Hi, I have a three year old Red Setter and a 16 month Bullmastiff - both bitches. Every time we take either of them to the vet we have the usual lecture that we should have them spayed. We know that there are health reasons for and against getting it done and we don't mind dealing with their seasons. My Red Setter has a skin problem which can apparently become much worse after Spaying due to the hormone imbalance spaying causes - so we're more inclined to keep her as she is.

I'd be grateful of any advice or experiences that people can give me to help us decide what we should do -to spay them or not.

Thank you so much in advance.

Jenny

Hi,
We had this dilemma with our first dobe. We decided not to spay, can't remember quite why now. She died at 7 years old, from the operation to remove a massive tumour in her ovaries. It had gotten so big the vet said almost rugby ball sized, and we hadn't even noticed it until one day she was laid down and it was obvious. The vet said it will have grown at an incredible rate. If she had been spayed this would not have happened, full stop. My next dobe was spayed as soon as the vet recommended, after her first season. So after our first experience I personally would always have any dog I owned spayed. There are other cons to not having a bitch spayed and unless you intend to breed I can't think of the pros. Guess there may be some though.

It seems that the worst negative coat effects are with breeds that have feathering, and also that Incontinence of the bladder occurs in a veryhigh percentage of some breeds, Rotties and Boxers being two. As a bully is a big heavy breed, and any positive health benefits of spaying have pretty well disappeared by the third season, I would leave them be, just be aware of the signs of Pyometra.

Pyo most commonly coccurs in elderly bitches that have never been bred from. With modern anasthetics and quick action the outcome even with this serious condition is usually good.

Hi PowerJen,I also have Irish setters, Iv'e never had a bitch spayed, but Iv'e seen spayed Irish. The coat deteriorates into a dry woolly mess that is impossible to keep looking nice. I had one bitch die as a result of pyometra at eight years old, she had had one litter at three years old. Another died at the ripe old age of fourteen years never had a litter, and never got pyometra either. I'm against unneccessary surgery because of the anaesthetic risk, and before anyone decides to remind me that the risk is very small, I know that. I'm a people nurse. I just see no reason to put an animal through a fairly major operation,for no good reason, even if it is routine ( for the vet not the dog ).
I keep both sexes in two breeds at the moment and I have had no difficulty managing the bitches seasons.
Dawn R.

my male Irish setter is about to go to the vet to look at how to treat him for the hormonal imbalance caused by his neuter.

His coat is like a bad hair job, looks like peroxide gone wrong, he is 42 kg in weight, seems depressed all the time

He was neutered when we got him as he was a rescue but I would never ever neuter/spay an Irish setter again.

Theresa

My only castrated dog is not a I. Setter but he has had to have treatment for hormonal conditions for most of his life. I would never do it again except for a medical reason and that does not inclued something which may or may not happen in the future. Jackie

Dogs I have had include an entire bitch, (who did get pyo at nearly 11, but made it to live til nearly 16. No temperament changes, or anything at all negative, just a slightly thicker coat (she was a double coated breed) but once lightly trimmed for practical purposes she was extremely beautiful again.)

My current bitch was spayed in September. I weighed up the pros and cons for months and felt miserable, about the whole thing, and even when she was at the vets I was all ready to rush in and grab her back form their clutches!!! :p

She has had no character change, her double coat is comong in a little thicker but i am prepared, as I don't show I just get practical and groom and trim where and when needed. I feel she will be fine with no incontinence as she is very fit and active, and i believe a toned and fit dog has less chance of those sort of problems. (She's also only just over teh 20kg).

Hth a bit, good luck with your decision :)

Lindsay

Hi

Thank you for your valuable info. We've decided that we're not going to get her 'done', you and Nursey very much echoed what we'd always thought and so we won't touch the setter as she already has a skin condition which is supposed to be made worse if spayed due to the messing up of her hormones.

Thanks!

Jen x :-)

Hi Nursey, from a fellow NHS employee :)
I have more than toyed with getting my bitches spayed. One has had one litter, the other is only 18months old. As a human, I would not consider a hysterectomy unless life threatening, so like you I do not really want to put my girls through any unnecessary surgery. Sometimes seasons are a nuisance, but its' what nature intended and nature usually knows best IMHO
Lorna ;)

My Tess (a Staffie) was spayed at 6 months, before her first season. On the advice of my vet.
I was shocked at the condition of her when I picked her up, maybe this is cos I recently had a hysterectomy myself. She had a tight bandage round her lower tum which was seeping blood. I could have cried. He said she'd bled rather a lot cos of the fat on her tummy. and that she was wearing a pressure bandage. I had to ring him at home later as the bandage was actually making her bleed more. He told me to take it off.
But the other side of the coin is that she bounced back (literally) within a couple of days, and now looks a picture of health. shiny coat, bright eyes, plenty of energy, ever wagging tail, and ever licking tongue!! LOL
Would I do it again?
I really dont know - I'd have to give it some serious thought.
Love
X

I have 5 dogs/bitches. I had my hybrid fixed at a year and a half. Have not noticed much of a change except he does not mark as much, coat still grows in thick and full in the winter he is now 9 years old. Had 2 bostons male and female both fixed at 5 months, and just had their mother fixed in October. Their father is still intack. I have found no difference between any of them. Maybe it depends on the breed and how u feel about doing it. I also had our shepherd collie fixed and never noticed any change in her, she passed away at 9 due to cancer in the bum. :(
ttfn :)

The breeder of my pup was horrified when I suggested I wanted to spay her before her first season. This surprised me, since in the U.S. the advice was generally to spay early. My vet here (in the UK) will not spay until after a bitches first season.

As much as I hate to put her through the surgery, I am going to have her spayed. The reason is that I do not intend to breed her and the only way to be 100 percent certain that does not happen is if she is spayed. And I am sorry to say, it is just easier and less worry for me if she does not come into season. I have lived with intact bitches before and it was not a lot of trouble, just the occassional spot on the rug. It was the hyper vigilence and worry that they would not come into contact with any intact males that bothered me. I never let them run free, there was no chance of them coming into contact with males unless I was there and we were on a (leashed) walk -- but I still worried.

Stacey