HELP!!! Surgery, spay, teeth. I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH MY FULL GROWN 2LB YORKIE!! - YorkieTalk.com Forums

I*Love*My*Bean! · 03-11-2007, 01:12 PM

My girl Nina is 2.2lbs and is 1 year 4 mos. old. I am her second owner because the first was traveling too much, a friend of mine. She never got her spayed because of her size. Anyways, she has been in heat now for 2 weeks, and sleeps a lot. I feel bad for her. She is scheduled for a spay march 19th as well as a teeth cleaning. I found a doc that works with a lot of those "teacup" (I know that's not a real term) dogs. He only uses gas anesthesia because you can stop it immediately and wake her up if any complications occur. Also her teeth are bad, bleed every time i try to brush them, the groomer agreed. Previous owner never brushed them. She also has grade 3 and 4 luxating patellas. I would never buy one of these "teacups" myself, but I took her in because my friend had a 4 and 6 year old daughter, which is not a good environment for small dogs. I also have two small chihuahuas who love playing with her. Anyways, my mom and my grandmother, two huge animal rights activists (my grandmother has been featured on Animal Planet, and is well known in central and south america for her charity work) disagree with the surgery! They warn me vets only want your $$$$ and make you sign an agreement that they are not responsible for complications. I agree with them, but I don't like Nina being so warn out being in heat (loosing a lot of blood) and also I don't want her to lose all her teeth (I feed her dry food and try to brush her teeth almost daily). Her breath is super KILLER!!!! Bad!! But I would hate for her to get decay and toothaches as well. The doc also suggested in the future the knee surgery for her grade 4 luxating patella on her left leg. She carries it when she runs and I know she is in pain. Again, my mom and grandmom say not to do anything...

I'm lost! Should i do surgery, or should i just do my best to take care of her as she is and let nature run its course???? I've owned dogs all my life , but not a yorkie, and one this small!!!!

lolabella · 03-11-2007, 01:37 PM

It's a tough call. Can you do any research on this vet? Maybe talk to previous patients' owners with pets that have gone through similar surgeries? Try to find out if any dogs did not survive or had serious complications?

I hope things will work out for her no matter what you choose to do.

Please keep us updated about her situation. There are other people with tinies here that face similar dilemmas.
Good luck.

Yorkieluv · 03-11-2007, 01:41 PM

Gosh, I don't know...My maltese was spayed when she was 2.9lbs and everything came out okay. It sounds like she Needs the luxating patella surgery if she's in pain. Grade 4...I can imagine would cause her pain, especially if she holds it up. My opinion is that you find a vet who you feel is experienced with small dogs and talk to him/her about it. If he/she is confident in what they are doing, I don't see why you shouldn't go ahead and get the surgery done. Not all vets are in it for the money, many of them actually love what they do and work to help the animals

Good luck!

irbrenda · 03-11-2007, 04:05 PM

We recently spayed our chihuahua and had all her baby teeth pulled as she had 2 sets of teeth, infected bleeding gums and horrendous breath. She was 18 months old at the time and she weighed 1lb 12oz. Now that's small, and she was fine. We were very hesitant about doing it also and we were told to do it before she went into her first heat. That didn't happen until she was 16 months old and we thought maybe it would NEVER happen since she is so underdeveloped in so many ways. Well, our chi was miserable the entire heat time and we said never again. We took our chances and all's well. Good luck!

PS: Her breath was much better after she had the baby teeth pulled. But the stink is back, just not as bad!

I Love Bailey · 03-11-2007, 04:44 PM

If she is in pain, I would do the surgery. I am spaying and getting baby teeth pulled on my 2.8 lb yorkie on Thursday.
This will help inmprove her breath and I do not want her to go into heat.
There are pros and cons on every surgery and for the overall health of such a small dog I see nothing but pros for her. Do you know that an unspayed female can develope breast cancer? There are a couple of threads on here about it. not to mention what if she accidently ran outside and another dog got to her and got her pregnant or hurt her?
I would do some research on vets in your area and one that specializes with smaller breed dogs/animals.
Good Luck.

TLC · 03-12-2007, 11:37 AM

Grade 4 LP must be very painful! There is no other way but surgery. Whatever damage is done, can't be reversed and it will only get worse! Grade 4 is the worst, but the pain can get worse and she may not be able to walk later in life because of how painful it is and also the worn away cartiledge (that can't be repaired).

I have 2 dogs that both have LP in both rear legs. Roxy is finally out of her surgery and healing time. She is a BRAND NEW DOG!!! It is amazing.
TJ (her 1/2 brother) will have surgery in a few months.

My advice would be to find a EXCELLENT Ortho Surgeon Specialist and go from there. (But I would definatly not wait too long for this LP surgery, she is young and in Grade 4)

Best of Luck!

vainchick5 · 03-12-2007, 11:48 AM

I would have agreed with your mom and grandma if your baby wasn't obviously in pain. But clearly she is and for grade 4 the only solution is surgery. My baby was 1 lbs 2 oz when she was spayed and she did just great! I would find a great vet, if you don't already have one and get the surgeries done. These are both very important for her long term health. Something seemingly small can turn into something ugly, such as teeth. Her teeth can potentially cause an infection that her body may not be able to fight off. Just as an example. If I were you I would DEFINITELY do the surgeries.

I*Love*My*Bean! · 03-15-2007, 07:39 AM

Oh my gosh thank you all for posting your advice. I definitely feel its important for getting her teeth clean. I am glad to hear some of you have had your babies spayed/neutered at such a small size (even though they might be younger than Nina). I have faith in my doctor, he was recommended by a yorkie breeder and a teacup puppy store in s. Florida. I still need to speak to the actual orthopedic surgeon about the LP surgery. I don't know 100% sure if she's really in pain, but since she picks up her left leg alot when she runs, I know its got to be at least a little painful for her. Her spay/teeth cleaning surgery is next Monday the 19th (and my mom is going with me). I will definitely keep you updated on how she does.

TLC · 03-15-2007, 07:59 AM

There is no 'real' way of knowing 'if' she is in pain or not, b/c dogs will try their best to hide pain.

...but if she is in Grade 4 LP - just knowing exactly what Grade 4 LP is, tells me that she is definatley feeling pain and by carrying her leg tells me she is in pain and something is feeling very discomforting.

Please do not delay in seeing an Ortho Specialist. What ever damage that is done with LP can not be reveresed.

Keep us updated.

03-11-2007, 01:12 PM	#1
ILoveMy*Bean! YorkieTalk Newbie! Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Fort Lauderdale, FL Posts: 3	HELP!!! Surgery, spay, teeth. I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH MY FULL GROWN 2LB YORKIE!! My girl Nina is 2.2lbs and is 1 year 4 mos. old. I am her second owner because the first was traveling too much, a friend of mine. She never got her spayed because of her size. Anyways, she has been in heat now for 2 weeks, and sleeps a lot. I feel bad for her. She is scheduled for a spay march 19th as well as a teeth cleaning. I found a doc that works with a lot of those "teacup" (I know that's not a real term) dogs. He only uses gas anesthesia because you can stop it immediately and wake her up if any complications occur. Also her teeth are bad, bleed every time i try to brush them, the groomer agreed. Previous owner never brushed them. She also has grade 3 and 4 luxating patellas. I would never buy one of these "teacups" myself, but I took her in because my friend had a 4 and 6 year old daughter, which is not a good environment for small dogs. I also have two small chihuahuas who love playing with her. Anyways, my mom and my grandmother, two huge animal rights activists (my grandmother has been featured on Animal Planet, and is well known in central and south america for her charity work) disagree with the surgery! They warn me vets only want your $$$$ and make you sign an agreement that they are not responsible for complications. I agree with them, but I don't like Nina being so warn out being in heat (loosing a lot of blood) and also I don't want her to lose all her teeth (I feed her dry food and try to brush her teeth almost daily). Her breath is super KILLER!!!! Bad!! But I would hate for her to get decay and toothaches as well. The doc also suggested in the future the knee surgery for her grade 4 luxating patella on her left leg. She carries it when she runs and I know she is in pain. Again, my mom and grandmom say not to do anything... I'm lost! Should i do surgery, or should i just do my best to take care of her as she is and let nature run its course???? I've owned dogs all my life , but not a yorkie, and one this small!!!!

03-11-2007, 01:37 PM	#2
lolabella Donating Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: . Posts: 493	It's a tough call. Can you do any research on this vet? Maybe talk to previous patients' owners with pets that have gone through similar surgeries? Try to find out if any dogs did not survive or had serious complications? I hope things will work out for her no matter what you choose to do. Please keep us updated about her situation. There are other people with tinies here that face similar dilemmas. Good luck. __________________

03-11-2007, 01:41 PM	#3
Yorkieluv Donating YT 3000 Club Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 6,811	Gosh, I don't know...My maltese was spayed when she was 2.9lbs and everything came out okay. It sounds like she Needs the luxating patella surgery if she's in pain. Grade 4...I can imagine would cause her pain, especially if she holds it up. My opinion is that you find a vet who you feel is experienced with small dogs and talk to him/her about it. If he/she is confident in what they are doing, I don't see why you shouldn't go ahead and get the surgery done. Not all vets are in it for the money, many of them actually love what they do and work to help the animals Good luck! __________________ Miko 's his Mommy

03-11-2007, 04:05 PM	#4
irbrenda Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Staten Island, NY Posts: 123	We recently spayed our chihuahua and had all her baby teeth pulled as she had 2 sets of teeth, infected bleeding gums and horrendous breath. She was 18 months old at the time and she weighed 1lb 12oz. Now that's small, and she was fine. We were very hesitant about doing it also and we were told to do it before she went into her first heat. That didn't happen until she was 16 months old and we thought maybe it would NEVER happen since she is so underdeveloped in so many ways. Well, our chi was miserable the entire heat time and we said never again. We took our chances and all's well. Good luck! PS: Her breath was much better after she had the baby teeth pulled. But the stink is back, just not as bad! Last edited by irbrenda; 03-11-2007 at 04:06 PM. Reason: Adding something.

03-11-2007, 04:44 PM	#5
I Love Bailey I Love Angel too! Donating Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Biggest Little City Posts: 1,256	If she is in pain, I would do the surgery. I am spaying and getting baby teeth pulled on my 2.8 lb yorkie on Thursday. This will help inmprove her breath and I do not want her to go into heat. There are pros and cons on every surgery and for the overall health of such a small dog I see nothing but pros for her. Do you know that an unspayed female can develope breast cancer? There are a couple of threads on here about it. not to mention what if she accidently ran outside and another dog got to her and got her pregnant or hurt her? I would do some research on vets in your area and one that specializes with smaller breed dogs/animals. Good Luck. __________________ Michele, Bailey & Angel Take the Pledge to Fight Animal Cruelty: http://www.aspca.org/site/PageServer...ge_landing_er3

03-12-2007, 11:37 AM	#6
TLC Slave to My Rug-Rats Donating Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Long Island Posts: 3,989	Grade 4 LP must be very painful! There is no other way but surgery. Whatever damage is done, can't be reversed and it will only get worse! Grade 4 is the worst, but the pain can get worse and she may not be able to walk later in life because of how painful it is and also the worn away cartiledge (that can't be repaired). I have 2 dogs that both have LP in both rear legs. Roxy is finally out of her surgery and healing time. She is a BRAND NEW DOG!!! It is amazing. TJ (her 1/2 brother) will have surgery in a few months. My advice would be to find a EXCELLENT Ortho Surgeon Specialist and go from there. (But I would definatly not wait too long for this LP surgery, she is young and in Grade 4) Best of Luck! __________________ Nicole *"You Won't Change the World by Saving One Animal..BUT...You Will Change the World for that One"*

03-12-2007, 11:48 AM	#7
vainchick5 YT 6000 Club Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: CA Posts: 6,483	I would have agreed with your mom and grandma if your baby wasn't obviously in pain. But clearly she is and for grade 4 the only solution is surgery. My baby was 1 lbs 2 oz when she was spayed and she did just great! I would find a great vet, if you don't already have one and get the surgeries done. These are both very important for her long term health. Something seemingly small can turn into something ugly, such as teeth. Her teeth can potentially cause an infection that her body may not be able to fight off. Just as an example. If I were you I would DEFINITELY do the surgeries. __________________ Mommy to Coco and Rocco

03-15-2007, 07:39 AM	#8
ILoveMy*Bean! YorkieTalk Newbie! Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Fort Lauderdale, FL Posts: 3	Oh my gosh thank you all for posting your advice. I definitely feel its important for getting her teeth clean. I am glad to hear some of you have had your babies spayed/neutered at such a small size (even though they might be younger than Nina). I have faith in my doctor, he was recommended by a yorkie breeder and a teacup puppy store in s. Florida. I still need to speak to the actual orthopedic surgeon about the LP surgery. I don't know 100% sure if she's really in pain, but since she picks up her left leg alot when she runs, I know its got to be at least a little painful for her. Her spay/teeth cleaning surgery is next Monday the 19th (and my mom is going with me). I will definitely keep you updated on how she does.

03-15-2007, 07:59 AM	#9
TLC Slave to My Rug-Rats Donating Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Long Island Posts: 3,989	There is no 'real' way of knowing 'if' she is in pain or not, b/c dogs will try their best to hide pain. ...but if she is in Grade 4 LP - just knowing exactly what Grade 4 LP is, tells me that she is definatley feeling pain and by carrying her leg tells me she is in pain and something is feeling very discomforting. Please do not delay in seeing an Ortho Specialist. What ever damage that is done with LP can not be reveresed. Keep us updated. __________________ Nicole *"You Won't Change the World by Saving One Animal..BUT...You Will Change the World for that One"*