Got the heebie-jeebies about having our dog spayed. Help put my mind at rest!

Red30563

Red30563

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Our border terrier Katy is booked in to be spayed next Tuesday.

We did book her in last year but our other dog died unexpectedly 2 days before Katy's op. We were in such shock and so heart-broken we cancelled it - we couldn't bear to have the risk and then have her poorly while she healed up so close to Dougal's death.

So now Katy's mid-way between seasons again so the time is right to have her done. I know it's a 'routine' op (albeit with the slight risk with anaesthetic). She is 2 and a half and we've had a her a year or so. I know it's the right thing to do but I feel so anxious about it.

I have one or two very unhelpful friends who say I should have had a litter from her. :rolleyes: Yes, she is a wonderful example of the breed with a posh pedigree and a super temperament, and I can't pretend I wasn't tempted for a short while.

But partly due to reading the sage advice on here, about costs and the knowledge/experience required to breed successfully, hubby and I decided that there were more than enough puppies being born into the world, without us adding to them!

So, the op is booked. I am thinking will it go without complications? Will we be alright looking after her, post-op? What if it changes her wonderful personality? Will she put on weight?

I've never had a female dog before, so have no experience of all this! (Chopping off male bits is so much easier! :D) Please someone put my mind at ease!

Here is the little lady herself:
 
She'll be just fine. Dinks (aka Daisy) didn't struggle with weight gain after she was spayed . . . and her recovery was easy peasy.

Best of luck.

P
 
I think Betsy (My little border) was about 18 months - 2 years when we had her done.

I was beside myself with worry before her op, she is like our baby :o

She was absolutely fine, felt very sorry for herself for 2 days and HATED wearing the cone of shame. She didnt bother her stitches so we only put it on when we had to go out which perked her up a bit. She did decide her manky toy had to go EVERYWHERE with her when she was feeling poorly, which was very cute.

Honestly by day 3 she was back to her usual idiotic self. She hasnt gained any weight since :)
 
WOW, what a beauty! No one can tell you if things will go without a hitch - or they'd be getting the lottery win each week. But from my experiences we have had no problems - big dog and small dog and different ages. If you are concerned then get the pre-anaesthetic blood test done to make sure she is well, but that's an added expence. All ours were fine afterwards if not a little sore and we had no problems with wee-leeks or the like that some will tell you happen. The 'cone of shame' (great expression) can be substituted with a rolled up towel which will stop her getting at her stitches and give the backs of your legs a hope!
All anaesthetics carry risks - dogs, humans, horses etc but better for her to be 'done' since it greatly reduces the risks of mammary cancers and other female tumours I believe. Best of luck - she's lovely.
 
I had my old lab bitch done at 18 months and she was absolutely fine. She had the shakes a little bit after she came home but just the anaesthetic wearing off. She was fine after a day or so. That was some years ago, so I would think that anaesthetics are even safer now that they were. Your dog is a real cutie, good luck.
 
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She is sooooo cute!!

Spats are quite invasive surgery and when you pick them up they seem so dopey and feeling sorry for themselves. They usually perk up the next day so don't worry, just make sure you give her lots of cuddles :) they tend to bounce back quickly x
 
Just had one of my bitches spayed (4 years), I was so worried about it, my poor family had to put up with me biting their heads off :rolleyes:

She came through the operation fine, didn't have to wear a cone of shame because she is a model patient :) It hasn't all been plain sailing as she had a reaction to the stitches, what a princess :p so had to go on antibiotics and I had to apply gel twice a day - so she was amazing in that she didn't lick or dig at the area :cool: You can cut up a t-shirt or get a doggy jumper for them to wear if you don't want to use a cone.

She had her stitches out today, yay :D

Yes it is a routine operation, but quite intrusive, so be prepared. With my girl, when she was spayed her uterus was lumpy and looking like it could be mutating, so I am so glad that I decided to do it. It is far more risky to have a litter than it is to have them spayed. Best of luck :)
 
She is the right age, the right time after her season and I presume the vet has done the usual pre op checks. She will be fine. Post op you can give her arnica to reduce bruising and milk thistle to help her get rid of anaesthetic
 
I have had bitches done much older and they have been fine. Evie was done last November at 4.5 years. She was a bit miserable and sore for 24 hours and then the only problem I had was keeping her quiet until the stitches came out. She certainly hasn't gained weight since, in fact I have recently increased her food as she was looking a bit lean.
 
Nonny, my whippet girl was spayed 3 weeks away. She had no pain relief as she was in no great pain, and on pain relief she charged around the house like a lunatic. She was back to her normal self within 24 hours and she had her dew claws removed at the same time. She never bothered with her stitches, and honestly apart from the scar you would never know she had been operated on.
 
I am going to truthfull and say I have bitches in here on a constant basis post op , i can have up to 4 in a week, never had an issue post op, never use hoods as I find its the dogs (castrations) thats are worst for licking at the empty sacks:p probably due to the short prickely hair that could not be shaved right o the core and causing irritation post op, bitches rarely bother their op sites, I have a few hours of groginess and leave them to sleep (no fussing and the likes of from me):p then it's business as usual the next day, I just had a rescue spayed 7 days ago and send her to her home on day 7, the op site is minute even in the big dogs, they are nipped tight literally days later like there was not even an incision. (that could be our fab vet mind you);)
Obs all my own bitches are done, I have 5 now but have had some amount of bitches in my young life;):D and they where all spayed (no issues)

You will naturally worry:)
 
Thank you so much, everyone! It's so reassuring to hear so many trouble-free experiences.

I am going to try and stop fretting now! I'll let you know how Katy gets on.
 
I had my labs speyed a couple of months ago. Ages, 8 and 6yrs. Absolutely no problem except to stop them galloping about and leaping all over the place for the first 10 days as recommended by the vet. I resorted to taking them in the garden separately on a lead, bit of a pain but both fully recovered.
 
Well, the deed is done.

The patient is home and very sleepy but all went well.

Thank you for all your kind words! I can't pretend I wasn't fretting about her all day, until the vet called and said everything was OK! Just hoping her recovery goes smoothly too. :)
 
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