Advice please ! Canine menstruation

[Vivienne]

Our puppy is seven & a half months old and our dog walker has said the male dogs have started to take a little more interest in her.  There are no obvious signs she has started the cycle, but I am just looking for any advice on how we cope with this phase of her life.  I have nightmares that we will be besieged with male dogs on the three walks a day she currently has.  Our dog walker says we need to go out at times when there are fewer other dogs out there but do you have to sneak out at midnight ?!  And should we take a stick to fend them off ?  Also how long will it last ?  We will look to get her neutered but our vet will not carry this out until after her first cycle.

 

Can you tell I'm a little nervous about all this ?  :o)

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

Agree with all that's been said! 

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

I agree with this. For every study you find about spaying early or before the first heat to avoid health issues, you can find another stating the need to wait until after the first heat cycle in order to avoid health issues. Early spay may be beneficial and convenient for the breeder and owner and society in general but I have yet to be convinced that it is in the best interest of the dog.  

I waited to have Tara spayed until she was 13 months old. She had gone through one heat cycle. Although her contract required spay by 6 months, her breeder was willing to be flexible and work with me. But I don't think that is typical of breeders in general.

[F, Calla & Luca]

It is a very controversial topic and I don't think there is adequate study to prove things one way or another. I wish we knew more. I had no choice with my doodles except I guess going to other breeders.

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

This is true.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I'm not a fan of ESN and would never buy a puppy from a breeder who did it. That's just my own personal feeling and not a criticism of those who have done otherwise.

But I also would never in a million years live with an intact adult dog. Again, my personal feeling. And in light of the 4 to 5 million dogs euthanized in shelters every year, while spaying or neutering may not be the right choice for any one individual dog or his/her owner, until all pet owners are as responsible as DK members are, it's clearly in the best interests of Dogs as a group.

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

I too am not a fan of the ESN and it took me some time to find a breeder that didn't do it. They are getting to be few and far between, at least in my area.

I don't think it is reasonable to leave a dog intact unless you are a breeder (with the term not to be taken too loosely!) I certainly wouldn't want to live with one either!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

That's doodle breeders. I promise you, it is very easy to find quality purebred breeders who do not do ESN.

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

Yes, it was doodle breeders. But I find it curious that they are more in favor of it then purebred breeders??

[F, Calla & Luca]

I think, at least for a while, there was very tight control/supply on doodles especially ALDs. Now there are many more breeders breeding all kinds of doodles and I think things have relaxed a bit.But still most breeders of multigeneration dogs are charging $2500.

There are much less expensive purebred dogs around. But I just checked. The Monks of New Skete are charging $3,000-$3500 for their GSD pups : )

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

With purebreds, there is a very wide range of pricing; there's no blanket "going rate" for a certain breed from health tested parents, like there is with doodles. The parents, the lines, the breeding house, all play a role in pricing. And with doodles, a puppy is either sold as a pet or a breeder. With purebreds, you have an additional category, a puppy which is sold as a pet, but is going to be shown by her owner.

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

I wonder what the Monk's spay/neuter policy is...:)

[F, Calla & Luca]

They have contact numbers. I know when I've read about their dogs in the past they import breeders from championship lines from the Czech Republic I think it was. There used to be an very long wait for a pup but I don't know about now.