Preventive care, like having your dog fixed, can help to protect them from future complications and save you money down the road. Here, our vets at Marcello Veterinary Hospital discuss the reasons why you should have your dog spayed or neutered and what you can expect during surgery.
Why should you have your dog spayed or neutered?
Preventive care is a vital part of caring for your dog, regardless of their age. This includes scheduling your companion animal for veterinary surgery to be spayed or neutered. This decision becomes especially important if you plan to walk your dog on a leash or keep them in your garden or backyard.
This is because saying or neutering surgery helps to prevent behavioral and health-related issues from occurring or developing. But it doesn't end there. When you prevent these issues you also prevent the financial strain of treating your dog for serious complications down the road.
What is the ideal age to fix your dog?
Puppies are usually spayed or neutered when they are between five and nine months old. This procedure can also have many benefits for dogs who have already reached their adult years. It's best to consult your veterinarian to determine the appropriate time to get your dog spayed or neutered.
Benefits of Having Your Dog Spayed or Neutered
Thinking about bringing your pup in to be spayed or neutered? Here are some of the benefits:
Spayed Female Dogs
Shelters across the United States are filled beyond capacity. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) estimates that 3.3 million dogs are a part of the shelter system in America each year.
Health Benefits of Having Your Female Dog Spayed
Spaying your female dog before her first heat (the fertile part of their reproductive cycle) can reduce the risk of diseases such as uterine infections and breast tumors, which can lead to cancer.
Financial Benefits of Having Your Female Dog Spayed
One of the main benefits of spaying your female dog is that it can save you money. Although there's a fee for spaying, it's much cheaper than the expenses involved in taking care of a pregnant dog, calling a vet for the birth of puppies, and caring for newborns.
Neutered Male Dogs
As with spaying female dogs, when you neuter your male dog you help to reduce the population of unwanted dogs in shelters across the country.
Health Benefits of Having Your Male Dog Neutered
Neutering your dog can reduce the chance of them developing testicular cancer and lower the risk of prostate diseases, which can be serious. Neutering also prevents unwanted behaviors and conditions such as perineal tumors and hernias.
Behavioral Benefits of Having Your Male Dog Neutered
Neutering can control your dog's urge to wander and potentially decrease behaviors like mounting and aggression toward other dogs.
Deciding Not to Have Your Dog Fixed
Female Dogs
Many pet owners wonder if the benefits are actually worth bringing your dog in for surgery. When female dogs are not spayed, they enter heat. During this period, male dogs can be attracted to your dog for up to 18 days. This may result in unwelcome encounters with male dogs during walks or in your yard, and it can also lead to an unintended litter of puppies. All in all, you should find that the benefits of having your female dog spayed are well worth the cost and recovery period.
Male Dogs
As with female dogs, there are a number of reasons why you should consider having your male dog fixed. You can expect unneutered male dogs to exhibit several undesirable behaviors. These can include displaying territorial behavior, being overly protective of toys and people, showing aggression towards other dogs, and roaming, especially when searching for female dogs. When you combine this with the cost of potential health issues, neutering becomes the clear answer.
What should you expect from your dog's veterinary surgery in Louisiana?
Your veterinarian will give you detailed instructions before your pet's surgery. These instructions will include guidelines for restricting your pet's food and water before the scheduled procedure.
Once the surgery is done, your vet will provide you with instructions to help your dog recover comfortably. Depending on the timing of the procedure, your dog may also receive pain medication to take home.
In general, female dogs take longer to recover from spaying compared to male dogs after neutering. After a female dog is spayed, she cannot have puppies as she becomes sterile.
Please keep in mind that male dogs are not immediately sterile after neutering. It can take up to 6 weeks for them to be considered safely sterile.
Note: The advice provided in this post is intended for informational purposes and does not constitute medical advice regarding pets. For an accurate diagnosis of your pet's condition, please make an appointment with your vet.