Early spay/neuter VS. Waiting until puberty

[Discussing Labradoodles & Goldendoodles]

Does anyone know if there is already a discussion going about early spay/neuter vs. waiting until the dog reaches puberty to be fixed? I'd like to do some research to learn the pros/cons of each. Does anyone know of any good, unbiased resources out there? And any information that DK members can give me would also be very appreciated.

[Adina P]

No lengthy discussions in the main forum on this, but maybe 1-2 in the Puppy Madness group.

I think there are two factors to look at:

1) Pros/Cons for Health (my biased opinion is that there is not much 'con' for health)

2) Pros/Cons for Population control...the main reason to do ESN is essentially population control -- the risk of unwanted litters/adding litters to shelters is important enough that I think this trumps the small 'possible' health problems.

But this was my opinion...hopefully some breeders will weigh in with their research references.

[Marianne *OZZY & ZOEY]

Zoey was spaded at 7 weeks by the breeder. My vet said that was a good thing and it takes a skilled vet to do this so young....at that age they really never feel it or recover. I did not get her until she was 8 weeks and I have not seen a problem with it being done so you... I was suprised but my vet was not suprised....He said he is seeing more of this done these days by the breeders. Except for him not making money on it he feels it is the best thing for the dog.

[April Cliber]

We have early s/n our pups for the last 5 litters. Litter # 6 goes in at 8:30 AM tomorrow morning. We have had no complications and the pups heal very quickly. The key is having a vet that is trained in ESN. It is different than the surgery that is done on an older pup/dog. I happen to very fortunate and have a vet that has had the training and volunteers at our local shelter. He's literally done hundreds of them. The complete surgery for the males takes 5-7 minutes and they don't need stitches, just surgical glue. The females take 10-15 minutes each and get a few absorbable stitches. (Some vets do use stitches for the males.) I bring all the puppies home by about 3:00 and then have to try and keep them quite. Most, especially the boys act like nothing ever happened and want to play. The females can be a little sleepy, but don't act like they are in any pain.

The biggest pro for the pups owner is that they don't ever need to worry about having it done. When the pup goes home he/she has recovered. We got our first doodle as a pet and had her spayed at about 7 months. She would not keep the cone on, ended up chewing it to pieces and then licked out her stitches. She then had to have staples put in and ended up with an infection. It was all very frustrating. She did get through it all fine, but it was such a pain. Some dogs do just fine having the surgery when they are older, but there is always a risk of complications with surgery. Another factor to consider is; If heaven forbid I loose a pup tomorrow (I won't) or have complications it will be my responsibility as the breeder to pay for all related vet bills and to either refund the owner their money or replace the pup. If your vet does the surgery after the dog leaves the breeders house and there are complications it is then your responsibility, unless of course it was a congenital issue and falls under the guarantee.

I did months of research on ESN before deciding that the pros out weigh the cons. You will find vets on both sides of the fence. I will note that The American Veterinary Medical Association, Association of Spay/Neuter Veterinarians, and the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Georgia, Humane Society of the US, ASPCA, AKC, The Ohio State University are among those that support early spay/neuter.

This is a good link. http://www.columbusdogconnection.com/PedSpayNeuter.htm

I guess my post is very pro, but it it something that I have researched a lot.

[AndySharon BoomerShaynaMariner]

Our vet does not believe in ESN as he is of the opinion that the hormones being produced are essential to brain development. I have not researched this and do not know if there is any data to back it up.

[Marianne *OZZY & ZOEY]

I had a female dog that was spaded at 6 months of age...very painful, long recovery and of course that famous collar that they all hate. Zoey was desexed at 7 weeks, when I picked her up at 8 weeks she was fine and running around, never showed any signs of a problem. Scar is healed and perfect. My vet checked her out when I brought her home, said good for Zoey she won't have to go through that procedure...which is a trama for a dog and not a puppy. I liked it so much better....and I won't have the expense of having it done... the dog license is cheaper too. and no recovery time.

[Pam, Latte and Summer]

We were advised with Sunni to wait until her first cycle to be spayed. She had some developmental issues with her genitalia
that seemed to improve after going into heat. Unfortunately, she was a year old before this happened. I think it was much
harder on her to be older to have surgery. And yes I called my vet the day it happened. Bella was about 12 weeks. She breezed right through it. I think it depends on the health of your puppy.

[Rae]

We have two goldendoodles - both early spayed. One of our dogs started "leaking" at 15 months - the vet strongly thinks it's because of the ESN. Anyway, she's on PPA which takes care of the problem. The other dog has had no problems at all. I would have rather waited on the spaying just because I think the normal hormone process needs to take place, but that's just my opinion. And yes, I have read up on all the pros and cons. IF we were to get another GD I think we would go with a breeder that doesn't do ESN but requires the dog be "fixed" by 6-7 months. Again, just my opinion and preferrence.

[Cindy S.]

Both of my dogs had esn. When I would tell people with "purebred" dogs, they would lecture me on the cons. But so far, both of my dogs are terrific. I read all the literature, and it made sense to me, and I am especially sensitive to the overbreeding of the labradoodle, by people who think they can make an easy dollar. After buying my dogs from such a reputable breeder, I know it's the only way to go.

[Ben & Amos Zeeman]

This is a peer reviewed research article published in a journal.

http://www.naiaonline.org/pdfs/longtermhealtheffectsofspayneuterind...

[Lynne of Fountain Falls]

This was a really good article.  This is a subject that I am very interested in as I breed goldendoodles.  My vet and I lean on the side of delaying spay neuter until the pup is mature.  It is scary to think that one of my pups will be misused but I keep in pretty close contact with as many as possible.  Thanks again for the article