To Save the Day, Get Her Spayed!

Most people who adopt animals from the humane society take their pets home already spayed or neutered. Or if they adopt from a breeder or take home that cute puppy in the box outside the grocery store, most people will have them “fixed” by their veterinarian.

Does anybody stop to question why? Why do we surgically remove the uterus and ovaries from our female pets? What are the risks of leaving the animal “intact”?

 There are families who want their kids to experience raising a litter of puppies or kittens, want them to see a live birth. Many of these people don’t realize the risks of giving birth and the cost associated with raising a litter. If your dog has trouble giving birth a cesarean section can cost anywhere from $1500 to $2000 and there is the risk of losing both the mom and all the babies. Not to mention the cost of vaccinating and deworming all the puppies (a minimum of $300 per puppy, if everyone is healthy). And then what happens when you can’t find people to purchase or even adopt the puppies for free? Four million animals are euthanized (put to sleep) in humane societies every year because people don’t want them. Having a litter of unwanted puppies only contributes to that number.

Besides the economic reasons and risk of an un-wanted litter, there are several medical reasons why it is a smart move to have your bitch spayed as a puppy. First of all, female dogs are more prone to getting mammary tumors (breast cancer) just as female humans are. Unfortunately for dogs, 50% of these tumors have are malignant and aggressive. Spaying a dog before her first heat cycle reduces the chance of mammary cancer to half of a percent. After a female dog has 2 heat cycles, her risk jumps up to 26%. Once a female dog has reached 2.5 years of age, spaying no longer reduces her chance of having a mammary tumor, but does reduce the risk of a pyometra.

Pyometra is a life-threatening infection of the uterus that can occur in any non-spayed adult animal. This infection is likened to acute appendicitis in humans: it is an emergency and the risk of a fatal outcome is high if not addresses immediately.

This disease process usually occurs in middle-aged dogs and rarely occurs in younger animals. The time of onset usually coincides with a recent heat cycle (about 1-2 months after coming into heat) and the signs of this disease can be vague. Vomiting, increased thirst, lethargy, poor appetite, and abdominal enlargement are often the first signs. If the cervix is open, they may have a pus-like, foul smelling vaginal discharge. If the cervix is closed and the pus cannot drain, the uterus distends with pus and the animal progresses into shock with a rapid pulse, low blood pressure and a high fever. As the uterus distends, it risks rupturing and spilling pus into the abdomen causing infectious peritonitis.

So how does one find out if their intact female has a pyometra or is vomiting for other reasons? The first diagnostic is a physical exam by a veterinarian. The doctor may then decide to do bloodwork and abdominal radiographs or even ultrasound the abdomen.

If the doctor does indeed think your animal has a pyometra, the decision to take to surgery must be made rapidly. The most successful outcome for this disease is to have an emergency ovariohysterectomy (spay) performed immediately. Some breeders may not want their prized show female spayed; these animals can sometimes be treated with drugs to expel the pus, however there is a risk of the uterus rupturing and the rate of recurrence is 70%. Bitches that have been treated for pyometra often have trouble with fertility afterwards.

Back to Dr. Morrow