[danoon58]

Hi all!

Quinn has been with us 4 months now. She was given to me by someone that could no longer keep her. They had never taken her to a vet but had supposedly got her from someone who knew she was a retired breeder dog. She weighed 105 when we got her and is down to 95 -- a ways to go. She is healthy. She recently had a dental to remove 8 teeth. She did well with the anesthesia. Prior to the dental we did full blood work which all came back normal and my daughter, who is a veterinary cardiologist, graciously offered to do an echocardiogram free of charge. We took her up on it and it was normal.

The vet that saw her when we first got her told us she thought she felt a spay scar. Well, she is now in heat! Seamus is neutered so that's not a problem and we have a six foot fence around our yard (and she's never out there unsupervised) so I'm not worried about her getting pregnant.

My question: Would you spay her? We have no idea how old she is but the vet is guessing 10-12. If we don't spay her, how great are the risks of pyometra? How do you recognize it?

I've never had an intact female before and am at a loss.

Thank you all for your help.

 

[danoon58]

the only females that I know were spayed that late was all because of pyo, and they were all emergencies at the time. I think.. given that she might be a retired breeding dog, it might be better to be safe and get her spayed Soon. Especially since she responded well to the GA- of course, be sure to get the pre GA blood work done again as well.

Thank you so much! Pyometra is definitely what I am worried about. Although I am worried about anesthesia given her age, I have to imagine that it's a lot safer doing a spay when you're not dealing with the added problems of pyometra!