Should I spay my yorkie?

[patriciaf0417]

Hello I a new to this forum and I am so confused on whether I should spay my one year old yorkie. I am so scared and overwhelmed with all the information and have a ton of questions, which hopefully no one minds answering. I feel so sick to my stomach right now thinking about my baby going under anesthesia and reading all the horror stories. I read the anesthesia protocol but still have some questions so I can understand everything clearly.

1. After reading everything I think i read that normally vets should put an IV of propotol to make the dogs tired at first and they use gas of Isoflourane or Sevoflourane while doing the actual surgery? is that correct and is that the best? or is it gas the whole time?

2. what tests should i get before hand besides the blood work? I am scared of her heart and all her organs and want to test everything I can.

3. Should my baby have IV fluids during the whole surgery and an EKG machine?

4. Are they supposed to put a tube in her throat during surgery (I think its called intubate)? and could that cause a tracheal problem?

5. My baby has allergies and reverse sneezes would that be an issue with anesthesia?

6. If we don't do this spay do yorkies get cancer and mammory problems like people keep scaring me about?

7. My baby squirms a lot when other people (the vets) try to touch her and give her shots and Im scared she will resist them the whole time. do you think they could still perform the surgery?

As you can see I am a wreck thinking about this. I would not get this done at all if it was not for the health benefits. But in everyones opinion how good are the health benefits? I mean should I really spay her? I will be devastated if anything happened to her. But I dont want to have her get cancer either. I am so torn. Please help.

[Lovetodream88]

I am I big fan of spaying. I think it does prevent and lessen there risk of some cancers and there is an infection they can get when they are not spayed that can kill them if you don't recognize it fast enough. Normally a blood test is all that is need but if you have the money and your vet or whoever will do it then I'm sure they will do more tests. There is a very small percent of dogs who die while under anesthesia. I would make sure there is someone whose job is to monitor the heart while shes under and that the operating table is heated. Dogs tend to act different when there owners are not around so she many not be so wiggly when your not there but vets are used to dogs wiggling. The risk of her getting stolen or getting lost and you never seeing her goes up if shes not spayed because then people can sell her for more money or use her in a puppy mill. Also if she is outside when in heat a male dog can smell her from a long way away and will do anything to get to her.

[Cha Cha]

I believe the benefits of spaying out weigh the risks involved. You have to remember, your vet is a very skilled trained professional. If you don't trust him/her or have concerns look for another one until you do. Spaying is a common procedure. Don't wait until you have an emergency to discover you don't like your vet. You have great questions and this is a great place to get answers. They are also great questions to ask your vet and a great way to get a good feel for him/her and their practice.

[gracielove]

You really need to talk to your vet about these issues that you have. If your vet cannot or will not answer your questions in a way that is satisfactory to you then find another one. Personally, I prefer to go to a vet that is experienced in dealing with small breed dogs and Yorkies in particular. They know Yorkie issues and are prepared to deal with them.
A vet that sees your dog as just another patient is not the one you want to entrust your baby to.

I admit I love my vet. She knows Yokies and is very experienced but I was really torn up the day I had to leave her there. When they took her from me I could see her eyes watching me. It was more horrible for me than for her. She was resting comfortably for the hours I was on edge waiting to go pick her up!

Many vets have different ways of doing surgeries. You need to get the info from your particular vet.

[Quiverful]

1. After reading everything I think i read that normally [COLOR=green !important][COLOR=green !important]vets[/COLOR][/COLOR] should put an IV of propotol to make the dogs tired at first and they use gas of Isoflourane or Sevoflourane while doing the actual surgery? is that correct and is that the best? or is it gas the whole time?


Your vet will use an injectable that will make pup go to sleep. Then intubate and hook up to gas and oxygen. Iso and Sevo are both very safe anesthetics. Animals wake up quickly and smoothly from them.

2. what tests should i get before hand besides the blood work? I am scared of her heart and all her organs and want to test everything I can.

Vets will offer pre-op bloodwork that usually consists if a CBC (Complete Blood Count) and several tests that will check pup's systems....usually kidney and liver. Talk to your vet about your concerns...they can add other tests on if you desire.

3. Should my baby have [COLOR=green !important][COLOR=green !important]IV [COLOR=green !important]fluids[/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR] during the whole surgery and an EKG machine?

You can request that your pup have IV fluids during the procedure. Not usually needed in a healthy pup having a routine procedure but it certainly won't hurt. EKG monitoring should be standard during any surgery.

4. Are they supposed to put a tube in her throat during surgery (I think its called intubate)? and could that cause a tracheal problem?

Yes they will need to place a tube. There may be some slight irritation after the surgery but that will go away quickly. Most healthy dogs do not show any issues after being intubated.

5. My baby has allergies and reverse sneezes would that be an issue with anesthesia?

This will not cause any problems with anesthesia.

6. If we don't do this spay do yorkies get cancer and mammory problems like people keep scaring me about?

Yes, Yorkies can get mammary cancer. That is a real danger to intact females. Another more serious danger is called pyometra. This is an infection in the uterus and is life threatening. It must be caught right away and an emergency spay performed and even then it is a dangerous illness.

7. My baby squirms a lot when other people (the vets) try to touch her and give her shots and Im scared she will resist them the whole time. do you think they could still perform the surgery?

Vets are very used to squirmy patients Technicians are trained in proper holding and restraining techniques that keep everyone safe.


I believe that the small risks of surgery greatly outweigh the risks of not doing the spay.

Good luck!

[gemy]

Originally Posted by patriciaf0417

Hello I a new to this forum and I am so confused on whether I should spay my one year old yorkie. I am so scared and overwhelmed with all the information and have a ton of questions, which hopefully no one minds answering. I feel so sick to my stomach right now thinking about my baby going under anesthesia and reading all the horror stories. I read the anesthesia protocol but still have some questions so I can understand everything clearly.

1. After reading everything I think i read that normally vets should put an IV of propotol to make the dogs tired at first and they use gas of Isoflourane or Sevoflourane while doing the actual surgery? is that correct and is that the best? or is it gas the whole time?

2. what tests should i get before hand besides the blood work? I am scared of her heart and all her organs and want to test everything I can.

3. Should my baby have IV fluids during the whole surgery and an EKG machine?

4. Are they supposed to put a tube in her throat during surgery (I think its called intubate)? and could that cause a tracheal problem?

5. My baby has allergies and reverse sneezes would that be an issue with anesthesia?

6. If we don't do this spay do yorkies get cancer and mammory problems like people keep scaring me about?

7. My baby squirms a lot when other people (the vets) try to touch her and give her shots and Im scared she will resist them the whole time. do you think they could still perform the surgery?

As you can see I am a wreck thinking about this. I would not get this done at all if it was not for the health benefits. But in everyones opinion how good are the health benefits? I mean should I really spay her? I will be devastated if anything happened to her. But I dont want to have her get cancer either. I am so torn. Please help.

5) An allergic reaction is rare to anesthesia, but you need to talk with your vet about her allergies and is there a way to pre-test prior to the surgery to know for sure if she is allergic to the proposed agents.

A reverse sneeze should not be a problem for surgery.

2) Now you asked about pre testing prior to surgery; I wonder why you are concerned about her heart? Has your vet diagnosed a heart murmur, or any other irregularity with the heart and or pulse rate? If her heart rate is nice and strong and regular, with no apparent murmurs, then there is no reason I know so far that would make surgery a high risk.

For the blood work, I'd get a full blood work drawn up - ask for that.

2) If I would be an ultra ultra cautious person.... now you did get the two "ultras" I posted. I would ask for an xray of the cervical(neck) spine to have this spine evaluated prior to surgery. If there is narrowing of the spine, arthritis, discal problems, and a number of other things, that could make hyperextension of the neck problematic, then you would know this ahead of time.

I see no reason to recommend this in the case of your puppy.

No. 6 Cancer risks. Certain types of cancer such as mammary cancers do go up a bit with each heat a dog has prior to spaying. How-ever mammary cancer is easily caught, if you as a dog owner, are responsible enough to do palpatory exams each month.

More concerning (for me at least) is the risk of pyrometra. A serious infection of the uterus, that can kill a dog within 24 hours. One type is known as closed (which means there are precious little or no warning signs) the other type, there are recognizable signs; and you best hot foot it over to your vet right away. And for every heat, an unbred female has the risk increases a fair amount.

Unfortunately for females the risk/benefit analysis for many breeds, does not provide a clear cut direction.

For many pet owners probably the best decision for female Yorkies is to spay after their first heat, or even second heat.

What you do need to factor in to your decision, is the additional responsibility you as the owner of an unspayed female take on.

You need to always be alert for the signs of heat, mark those heats on your calendar for a number of reasons, not the least of which is to know when the next one is due.
Then you need to keep your girl safe from unwanted matings, and should something "happen", be prepared to make the decisions on spaying then, or figuring out how you will whelp puppies, with no experience or support. We have way too many of those threads on here.

That does mean for approximately "6wks" to err on the safe side, you do not walk your gal outside. She only exercises with you in your fenced in back yard. You don't take her to grooming appointments. I would never trust my gal who is in heat, in a grooming salon.

You will need to help keep your girl clean, and provide sanitary panties which are changed out several times a day.

Finally I will say that spaying operations are overall for healthy pups relatively risk free.

Good luck with your decision.

[patriciaf0417]

Thank you all for your comments! I realy appreciate it! I did not know about pyometra so that is something I am concerned about now too. It is a very difficult decision and I keep going back and forth on what to do. Of course I do not want her to get cancer or an infection but I just would hate myself if I put her under and she had a problem with anesthesia. She is the best girl in the world and I just could not take it. I have called around to many vets and will see if I really feel comfortable with someone. Thank you so much for your replies again. This forum really is a great find!

[gracielove]

[QUOTE=patriciaf0417;3974570]Thank you all for your comments! I realy appreciate it! I did not know about pyometra so that is something I am concerned about now too. It is a very difficult decision and I keep going back and forth on what to do. Of course I do not want her to get cancer or an infection but I just would hate myself if I put her under and she had a problem with anesthesia. She is the best girl in the world and I just could not take it. I have called around to many vets and will see if I really feel comfortable with someone. Thank you so much for your replies again. This forum really is a great find! [/Qa

I don't think there are any loving pet owners that have not had the fears you describe, especially owners of small breed dogs. However, the benefits of spaying your little girl far out weigh and dangers of a routine surgery. I once owned a beautiful little Maltese puppy. When she was 6 months old she went into her first heat and nearly died of polymetra. She was the first dog I had ever owned on my own and I new nothing about the disease. I had planned on getting her spayed at about 8 or 9 months of age. Since then I have always tried to spay before the first heat. With Gracie I had to wait because she was small but she got through her first heat without a hitch. I was watching her like a hawk through the whole thing. I was so concerned about a repeat occurrence.

Find a vet you can have confidence in and talk to him/her about it. I'm sure it will help you with your decision making process.

[4Scrappy]

Spaying and neutering are routine for my dogs and as early as possible. Never had a problem, even with tiny ones. The advice from others on this read are straight up accurate in my experience. My newest, Cassie, is getting is thspayed day after next. Good luck as you make your decision.

[gardengirl77]

I will always spay. So much better for them in my opinion.