Hiya I was wondering if anyone else has experienced a change in their bitch after being spayed. Sassy had her op in May and her attitude toward people has stayed the same, she still thinks everyone is her friend and loves all the attention people give her. The problem is her attitude toward other dogs, she is fine when we are out walking and we pass other walkers with their dogs but if I stop to chat and the other dog so much as makes a step toward her she snaps and snarls at it. This happens with dogs that she previously got along with aswell as dogs that are new to her. At home she more or less tolerates the family pets that visit but I am constantly on watch because of the way she is. I have searched through to see if any post has been made similar to this but so far havent found any, and I have always recieved very good and kind advice on any posting I have made. The main reason for me asking this question is to see if this change in attitude can be reversed because next year I am looking to buy a new puppy. Its not that she has been an only dog, she was brought up with 2 others who were 5 yr old when I bought her, ( she is 3 yr old now ) tho' sadly one of the older dogs has since died. I would be very grateful if anyone could give me some information on this and if any of you think that taking Sassy to a behaviourist would help.
Thank you in advance
Gail

I do hope she settles down.  However we had an awful experience when we spayed our first female dachsie.  She was a very dominant and arrogant dog anyway but my husband, at home all day with the dogs, noticed she was getting aggressive since her spay.  Now what would have happened if the status quo had remained we don't of course know.  But the reason for spaying her was that we were getting a male.  He arrived at 8 weeks and Sasha was absolutely delighted with him and took him right over not giving the other bitch much of a look in.  No real problems until one day she turned on Tara and it was a fight to the kill.  We managed to separate them and felt that we had no option but to rehome Sasha.  She went to another home and settled in really well with their old boy.  BUT I believe the actual attack was because Tara started to produce milk the next day (she always suffered from phantom pregnancies) and there was severe jealousy that Tara was going to take over Sasha's baby.  These were exceptional circumstances so I am sure this won't happen with you but I would most definitely say the belief that a spay calms them down just isn't always true.  However, I would monitor your girl closely and it may be worth investigating a good behaviourist to help out if it doesn't improve, or becomes worse.

Louise

Hiya Louise and thank you for your reply. I am of the same opinion as you with spaying not always calming a dog down, I know 3 other dogs that have been spayed, 1 has become really lazy but the other 2 have had no change at all. Sassy always had a tendency to be a little bossy ( or try to be ) but the other 2 dogs would always let her know when she had gone to far and she would go to her bed sulking for a little while then come running back out to play with them. I'm also wondering if there could be a connection with having to pts 1 of the older boys through illness a few weeks before she was spayed. Blue ( he was the less dominant ) let her get away with a lot more after losing his brother, it was almost like he was saying he'll do anything to keep the peace. I am hoping that I can get her back to her old ways with other dogs or I will have to have a serious rethink on getting a new puppy next year, I couldnt bring a little one into my home and have it bullied by her. Thank you again
Gail

Actually Gail I was thinking about this on my way to the bus stop this morning.  I wonder if the vet can check her hormone levels??  Sorry, I am really ignorant on this sort of thing (perhaps someone else might pop in and comment) but perhaps there is an inbalance that can be regulated - just an idea.

Louise

Hiya Louise, thank you again for your reply. I've booked Sassy in to see the vet on Tuesday, i thought to have a chat with him and see if he can shed some light on things and while I'm there I'll ask him about hormone levels, anything to try and find out why she is behaving this way. Thanks again and I'll let you know on what he says
Gail

Hi,
I'm worried now about getting my bitch spayed, she's had one season, and I've been advised to wait until after the second, which will be in the next couple of months.

I read an article somewhere that explained this behaviour change like this - if you castrate a fearful dog, the lowered level of testosterone would make him even more fearful, because that is the hormone that makes a dog brave and feisty.

And conversely, if you spay a bitch, it lowers the female hormone levels, therefore making the testosterone level relatively higher, hence the apparent increase in "aggressiveness" in spayed bitches.
I'll be interested to know what your vet says about your bitch's hormones.

Hi Gail,

There have been some tests that found that aggression levels can rise in spayed females IF there is already a history of aggression in that dog. i.e. the SLIGHT increase of testosterone levels in the bitch can make her more reactive and thus more willing to use the fight response instead of the flight response. However, make note that the underlying motivation to use that response is still there, so one needs to tackle that first. So, if the dog was ok with dogs previously, it could be that she was just too young to start to defend herself in a situation where she felt insecure. We, humans, are not brilliant at reading subtle dog body language. It could be that she had a bad a experience and she has 'generalised' this to dogs when she is on lead. There are a whole bunch of questions that a behaviourist would ask you to determine exactly why your dog has become aggressive towards other dogs and also under what circumstances exactly.

There is also the possibility that her prolactin levels were too high when she was spayed. Prolactin is the hormone that is produced for a long time after oestrus. It is there to affect the bitch's behaviour for survival of herself and the litter. So it makes the bitch more alert and more prone to 'resource guard' - for obvious reasons. If prolactin levels have not been allowed to get back to their normal state when the bitch is spayed, then they remain in at their high levels and thus the bitch remains more reactive than normal. Even if you spayed at the recommended time after oestrus, your bitch could have had a pseudo-pregnancy without you realising (each bitch differs greatly on their behaviour) and pseudo-preganancies last longer than normal pregnancy, so her hormone levels could have still been all over the place when she got spayed.

This is just one of the reasons why I personally like to spay before the bitch's first season, but I know I'm in the minority here - so I won't get into this debate now - it's outside the scope of the original post.

Best thing to do  is to go back to your vet and, as someone already mentioned, get her hormone levels tested. If prolactin levels are ok, then you must go to a qualified behaviourist, who will do a proper assessment and give you the right diagnosis and programme to follow.

I would get her sorted out first before you get your pup, as pups learn alot from the other dogs in the household and you do not want your pup to learn to be aggressive to other dogs. Also, you will need to spend plenty of time with your dog to sort her out and then when she is fine you can spend all your time with the pup to ensure s/he grows up to be a well-balanced and happy dog.

Best to take things nice and slow - that way you avoid alot of heartache.

All the best,
Patty

Hiya Patti, I've read your reply with great interest and thank you for your thoughts on things. My vet had told me about prolactin levels when i first enquired about having Sassy spayed, which was after she had her litter and advised it would be best to wait until after her season which followed. We did wait for the recommended time but reading your reply it has made me wonder if this is whats happened. The only bad experience I could think of was when she would have been about 6 months old and that was with my older dog Blue. She was being overly boisterous and tormenting with him, even tho' he warned her off and I distracted her with her toys and balls even removing her from the room whenever she came back in she would make straight for Blue. Then he snapped at her catching her harder than I honestly think he intended to. After that things quietened down and they went back to how they had been from the first day I got her, him washing and cleaning her then they would play and after that they would both sleep with Sassy curled up between Blues' legs. She hasn't had any bad experiences with other dogs outside.
I will take your advice on looking for a good behaviourist,and will work with her to see if we can get Sassy back to how she was. If nothing changes after that I wont be getting another pup because like you I don't think it be fair on either her or the new pup. Thank you again
Gail

Hi Gail,

Perhaps it is the excitement of seeing another dog, but being able contain herself, then being in conflict about what to do and finally when things don't go right the automatic response comes (I see quite a few JRTs with this). It could be so, so many things, but I am sure you will nip it in the bud very quickly once you get started in the behavioural plan. Best way to find a good behaviourist is to ask your vet to refer you to one. Some pet insurances even cover the dog for behavioural problems.

All the best and do not despair, all things can be fixed (or managed to our satisfaction) with the right guidance. So, I am sure you will still be able to get your pup when you are ready.

All the best,
Patty

About 12 years ago I had 2 rescue GSD's the bitch was speyed and her character remained the same.  The dog was castrated and he turned from very placid to quite agressive, and whereas he'd never roamed, he started trying to go off.  It did calm down eventually.

As another note I had my female cat speyed and she changed from a placid family cat who lived with my other cats happily, to an aggressive nightmare, growling at me and attacking the other cats, when I rang the CPL they suggested taking her back and homing her as a lone cat.  I'd got her from the CPL and had to take her daughter at the same time (as a pair) - after I spayed the daughter she also became more aggressive and also started spraying up the walls, this also has calmed down, but she has recently started to roam like an uneutered male for no real reason. 

I think it's hit and miss - I have neutered male cats and other speyed female dogs with no difficulties.

I really hope thngs improve for you soon as I know this must be a very upsetting time.

Hiya Chi-Chi,
Thank you for writing about your experiences, like I have said in my reply to Patty I really am hoping that we can get things sorted with Sassy and I'm sure that time and effort will help in turning her back to how she was before being spayed. It has been an upsetting time mainly, because she was never like this with other dogs before, even when she had her pups she was a gentle and perfect mother. I will let you know how she gets along, thank you again
Take care
Gail

Hiya Patty,
I am really hoping that I can get to the bottom of Sassy's problems and that in time things will improve with her so that we can go on our walks peacefully again. I know that there's no quick fix for this and that it will take time but I don't mind all that because she really is a lovely girl. I'll ask my vet if he can recomend or refer me to a behaviourist when I go to see him and I will let you know how I get on.
Take care
Gail

Hi Gill,
I think with perseverance you should be able to work with Sassy as she's a dog, and they're easy to train and coerce more than I was able to with my cat.
Please do let me know how you get on by private message at some point.
Thinking of you!
:)