Theres something so special about female dogs. They can form a wonderful bond with their humans and are wonderful family members and loyal companions. However, you’ll have to make a big choice when you bring home a female dog: whether to spay or neuter your pet. When weighing the benefits and drawbacks of spaying a dog, take your time and be sure to take into account how the procedure will affect your dog.
The only surefire way to prevent your dog from becoming pregnant is to spay her. It can take a lot of time to care for a pregnant dog at home, and you’ll incur a lot of vet expenses both during the pregnancy and when the puppies are first born. Additionally, if anything goes wrong during your dog’s delivery, you’ll need to rush her to the hospital for an urgent medical checkup and possibly surgery, both of which can be very expensive.
Due to the overpopulation of animals in shelters, spaying your dog enables you to stop them from producing more puppies. Since spayed dogs are unable to conceive puppies, your dog can live her entire life without ever giving birth.
Some female dogs will stray when they are in heat in search of a mate. Although this can be harmful to your dog, stopping her heat cycle by spaying can lessen or even stop her urge to stray and visit other dogs.
If your female dog is in heat, you may have noticed that she frequently urinates. This is a natural behavior designed to attract male dogs. Your dog’s frequent urination and bloody discharge will stop after being spayed as her heat cycles pass. This can help to save your furniture, rugs, and sanity.
If you’re weighing the benefits and drawbacks of spaying your dog, lowering her risk of cancer may be the best justification. Female dogs frequently have fewer life-threatening cancers like mammary tumors, ovarian cancer, uterine cancer, and cervical tumors, according to Canine Journal.
There are additional health benefits to spaying. Pyometra and perineal fistulas are less common in female dogs that have undergone spaying. Pyometra, a potentially fatal uterine bacterial infection, affects roughly 10% of all unspayed dogs, according to Anasazi Animal Clinic, before they turn ten years old. Spaying your dog reduces those chances.
Spaying could result in potential savings on your medical expenses and a healthier dog overall. Additionally, you’ll be increasing your dog’s chances of living a long life free of these serious health problems.
After a female dog is spayed, Anasazi Animal Clinic claims that its aggression may change. Female dogs may become less hostile to other dogs and people after being spayed. Spaying can be a practical way to stop this behavior because unspayed female dogs will occasionally fight to get a male dog’s attention.
Additionally, spaying eliminates hormone-driven aggression or guarding behavior. Unspayed female dogs who have false pregnancies frequently adopt objects, like toys, and treat them as puppies, which can make them retaliate violently if approached.
The many advantages of spaying your dog include its ability to control behavior, which makes it possible for your dog and your entire family to live together more peacefully.
Changes In Dog Behavior After Spay Surgery
Between the ages of six and twelve months, dogs reach sexual maturity. Estrus, or “heat,” occurs when female dogs produce a surge of the hormone estrogen and start their reproductive cycle. “A female dog will be open to mating with males when she is in heat.” Most dogs experience two heat cycles per year.
Your dog’s working capacity, friendliness, playfulness, or personality won’t be impacted by spaying her. However, after spaying, female dogs may exhibit altered behaviors related to the heat cycle. Following your dog’s spaying, you might notice a decrease in the following behaviors:
Female dogs frequently attempt to leave the house in search of males, putting them at risk of becoming lost and suffering injuries on roads, sometimes fatal ones. If you spay your dog, it will lessen or end her desire to roam while she is in heat. When your dog is in heat, you must keep her inside or in a yard that won’t allow her to escape in order to prevent escapes and pregnancy.
When in heat, females frequently urinate so that the scent will attract male dogs. This could result in urine stains on your carpet and furniture, as well as a line-up of male neighborhood dogs at your door. Frequent urination and bloody discharge, both of which may happen when your dog is in heat, will be eliminated by spaying her.
In a female dog, each heat cycle results in significant hormonal changes. Some people experience ovulation-related irritability, nervousness, and even pain. Female dogs who have undergone spaying may exhibit more consistent behavior because they don’t go through these hormonal changes after the procedure.
Unspayed females will occasionally engage in combat to compete for a male dog’s attention. Your dog will probably be less aggressive toward people and other dogs after having the procedure because spaying your dog reduces any aggressive behavior patterns.
When people or other animals try to approach or touch their puppies, female dogs will occasionally act aggressively. Some dogs will have “false pregnancies” or “pseudopregnancies” if they don’t become pregnant during a heat cycle. Females who are pregnant erroneously frequently “adopt” objects and treat them as if they were real puppies, fiercely protecting them.
It’s best to spay your dog before she reaches sexual maturity in order to stop the emergence of these behaviors. She won’t be as likely to form bad habits related to her heat this way. These behaviors may continue even after your dog has been spayed if they have been present for months or years.
Even if your dog is older, spaying her is still important. Even if spaying doesn’t completely stop her problematic behaviors, you may notice that they appear less frequently afterward, and it will still be good for her physical health.
If your dog still has habits you dislike after spaying, it’s best to seek professional advice, especially if your dog is particularly aggressive. Discuss your dog’s aggression with your vet to determine if the behavioral issues stem from a treatable medical condition or if your dog needs professional training.
Health Benefits of Spaying a Female Dog
Your dog may benefit from spay surgery in terms of their health and behavioral issues. Spaying your dog has significant health advantages, including the prevention of cancer, infection, and disease.
Female dogs who are spayed before their first estrus or heat cycle have a lower risk of developing mammary cancer, which is common in female dogs who are not spayed. If a female waits until after her second heat cycle to have spay surgery, her chances of getting this cancer rise, but they are still lower than the risk for females who are not spayed. It’s not too late if your dog has already had her first period. Her risk of developing cancerous mammary tumors will still be lowered by spaying.
Hormonal changes in the reproductive tract can sometimes cause a dangerous and potentially fatal infection of the uterus called pyometra. Infections usually occur in older females about seven to eight years of age. Approximately 25% of all unspayed females will suffer from pyometra before the age of ten. Having your dog spayed greatly reduces the possibility that she’ll contract this infection.
If you experience any of the following pyometra symptoms, get in touch with us:
Ovarian and uterine tumors in dogs are uncommon, but some breeds may be genetically predisposed to them. Older female dogs also have an increased risk. The risk of ovarian or uterine cancer in your dog is completely eliminated by spaying her.
Why Spay a Dog? Desirable Female Dog Behavior Change After Spaying
Most of the time, people spay their dogs because they think it will be beneficial. Female dogs who have been spayed are less likely to be aggressive and are also less likely to become pregnant. This lessens the likelihood of fights and prevents unintended pregnancy
Some professionals believe that reduced aggression helps to make dogs more affectionate, ultimately turning them into better companions. At the very least, this makes it easier for them to befriend other dogs.
Unspayed dogs typically have higher hormone levels than spayed dogs. They may become more challenging to socialize with and train due to this. The earlier a dog is spayed, the better it is for reducing aggression issues.
FAQ
Do dogs personality change after spay?
Generally speaking, having your pet spayed or neutered won’t affect its personality. If there are any behavioral effects, they typically tend to be beneficial (reducing undesirable behavior). The level of affection or playfulness of your pet won’t change after spaying or neutering. For females, there is typically no change at all.
Do dogs become more affectionate after spay?
After being spayed or neutered, many pet owners notice that their dogs and cats are more affectionate. Spaying and neutering your dog or cat will benefit you as a pet owner in a variety of ways. Generally speaking, spayed or neutered dogs and cats are happier.
What is best age to spay a female dog?
We advise waiting until your dog is at least 6 months old, and likely even older for larger dogs, before spaying your female dog. However, there is not much of a difference between lap dogs and larger dogs in terms of the advantages.
What happens to a female dog when spayed?
During surgical sterilization, a veterinarian removes certain reproductive organs. Ovariohysterectomy, also known as the standard “spay,” involves removing the uterus, fallopian tubes, and ovaries from a female dog or cat. This prevents her from reproducing and ends her heat cycle and behavior associated with the breeding instinct.