2nd dog again?

Fools Motto

Fools Motto

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After the very sad loss of my lovely old whippet x last weekend, i've been ''roughly looking''. For some it may be too soon, but I'm always open to rehome/rescue/pup if and when the right one just happens to come along.
Therefore i've registered on a lurcher rescue site. I had a lovely phone call back within 24 hrs. It got me thinking a bit more seriously.

Our remaining dog, is a springer bitch, now about 2.5 years old. She is a fit, healthy (when fed the right food!!) and obviously full of energy. She had her first and only season to date in June, and we were going to get her speyed (?) sept. However, with what unfortunately has happened with sad family circumstances, a few major bills and lack of finance, it just hasn't happened. Now, I think it's a bit late so will get through til the end of the year and then think again, and see what/where Rosie's cycle may be. (we are not breeding).

I only like having bitches, as I prefer them.

The rescue will not rehome a bitch to us, because Rosie isn't speyed. They tell me that she could become very aggressive due to her hormones. I've never thought along those lines before. However, they would home a dog as they ''won't fight over the top spot''?
Is this a common thing?

Anyway, now not sure about rescuing as I don't want fighting!! Equally, still don't want a dog. Am I just narrowing down my search to just puppies?
Anyone any ideas or suggestions? WWYD?
 
I'd suggest you sort out your current dogs veterinary needs before adding another expense to the list. The new dog or puppy will come with many additional expenses - if a major bill etc wipes out your ability to pay for a small operation for your current dog it is unlikeluy you are honestly in a position to afford a second.
 
Fools Motto said:
After the very sad loss of my lovely old whippet x last weekend, i've been ''roughly looking''. For some it may be too soon, but I'm always open to rehome/rescue/pup if and when the right one just happens to come along.
Therefore i've registered on a lurcher rescue site. I had a lovely phone call back within 24 hrs. It got me thinking a bit more seriously.

Our remaining dog, is a springer bitch, now about 2.5 years old. She is a fit, healthy (when fed the right food!!) and obviously full of energy. She had her first and only season to date in June, and we were going to get her speyed (?) sept. However, with what unfortunately has happened with sad family circumstances, a few major bills and lack of finance, it just hasn't happened. Now, I think it's a bit late so will get through til the end of the year and then think again, and see what/where Rosie's cycle may be. (we are not breeding).

I only like having bitches, as I prefer them.

The rescue will not rehome a bitch to us, because Rosie isn't speyed. They tell me that she could become very aggressive due to her hormones. I've never thought along those lines before. However, they would home a dog as they ''won't fight over the top spot''?
Is this a common thing?

Anyway, now not sure about rescuing as I don't want fighting!! Equally, still don't want a dog. Am I just narrowing down my search to just puppies?
Anyone any ideas or suggestions? WWYD?
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I know that various organisations do think like that but IME, it's utter rubbish. We prefer to have bitches and have had up to 7 non-spayed bitches, of various breeds, Labs, JRTs, Rotttweiler, Border Collie and Labxs (unrelated, not our breeding) living here at one time, with no fighting, at all. We currently have litter-sister Rotties, who are the very best of friends. I do wish that rescue societies wouldn't limit their animals chance of a good home by putting so many silly limits on new homes.
 
It is not a silly limit- owners who don't spay their bitches (albeit OP has a reason, but tbh could have it done now so long as bitch not showing any signs of season) are generally not overly responsible as it is such a well known thing to do now. Why rehome a dog and find that the seemingly nice person has decided to breed it? Or that the dog comes back because the other bitch has come into season and the dynamics have changed and the rescue dog has had to come back into rescue?
 
I actually agree with ST here, you are only a month late spaying, if your vet is happy and you can afford it why not go ahead. If you can't afford it, can you afford a pup?
Mind you, it is nonsensical that they would rehome a male dog, presumably with balls to your entire bitches house?
 
SusieT said:
It is not a silly limit- owners who don't spay their bitches (albeit OP has a reason, but tbh could have it done now so long as bitch not showing any signs of season) are generally not overly responsible as it is such a well known thing to do now. Why rehome a dog and find that the seemingly nice person has decided to breed it? Or that the dog comes back because the other bitch has come into season and the dynamics have changed and the rescue dog has had to come back into rescue?
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I do hope that you are not calling me irresponsible! We make a conscious decision NOT to spay in order to avoid all the possible side-effects, including those associated with a GA. We have never had an unwanted (or any other) litter, because we are extremely responsible about where we take our bitches when they are in season. The rescue society should spay its own bitches if it wants them spayed - and then it is unlikely that the new one would be 'top dog'. Their argument doesn't make sense, anyway, if they want both bitches to be spayed.
 
I can see where you are coming from SusieT. In the ideal world, our bitch would have been speyed in the last month/8 weeks. With funeral costs and legal fees over the summer, obviously totally unexpected I honestly didn't have anything extra. The dog is insured so if anything out of the ordinary happened I'd hope that it would be covered, but speying isn't out of the ordinary! Now, she could be speyed, but I ''think'' Its too late... saying that of course, she might not have a season for a year due to the fact she had her first and only so late.
Do vets scan to see if it's appropriate to spey?
 
apart from anything else, I was always told that spaying a bitch was more likely to make them more aggressive if they were that way inclined? or is that just a myth. have only had two bitches, both rescues and both spayed-prefer males myself.

I don't think it too soon from a bereavement POV FM, I always think its best to do it sooner than later.But you've had a lot of expense, might be better to wait a while-regroup and wait until after the dreaded holidays. housetraining-either of pup or remedially is no fun in the winter either!
 
MotherOfChickens said:
apart from anything else, I was always told that spaying a bitch was more likely to make them more aggressive if they were that way inclined? or is that just a myth. have only had two bitches, both rescues and both spayed-prefer males myself.

I don't think it too soon from a bereavement POV FM, I always think its best to do it sooner than later.But you've had a lot of expense, might be better to wait a while-regroup and wait until after the dreaded holidays. housetraining-either of pup or remedially is no fun in the winter either!
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I have heard that too.
 
yes- I am including you PS in that irresponsible category- there is a 25% risk of an unspayed bitch getting pyometra, a far increased risk of mammary cancer. The risk of spaying is far far lower than that. It is a no brainer to spay female dogs health wise never mind avoiding unwanted pregnancies- rescuers are fed up hearing ' she just slipped out for a moment' or 'I was careful'!
 
FM- no but they will advise- ring and ask them when would be best to spay as most vets have slight differences in requirements.. Glad to hear she is insured - I'd sort out her spay then worry about another dog
 
The thing with bitches is, if they get along its fine, if they dont its all out war. Male dogs will have a spat and get over it, bitches with fight with the intention of hurting each other if it comes to that point, so I can kinda see where they are coming from.

Generally the lurcher/whippet rehomer are much more sensible about it all, so if you want to rehome then you will find something suitable. I can point you in the direction of a few if you get stuck.
 
SusieT said:
yes- I am including you PS in that irresponsible category- there is a 25% risk of an unspayed bitch getting pyometra, a far increased risk of mammary cancer. The risk of spaying is far far lower than that. It is a no brainer to spay female dogs health wise never mind avoiding unwanted pregnancies- rescuers are fed up hearing ' she just slipped out for a moment' or 'I was careful'!
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Well you are entitled to your own opinion but according to my vet, the thinking on mammary tumours has changed. Rottweilers are specifically advised NOT to spay before the age of 2 because of the increased risk of splenetic tumours and I can assure you that our bitches do NOT 'just slip out'. We are set up especially to avoid the possibility, as we are in sheep country. And if you had ever seen a spayed bitch with hormone related alopecia, you might not be quite so quick to recommend wholesale spaying.
 
Alopecia won't kill a dog.It's not common. Pyometra will. Pyometra is common. You can delay spaying until 2, but there is no reason to delay after that.
 
In the years when we never spayed anything no one in my whole extended, multiple dog owning family ever had an unwanted pregnancy. (Dog wise anyway, cannot speak for humna!). Pregnancy is not a disease. They also never had a pyo or a mammary tumour.
We spay but only because the dogs live in the house and I can't be doing with the mess, also our shooting season is only 3 months long and to miss possibly a third of that would be pretty gutting. I think it is entirely FM's decision if and when she wants to spay.
I only agreed with ST as I can see the rescues point with rehoming an adult bitch to a home with another adult bitch with fluctuationg hormones.
 
It’s a surprise to me that so many of you think bitches are aggressive especially if spayed. I have had bitches all my life, mostly three or four, introduced at different times, some puppies , some Rescue. All are spayed after two or occasionally three seasons. Never a cross word.
 
Chiffy - ours never fight either, it rather depends on household management. I know it is frowned uopn nowadays as a theory but I think that as my OH & I are top dog and dictate what goes on in the house they have no need to worry about getting there themselves.
I did have a dog aggreesive bitch in Oz but she was a staffy x and as a breed they do tend to be more tricky (again, IMO)..
 
I would spay now if vet is happy to do so or asap unless you aren't going to do it at all, then she will have a quiet recovery on her own. There will be even more dogs needing new homes in the new year, only reason I would get another before spaying would be if Rosie is struggling to come to terms with being the only dog!
 
Clodagh, we definitely think along the same lines. I live alone now with my dog family and even when I had a husband , he was away in the week, so it’s just me and my ‘dog children’! I am definitely in charge, they look to me for leadership and they all get on perfectly. I hadn’t thought of it like that before though!
 
We all have different experiences. My two spayed bitches couldn’t be any less aggressive. I don’t know of one non-spayed bitch that hasn’t been done as an emergency because of pyo. MIL has just lost hers to a tumour. For that reason there wasn’t a chance I wouldn’t have had mine done.

OP- I think that’s a pretty ridiculous rule for the rescue. Dogs will either get on or not!
 
FM, I'm sorry to say but I tend to agree that you're not in a financial position to take on a new dog (by which I mean dog or bitch, spayed or otherwise!) right now.

Rescues have all sorts of rules, which often lead to dogs they would otherwise help being put down (this includes no-kill rescues as obviously they could take in more if they also rehomed more and that leads to those not taken in being PTS elsewhere). But the one thing I've never seen them check directly is the potential home's ability to care for the animal financially. You may normally be in that state but, if you took something on and found it had an allergy or similar and needed expensive food for example you could easily run up costs that equate to the money you didn't have for spaying your bitch, which it sounds like you could do without just at present.

Incidentally you'll probably find most 'rehoming fees' cost more than the op for your bitch anyway...
 
Sorry for your recent loss.

I would probably get your current bitch spayed now if that was your plan anyway (it shouldn't be too late if you only missed by a month?) and once she has recovered then look at finances and decide whether it is the right time to introduce a new bitch.

I do think rescues are sometimes a little too rigid in their rules, but I can also see why they might think two bitches are more at risk of living happily together than one of each sex (but not if your bitch is unspayed and the potential rescue dog is entire!!) as bitches tend to fight continuously if they decide they don't like one another, whereas dogs tend not to hold a grudge. There are plenty of households living with multiple bitches (or dogs) that get on famously though, so surely it should be decided on a case by case basis.
 
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