Question re: Unspayed females

[nvnvgirl]

I may be going to see a female yorkie rescue in the next day or so and I've never had any dog other than my Max, who is a (neutered) male.

From what I've been told so far, this little girl is about 3 yrs old and has had at least 1 litter by C-section and is currently not spayed.

I'm embarrassed to say that I know nothing about female dogs and being in heat, so I'd like to know what to expect as far as that goes. I haven't spoken to the lady who has her about this yet so I don't know when she was last in heat (hopefully she will know).

I will be getting her spayed as soon as I can if she isn't spayed, so any advice regarding that would be welcome too. I think I feel ok about the aftercare, b/c I read the aftercare sheet, and I'm hoping it will be almost as uneventful as when Max was neutered (although I know it's more complicated for females and he was done when a puppy), so is there anything that might be more difficult b/c she's a little older?

I'm extremely nervous about this whole thing, and am not positive that I will get the dog, since she may have found a home for it in the last day or two, but the information will help me if I'm in the same situation again in the future. I appreciate anyone's comments!

[Skippy's Mom]

Congratulations on your maybe addition. I got our second and final yorkie in December. She is a female and not spayed yet. I should have had it done already but the vet said she is too small right now-around 2 pounds. I will be interested in what others say. Have fun with her- I hope you get her!

[Ellie May]

Ellie was spayed when she was 6 (about 3 months ago). I'm sure you know all about the procedure and all of that but if you have any specific questions I can answer them for you. I have no way of knowing if she would have recovered faster as a pup, but she did okay. She was back to herself within about 10 days. She was in a significant amount of pain but she had to go on a pain med that would be okay for her liver, so it wasn't the greatest...

[nvnvgirl]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

Ellie was spayed when she was 6 (about 3 months ago). I'm sure you know all about the procedure and all of that but if you have any specific questions I can answer them for you. I have no way of knowing if she would have recovered faster as a pup, but she did okay. She was back to herself within about 10 days. She was in a significant amount of pain but she had to go on a pain med that would be okay for her liver, so it wasn't the greatest...

Wow...10 days seems like a long time, but I guess it's really different when they're a little older. It seems like Max and his little sister were both running around a day or two later (even though I know they weren't supposed to be, it was impossible to keep them down!). It does help me a lot to know about the pain though b/c being an ICU nurse, I HATE to see anyone in pain . I am considering having her spayed at the SPCA low cost spay/neuter clinic (I'm on the auxiliary there, so I kind of feel like I should); do you have any opinion about that? The only thing that kind of bothered me is that they offer the pain med as an "option" at $12 extra . It makes me sad to think that some people might not opt to spend the extra money for pain med .

I'm hoping this little girl doesn't have any other health problems. Like I said, I'm so nervous about it.

OH....I know what I meant to ask too....if I don't get her spayed right away, will Max be crazy if she goes into heat? Or will he be ok b/c he's neutered?

[nvnvgirl]

Originally Posted by Skippy's Mom

Congratulations on your maybe addition. I got our second and final yorkie in December. She is a female and not spayed yet. I should have had it done already but the vet said she is too small right now-around 2 pounds. I will be interested in what others say. Have fun with her- I hope you get her!

Awww, thank you for such kind thoughts! I'm so nervous I'm almost sick to my stomach! I feel like I'm potentially adopting a new baby (well, I guess I am! ). I'm trying not to get my hopes up too much, but I sure wish the lady would call me . Can you tell me how old your babies are and how old your first one was when you got the second? I'm just so afraid that Max will feel sad, like we don't love him anymore .

[Ellie May]

It did take awhile for her to get back to normal but she was up and around the next day. Part of her "depression" was that she was wearing a onesie and hates clothes. She just lays around in them usually.

Max might be interested...
The only reason to get an older female spayed (healthwise) is pyometra. If this is your concern then I wouldn't wait...

I would not use a spay/neuter clinic. That is me though. I think the dog's vet should do the surgery. For instance, when Ellie was spayed the vet looked at her bladder to make sure it was okay (having problems lately). She wasn't asked do but that is what you get for going to someone who knows your dog. If you are talking about the safety of the surgery getting it done at a spay/neuter clinic I would ask the same questions I always ask:
Do they do preop bloodwork?
Does the dog have an IV?
Do they use the best anesthesia?
Are they left alone overnight?
Is the surgery done on a heated surface?
How is the dog monitored?

[nvnvgirl]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

It did take awhile for her to get back to normal but she was up and around the next day. Part of her "depression" was that she was wearing a onesie and hates clothes. She just lays around in them usually.

Max might be interested...
The only reason to get an older female spayed (healthwise) is pyometra. If this is your concern then I wouldn't wait...

I would not use a spay/neuter clinic. That is me though. I think the dog's vet should do the surgery. For instance, when Ellie was spayed the vet looked at her bladder to make sure it was okay (having problems lately). She wasn't asked do but that is what you get for going to someone who knows your dog. If you are talking about the safety of the surgery getting it done at a spay/neuter clinic I would ask the same questions I always ask:
Do they do preop bloodwork?
Does the dog have an IV?
Do they use the best anesthesia?
Are they left alone overnight?
Is the surgery done on a heated surface?
How is the dog monitored?

THANK YOU! That helps a LOT! I am pretty sure that they do all the spays and neuters early in the day and they go home that evening . I"m not positive about that, but when I was doing some volunteer work there the post surgical babies were just waiting to be picked up. I am not enamored with my vet and she wouldn't know this dog anyhow, and I know people who have had their pet neutered at this clinic and they were very pleased or I wouldn't even have thought of it. I have no idea where the dog is coming from, but I have a feeling it's from out of town. I would never let my dog have surgery and be left alone overnight regardless. The only thing that would stop me from having her spayed immediately would be if she was in heat now or if there's some other health issue that needs to be tended to first. I really do appreciate your input; I'm printing out the questions for when I need them!

[Ellie May]

And one more question for you list:
Are the vets experienced or are the vets interns who just graduated from school?