in turn worsens and becomes an infection.

When the dogs body discovers this infection it sends thousands of white blood sells to combat the new infection. When this happens, all the dead white blood sells that have done their job will die and form what is know as puss. Puss in large quantities can be very toxic to a dog's body as well as making them feel very ill.

Your dog will try and flush this unwanted puss out by drinking more water (which causes more urinating), diarrhea and vomiting, or discharge through the vaginal area if they are still in season. This is called open cervix pyometra when the dog's vagina is still open and can leak the unwanted puss, closed cervix pyometra is when the bitch is out of season and all unwanted puss cannot leak from the vagina, thus causing more puss inside the dog and worsening the toxic effects.

These symptoms will gradually get worse and worse from mild and barely noticeable symptoms, to almost the point of collapse from the toxins within their body. The earlier on you get your pet to the vet, the easier and safer the curing process will be.

Therefore if your bitch has ovaries removed no season.  Friend Hazel is emailing her vet to enquire, she can't quite remember(blame her age :) ) what he said other than pyomeatra is a hormone driven disease.

Hope this helps.  Only my findings though.

Pyometra is caused by bacteria entering the womb/womb stump. Because the urethra enters the vagina, any bacteria from a UTI can travel back through the cervix, as can bacteria from diarrhoea which comes into contact with the vulva. A spayed bitch isn't immune from these conditions and so infection from these sources is still a possibility.

Like most folk I always thought that being speyed meant an end to the risk of pyometra, good to know Jeangenie for future.  Thanks for the input.

Following on from previous posts and some concerns people had about this operation and pyometra I contacted the vet that does the ops and this was the response from his nurse.  Hope this helps with any decision has to make

Thank you for your email regarding laparoscopic spaying. 

Dr Page has been performing laparoscopic ovariectomies (as opposed to the routine bitch spay - an ovariohysterectomy), for nearly 2 years now.  It has become a highly successful operation mainly due to the fact that the dog is allowed to be running round for off lead exercise usually the next day after surgery, when the anaesthetic has fully worn off.  After the routine way of spaying, the dog needs to be rested for 7-10 days.  Due to the fact that the operation is much less traumatic (only 2 small holes on the tummy are made, and only the ovaries are removed) than the routine method of spaying, the dogs are generally brighter and are less painful.

In the time we have been carrying out this operation, we have never seen or heard of any problems regarding pyometra's, in the bitches that have had the surgery here.  Dr Page spent a long time researching published papers on this topic before undertaking this surgery, and always keeps up to date with recent findings - all the studies found absolutely no problem in leaving the uterus in place.  Pyometra's usually occur a few weeks after a bitch's season ends, and after a hormonal change in the bitch.  By removal of the ovaries, the source of reproductive hormones oestrogen and progesterone, she cannot come into season. 

Stump pyometra's almost always involve hormone changes.  In bitches that have had stump pyometra's, studies have shown they were nearly always related to the presence of ovarian tissue, the tissue having been incompletely removed during spaying. Inevitably these bitches would still show signs of a season.  The other main reason for a stump pyometra is a reaction to the suture material used to tie off the uterus.  Laparoscopic ovariectomised bitches do not have any internal sutures, only skin sutures.   

In studies in dogs in Europe that underwent ovariectomies (not laparoscopically, but only the ovaries were
removed) there have not been any reported problems in leaving the uterus.  Ovariectomies in Europe have been going on since the 1980's. 

I hope this will put people's minds at rest on the forum page, and if you have any further questions please do not hesitate To email again.

Regards

Louise Gardiner RVN
Registered Veterinary Nurse
Ayrton Veterinary Hospital

>After the routine way of spaying, the dog needs to be rested for 7-10 days.

They're usually running around after a couple of days when the anaesthetic's completely left their system; they definitely don't need to be 'rested' - restrained somewhat certainly, but not rested!

JG I think that phrase relates to being off the lead playing rather than cage rest.  I was advised that my bitch should be off the lead for that amount of time and it was a couple of days before she was happy to go to the toilet properly due to the pain.

> They're usually running around after a couple of days

To true JG and thats why we are there to ensure that the time and care required to assist the healing process happens.  Speying may be just "routine" but it is still major surgery.

I have a girl going in on Monday moring to be speyed and I am pacing the floor already.  I wish I had the option with her to have it done via the laprascope but unfotuneately this isn't possible.  But her daughter will be done by that method in a couple of months time.