Is spaying necessary?

[jinhopark]

A friend of ours who has a 3lbs female yorkie who is almost 2 has yet to spay her. Her logic was that since she never went into heat and there are no males in her life our friend really never. I always had the Bob Barker approach and thought that (other than responsible breeders) all dogs should be spayed or neutured. What do you guys think? Is she being respectful of the dog or just irresponsible?

[DvlshAngel985]

Irresponsible. Her pup may have gone into heat, but has kept herself clean, or hides it well. Or, due to whatever reason may just be maturing slowly. She's obviously to small to breed, and if their are no real health concerns that keep your friend from spaying, the procedure should be done.

[Ellie May]

There are good reasons to spay and neuter and good reasons not to spay and neuter. I would not label somebody as irresponsible just because their dog isn't spayed because they may have a very good reason (or just not understand).

If she was having puppies and those puppies were being sent to a shelter, that isn't right (IMO). But if she feels like medically this is a good choice for her), then that is fine too. That comes with a ton of responsibility though.

There are both benefits and risks to spaying. Personally I'm not comfortable with the possible consequences of skipping it, but everybody has to make this decision for their pups.

She probably went into heat without the owner knowing (pretty easy for Yorkies because they don't really bleed much) or there could be a hormonal problem (which is all the more reason to spay).

[xoxodoglover89]

I think it's personal preference. Personally, I think all dogs should be spayed/neutered but I'm not going to call someone irresponsible for not getting it done. People have to do what they think is best for their dogs. In the long run, I myself feel that spayed is better for the dog health wise especially if you arn't breeding.

[ChibiLuv]

It is a health risk to not spay, dogs can get pyometras wich are life threatning infections of the uterus. I have seen several dogs die from this complication. Also false pregnancies can cause pain, swelling and diffrent health complications. It is better for the health of the dog to spay. Listen to Bob Barker!

[ArmaniMan]

I have researched the pros and cons of spaying and I felt it was healthier in the long run to spay mine. However, if someone has researched thoroughly and chooses not to I can respect that and do not feel they are irresponsible- especially if they take all necessary precautions to insure that there are never little puppies.

[DvlshAngel985]

Originally Posted by ArmaniMan

I have researched the pros and cons of spaying and I felt it was healthier in the long run to spay mine. However, if someone has researched thoroughly and chooses not to I can respect that and do not feel they are irresponsible- especially if they take all necessary precautions to insure that there are never little puppies.

I might be extremely jaded because every single day I see dogs, intact, wandering the streets by my work, dodging cars, fornicating, and yes, even whelping. It is heart breaking, especially since I've almost ran over 3 and have heard how *annoying* it is to the dog owners that their bitch got pregnant again. Their words, not mine. What birth control where they using? Belly bands, diapers, pens, yet the dogs found a way to get to each other.

If it's a medical concern to have the dog go under for the spay/neuter surgery, then in my eyes, it's ok to skip it. I'd rather see a happy family enjoying their furry friend for many years to come. It will be hard since it will take extra vigilance on the owners part to continue to keep their pet happy healthy and puppy free.

[jinhopark]

For some reason I tried to edit my post, but the edit never took so I never finished the fragmented sentence...

Her logic was that since she never went into heat and since there are no males in her life our friend really never felt the need to put her yorkie under the knife and go through the pain of being spayed.

There are no medical conditions preventing the dog from having the procedure, other than the normal risk of having a tiny toy dog going under anesthesia and the possible complications of spaying. Our friend honestly believes there is no way her dog went into heat, so what would be the point. I'm not a vet, but at the same time neither is she, so neither of us can confirm whether the dog went into heat or not.

As you may have noticed I am slightly biased...and I am fine with whatever any owner decides, and I did not push my views at all to this friend. In life you have to agree to disagree and leave it alone, but I just wanted to know what the general concensus was on this. Thanks for all the replies so far!

[yorkiepuppie]

like crystal said, there are good reasons and bad reasons to spaying and not spaying your dog. i am not sure why your friends dog have not gone into heat. what is the medical reason for this? has she talked to her vet about this?

i have a small yorkie myself, and i had her spayed even though it was a hard decision for me to make. but just because i can protect her from mating and getting pregnant there is still always a possibility that someone can steal her, she can get lost, and someone would try to breed her in hope of making money off of it. i feel better knowing that would never happen because she is spayed, and i feel that she is more protected this way.

[jrsygal37]

We are going through this now. Mia is almost five months and weighs just two pounds. The size is not too much of an issue with me, as our vet did my Brooklyn who is also tiny at the same size, but she was a little older (I think 9 months). The issue we are having with Mia is she has been since we got her very sick. She is better now, but not completely. She has a cough that still is with her and with all she has gone through I am very afraid to have her put under even after she is cleared up. Just not sure what the right answer is. I myself have always believed that spaying or neutering is the right thing to do. It reduces the risk of cancer/s etc. Then we have the issue with hernias. She was diagnosed with Bilateral hernias. I've had her looked at again this week by two other vets, one a surgeon and they can't see them. Did they heal themselves? All very confusing. My question is is the risk of spaying her outweighing the good of doing it? Sometimes, spaying is not the best solution. I see it with very old dogs that come into rescue. They have them spay or neutered before being placed. I sometimes have to ask why now? Why at such an old age would you put them through it? I think sometimes judgment has to be used rather then protocol. E.

[LoveMyLittleOne]

http://www.naiaonline.org/pdfs/LongT...uterInDogs.pdf

[BrittanyVThomas]

Originally Posted by jrsygal37

We are going through this now. Mia is almost five months and weighs just two pounds. The size is not too much of an issue with me, as our vet did my Brooklyn who is also tiny at the same size, but she was a little older (I think 9 months). The issue we are having with Mia is she has been since we got her very sick. She is better now, but not completely. She has a cough that still is with her and with all she has gone through I am very afraid to have her put under even after she is cleared up. Just not sure what the right answer is. I myself have always believed that spaying or neutering is the right thing to do. It reduces the risk of cancer/s etc. Then we have the issue with hernias. She was diagnosed with Bilateral hernias. I've had her looked at again this week by two other vets, one a surgeon and they can't see them. Did they heal themselves? All very confusing. My question is is the risk of spaying her outweighing the good of doing it? Sometimes, spaying is not the best solution. I see it with very old dogs that come into rescue. They have them spay or neutered before being placed. I sometimes have to ask why now? Why at such an old age would you put them through it? I think sometimes judgment has to be used rather then protocol. E.

I have a Mia too! Although we pronounce it my-a. But anyway, I'm getting her spayed next month when she is 5 months. She'll probably weigh 3.5 pounds by then. I really didn't think spaying was such a big controversy because I've grown up with female dogs and they were all spayed. I think this forum has made me more paranoid than ever, which isn't a good thing! Luckily our Mia has been super healthy so far and is a little ball of fire. I hope your Mia gets better as she gets older! Oh and I think our Mia might be advancing more than usual because she has been humping her stuffed animal ruldoph

[lisaly]

Originally Posted by BrittanyVThomas

I have a Mia too! Although we pronounce it my-a. But anyway, I'm getting her spayed next month when she is 5 months. She'll probably weigh 3.5 pounds by then. I really didn't think spaying was such a big controversy because I've grown up with female dogs and they were all spayed. I think this forum has made me more paranoid than ever, which isn't a good thing! Luckily our Mia has been super healthy so far and is a little ball of fire. I hope your Mia gets better as she gets older! Oh and I think our Mia might be advancing more than usual because she has been humping her stuffed animal ruldoph

Please consider spaying your precious little girl when her growth plates close. I worried so much when one of my angels at the Rainbow Bridge went into heat earlier than expected (we were waiting for her teeth to come in and were hoping to have her extra baby teeth extracted at the same time). I thought we would have more health risks than her other two sisters who were spayed at eight months old. Ashley lived one month shy of seventeen, so I guess I worried for nothing. I've always spayed my girls, but I worry about the implications of the loss of hormones. Current research indicates that it is best to wait longer to have both males and females spayed. I hope your life with Mia is filled with health, love, laughter, and joy. The humping of her toy is probably more due to dominance than anything else. One of my little girls often humped things when she felt insecure and she was trying to show it she was boss.

http://caninecollege.biz/PUPPY_Spay-Neuter.pdf

[dottiesyrky]

Thank you for the references, well worth a read. Also in the
Feb issue of The Whole Dog Journal, mentioned in another earlier thread.
The bone issue seems to be a very serious problem from early neuter and one wonders if some of the bone issues with older dogs could be due to the early neuter/spay?
Certainly the subject needs airing as there are two sides to the issue.

[Nancy1999]

Originally Posted by dottiesyrky

Thank you for the references, well worth a read. Also in the
Feb issue of The Whole Dog Journal, mentioned in another earlier thread.
The bone issue seems to be a very serious problem from early neuter and one wonders if some of the bone issues with older dogs could be due to the early neuter/spay?
Certainly the subject needs airing as there are two sides to the issue.

I've heard that this is more important with large breeds. I think they really need to do more study to determine just how important it is. I do know that's it's really important that a three pound dog never get pregnant.