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Spaying before or after first heat?

Porcheesy

Well-Known Member
My little girl is 3.5 months... I was told to spay her at 6 months or after firzt heat, so that it does not effect her growth too much?! Can anybody weight in on this?!
 

Bailey's Mom

Super Moderator
Super Moderator
Porcheesy...it is unwise to spay a large breed dog before she is 18 to 24 months old. This means, as a result, that you will go through three or four heats, and it can be a big burden, BUT, can you afford the health consequences of spaying her early? AND, there are consequences for her, her bones haven't finished growing and the incidence of bone-related medical issues is HUGE!

SAVE YOURSELF THE POTENTIAL PROBLEMS, Save Your Pup The Pain and Arthritis, AND, Personally, I believe that if you remove her hormones early, her mental development will suffer. Now, I don't know how many people will back me up on the mental development, but, again, PERSONALLY, I HOLD THIS OPINION.

Most people here will warn you to WAIT. Wait the 18 to 24 months and let her bones, hips, knees, finish growing and becoming strong, and then at 24 months, have her spayed a month before or a month after her heat. Again, letting the hormones settle down before a spay procedure.

And, I know, your Vet will be telling you all sorts of nonsense about doing it early to prevent cancer, etc., BUT, it's a lie.

Large Breed Dogs Need To Grow Into Their Bones!

Best of luck!
 

Nik

Well-Known Member
I want to add quickly to Bailey's Mom's comment above. Everything she says about letting large dog breeds finish growing before fixing them is true.

However, things can get a little more complicated with female dogs because Pyo is something you have to worry about with female dogs. So with a male dog I would always say wait until 18 months minimum. With a female dog you have to balance out the growth issues with the threat of Pyo. If you are lucky your dog won't go through their first heat until they are at least one year. I don't know how to tell you how to make the decision as to when to spay a large breed female dog other than to give her as long as you absolutely can so she can grow as much as possible.

We spayed Kahlua after her first heat but we were lucky that didn't happen until after she was a year old. She also is a mixed breed and not as large as any pure mastiff would be.
 

DennasMom

Well-Known Member
You can also look into the option for an ovary-sparing spay if you need to have her sterile before she's done growing.
I'm not sure on the relative costs... but it would be worth it to let her keep her growth hormones if at all possible.

We had to spay Denna before the recommended 18-month mark... and she's since suffered a CCL tear (at ~5 yrs old)... not sure how much is related to the early removal of growth hormones, but there are studies that show a pretty strong link. If you can do it, Wait!