Spaying an older dog ...?

Well, out of the 10 Dobes I've had, 3 were spayed at 7, one was spayed at 6, and the other females were younger. (around 2, except for my current 1 year old b*tch who is still intact) The only difference I personally saw was that it was hard for them to get out of the car when bringing them home........(lol) although they had NO problem getting on the sofa. One thing I will tell you the truth about....(actually two things). Since she's had litters, she's probably a bit saggy and there isn't as much air in *that area* that helps with the healing, so there may be a bit of chaffing to the area. If it's looks a little pink, dab on Gold Bond Powder and that really helps. The other thing that a Vet will rarely tell you, as they just don't know the breed, is that Dobes are NOTORIOUS for spay incontinence. I can almost promise you that she will have urinary incontinence after being spayed. That is easily treated with a medication called Proin or DES. The condition is lifelong, so therefore she will need to take pills for the rest of her life. If that doesn't bother you, go for it. In all honesty, this is the only reason why I haven't spayed my 1 year old yet. I'm quite certain of the incontinence, and I KNOW I can deal with the heat cycles without her becoming pregnant. (she is NOT breeding quality) The downfall of that is the risk of Pyometra, which for now, I'm willing to take.

I took in a 7 year old Rottie that had never had a litter or had been bred, but was intact.

She will do great. Make sure your vet includes pain meds in his spay price if not opt for a pain patch for your dog to make the recovery easier.

My Rough Collie is going to be 7 this year and I will probably go ahead and spay her. I do not expect there to be any problems with her recovery.

ADD: The "it depends" is a perfect CYA answer from a vet, this is because they know if they tell the client it will go great it will turn to poop.

You have already determined that her lab work is good and she is a good candidate to sail through the surgery.

Spay is a MAJOR surgery and with that can always be complications.

However the odds are in your favor that everything will go great.

Good luck.

I have had four Dobermans, they really are incredible dogs.

I would go ahead and do it. I've had older dogs spayed and they did fine. Plus,if you don't have her spayed,she could develop a pyometra when she is older,and it would be far more dangerous to do an emergency spay on an old dog that is also seriously ill with pyo.

My dogs all did fine.The oldest one was 6 or 7, a Lab/Irish setter mix, and she was developing a pyometra when I had her spayed,which I did not know until after the surgery when my vet told me. She lived to be 17. She died from breast cancer,though,which could have been prevented had I had her spayed when she was 6 months old.

Bottom line is,if the dog is now in good health,have her spayed so you won't have to worry down the road about potential problems from her not being spayed.

I would go ahead and spay her. the risks of cancers and/or pyometria are far greater than surgery. Since she's a Dobie, make sure the vet tested for Von Wildebrand's (sp?). This could cause complications if unknown prior to surgery. As far as incontinance, I've used a product called "Leaks No More' for years with my girls. It works wonderfylly and is natural so you're not going to have to worry about side effects like you do with drugs like Proin.

Working in rescue we have spayed dogs of all ages. We only opt out of spay after 12 years of age. Our last spay was a 9 yr old pit mix. she went in on a Thursday came back to rescue on Friday and had to be kept in a smaller pen by sunday because she wanted to run and play like she always did. She had no idea she was even done. Of the dozen or so senior spays I have been involved with only one took more than 3 days to be back to their normal self. I always opt for pain meds on my females.

i will you ought to be as succinct as achieveable. there's a super form of controversy with reference to the superb age to have your canines spayed. many human beings p.c. to spay on the age of six months as then the canines won't run the possibility of having bred in it fairly is first warmth (season). Others have faith that a canines desires to attain complete adulthood ( 3 years) earlier spaying. Their philosophy being that the canines desires the hormones cutting-edge to realize complete growth ( actual adulthood). the female could be spayed as much as overdue in life despite if it somewhat is achieved via an invaluable veterinarian and proper pre:op blood paintings and so on. accomplished. I in simple terms rescued a 9 twelve months old Labrador that became no longer yet spayed and she or he got here by way of the surgical operation with flying hues. no be counted what the surgical operation,( human or animal,) all surgical operation incorporates the factor to danger. The length of time the canines undergoes surgical operation relies upon upon it fairly is length , actual subject and so on. it may be ultimate to ask the veterinarian that question. The final 3 canines I rescued and spayed have been accepted to flow domicile via 5pm an analogous day as surgical operation. wish this archives. has helped in some way

Your girl should be fine but do opt for the pain relief. She'll need a nice warm comfortable bed for 24 hours but you'll be suprised how quick she'll be up and about.

I spay and neuter all my retired show stock before retirement homing them and most are over 6 years old.

We spayed our older dog and the younger one and there was no difference in the healing time. Both came out good and are just as healthy as before. No changes other than no cycle.

What do you expect your vet to say - she's not a fortuneteller! Typically, an older female will be sore for the better part of a week. If the sutures are not disturbed and heal without complication, they can be removed in 10-14 days, by which time she will be feeling much better. Pretty much the same for women undergoing hysterectomies - though 6-8 weeks is the predicted recuperative period.

But if there are complications with wound healing, recovery time can triple - as it did for me.