Hsus vs AVMA

[runamuk]

It is interesting how much information is left out or not even read in the veterinary literature. So a wonderful person who had the time just put together this fabulous paper on the spay neuter issue.

If you would like to read it and then check out all of the cited studies from the journals I have posted a link.

http://escregistry.kattare.com/healthEffec...euterInDogs.pdf

What is surprising is how many vets haven't read many of the studies if they had they would see the risk/benefit are not what they are claimed to be.

For the record I am the queen of spay and neuter because it is the easy way to deal with dogs. Having a show dog is a pain from the dealing with seasons standpoint.

 

[Warpony]

That is an fascinating article! I love the fact that they gave actual numbers and percentages instead of just saying "It increases this risk and decreases this one". The fact that they gave you an actual idea of what the risk was, whether it was a big risk (like with pyometrea) or a very small one (like with ovarian tumors) is very nice to help people put it into perspective.

Thanks for posting this, it is a very informative and interesting read!

 

[minisaremighty]

I agree, it's a very fascinating article! Unfortunately, my border collie/golden retriever mix suffers from "spay incontinence." She's only 3. I'm not keen on giving her chemical meds, so it will be a long road ahead for us with her leaking issues. We did not spay her until she was 1.5 years old and may not have even done it then, however, we took in an un-neutered male english setter, so figured we needed to because I didn't want her to have puppies. It's too bad they can't figure out a way to spay that would eliminate that. Up to 20% of female dogs suffering from it seems too high to me.

From that study, it looks like the benefits of spay/neuter do not outweigh the complications with the exception of the unwanted puppies that can result if not spayed/neutered. We didn't want puppies, but now we are faced with a life-long daily inconvenience. :no:

I still think it needs to be common practice for those not breeding to maintain or improve a breed. However, I'm happy to know that when I do have my show dog, not spaying/neutering will not significantly increase their risk as we've all been told.

Thanks for sharing Rori :saludando:

 

[runamuk]

I'm glad you enjoyed reading the information.

I still feel that the average pet owner needs to spay and neuter. I spay and neuter all pets in my own home and any that I have fostered and placed.

I do feel though that people need to be educated on any decision that affects their pets health.

My uncle over the course of 30 yr's has owned intact boston terrier females that were not bred purposefully or accidentally. His girls were at higher risk for issues from anethesia than from remaining intact (per his vet of 30 yrs). He walks his dogs daily a minimum of 5 miles on public walking paths, does not use crates, kennel runs or any fancy set up. From his experience I know it can be done with due diligence. I also know most people are not as diligent as he is.

I know that reading much of this information has laid to rest many fears I had about raising a show dog. I have personal experience with cancer in dogs and it stinks. I will say my borzoi who was not spayed until she was 7-8 (I wasn't about to let just any vet do it due to anethesia issues) did develop cancerous mammary tumors at age 14+. I also know chows have a tendency toward cancer ( there is a huge study going on right now) so knowing the risks is important to me.

I hope, if nothing else this information helps one feel more comfortable in their choice to spay/neuter or not.

 

[Ashley]

I sure wish spaying Mitzy would of slowed her down.....instead I think she moves faster

I sure didnt want to fix her, but was more afraid of her getting bred accidental so she had to be fixed.

 

[Pepipony]

I havent read the article yet, just woke up!! roflao! anyhow. Dallas, the heeler I recently lost, wasnt neutered as a pup, since we lived rurally and had no intact females, Dr didnt see a reason. However when he was about 8 he developed a Perineal Hernia , A&M said from being left intact So from then on I had to deal with different food ( to keep the repair happy) and then urine incontinence. He is the only male that I had left alone, everyone else has always been altered. Learned my lesson.

 

[capall beag]

That is a fascinating article.

I have both unaltered and altered dogs. I don't find it a huge deal, of course, I have to be more vigilant twice a year when the female is in season but it is not a huge deal.

I like my vet very well BUT as a general statement feel that all too often vets, in my area anyway, are always suggesting new medications, vaccines for your animals. Or in this case surgery. I am NOT saying spaying/neutering is unnecessary BUT when you bring your 8 week old pup in for a vet check do we really need to discuss when he/she will be spayed

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Now when I visit my vet I am asked about kennel cough, routine shots, dental, heartworm, lyme, frontline, diet, spaying, allegies etc etc and all the dangerous diseases out there........it gets a little insane

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My own Dr doesn't ask nearly so many Q's

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Sorry if this is fftopic: I just needed to vent!

That reminds me I need to make appt with my vet

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[mininik]

Pet owners do well by keeping themselves educated about common and current health issues as they pertain to their particular situation. This way, when taking your dog to the vet you'll have a clue about the common issues they'll want to discuss. If you are up-to-date you may feel as though your dog's veterinarian is preaching to you or just trying to sell you, but keep in mind that most veterinarians don't SPECIALIZE as much as human doctors in who they see and what they treat. IMO, responsible ownership cannot be stressed enough!

 

[minisaremighty]

This was posted on another of my forums:

Laura Sanborn originally posted her article on

Pet-Law, and subsequently posted this in response to a question about why she wrote the paper.

Here's her reply (forwarded WITH permission).

I started reading the medical literature on this subject in order to find information to convince my husband the skeptic to neuter his then 12 month old dog. He was not convinced by the claims that spay/neuter has only positive health impacts.

Turns out his skepticism was well founded.

The information on this subject is available to all of us, as it's already been published in the veterinary medical literature. Any of us can search the medical databases using PubMed, and now Google

Scholar. I made a number of trips to the Univ. of California, Davis medical libraries to copy papers from medical journals. And I read them. I have a science background but not a medical background.

One of the things I found interesting in doing this is that sometimes published research gets misrepresented even in peer-reviewed medical journals. An example is the 1969 epidemiological study on mammary

cancer risk as a function of spay timing. This is THE source of the recommendation ever since to spay female dogs when they are young to prevent this cancer. That study has gotten misinterpreted by other

researchers in their published papers, and by veterinarians. The text of the thing is plain and clear, to anyone who would bother to read it.

While a lot of information on the long-term health effects of spay/neuter in dogs has already been published, it's scattered around in 50+ separate journal articles. Often times it's buried in articles like "Host related risk factors for canine osteosarcoma", which examined a number of risk factors for this cancer, not just

spay/neuter.

What's been missing is that no one has published a review article on this subject in the veterinary medical journals. One often finds review articles on various topics in medical journals. I got tired of waiting for somebody else to do it, that's why I wrote it. I didn't write it for formal publication in a veterinary

medical journal, but for a wider distribution. For example, I had to remove medical jargon and use terms that most of us are familiar with (ovariohysterectomy = spay, gonadectomy = spay or neuter, neuter can mean spay or neuter, etc.)

Laura Sanborn