I have a nine month old bitch coming to the end of her first season.  She has been fine, no problems.  I am now considering spaying and although i know the obvious regarding puppies i would like to know more regarding the dogs health should i decide to go ahead.  There seems to be controversy on this subject and i would like to hear from anyone with experiences on this subject.  I am not opposed to spaying but feel there is more to know.  I do not intend to breed at anytime, i can cope with her seasons (should they be the same as this last one) but need to know the pro's and con's for the bitches health.
Can anyone give advice?
Thanks
Tracey

Hi Tracey,

I don't know your opinions on the subject of spaying, but thought I'd post and let you know what I think.  (and this really is just my opinion...lots of people feel differently)

Personally, I'd wait until the bitch is fully mature.  I'd say 18 months or the third season, and then I'd have her spayed.

Obviously, if she's not going to be bred from, it's probably a good thing to have her spayed.  It will reduce the risk of health problems (cancer etc) as she gets older.
If she's not spayed, there is always the worry of her getting pregnant.  Also, phantom pregnancies can be a big problem in unspayed bitches.

It's a difficult decision to make, especially as operations, even the most common ones carry a certain degree of risk.  But, If I were you, and I wanted my girl purely as a pet, I'd have her spayed.

I'm sure there will be people along shortly who have more experience than me.  Sorry I haven't been much help.

Take care,

Lisa

but if u wait until after the third spay or so, the health benefits from being spayed are practically none existant with regards to mammary tumours, but at least they can't get pyometra

sarah
x

Hi Guest
if you do a search for 'spey'( search button =top right hand corner) you will see the general opinion is that is will do your bitch no harm to be speyed now...it will not effect her general appearance but could benefit her health in the long run.It is males that people advise not to castrate too early as this can affect their looks at maturity since castratinmg takes away hormones which give a male that 'stallion' look for want of a better way of putting it.
Archer
  

I have just taken my gsd to be speyed this morning, she suffered from really bad phantoms-they were a nightmare.My other gsd bitch had to be speyed cos she developed pyometra and nearly died just after her first season at 8 months old, since then we have had no problems at all apart from she did put on a little weight afterwards but thats nothing compared to nearly losing them to pyometra, cancer or mammary tumours etc. My other gsd bitch is to be bred from but if I wasn't going to breed from her and if I didn't show her then I would probably get her speyed aswell, but everyone is different I just think that its easier all round and stops a lot of stress and worrying.Saying that I would never get my bitches speyed without them having at least 2 seasons providing they come in every 6-8 months, but again thats just my personal preferance

Both my bitches have been spayed as I compete; neither have put any weight on; there is no need for bitches to gain weight post spaying if you reduce the food intake.