I've never heard that spaying was bad for a dog. Not saying it isn't true, just never heard that.

My sister has a Great Pyrenees and got her spayed before a year old, but not sure the exact age, and she's perfectly healthy & it didn't seem to affect her growth at all.

I'm sure someone here that knows more can give you a better response.

~Shannon

We intend on keeping our pup on leash until she is fixed, that way we don't risk her coming into contact with a male dog.
Accidents do happen...You are adopting an animal from an organization that is probably working very hard on reducing the numbers of unwanted puppies...And the last thing they want, and anyone doing animal rescue, is to have more puppies to find homes for
I am sure the members of the rescue organization you are adopting from have enough experience and care plenty for their fosters - if this is the rule they impose on people adopting from them, then I think you should follow the adoption contract....
Olya

I know that with bulldog males they say not to get fixed until after 18 months. At least thats what they have been saying on the bulldog forum. It also has something to do with the growth. I would check some websites specifically for your breed and maybe hit up some of those forums and see what they have to say.

The organization "asks" that you spay by six months? Is this just a request or a legal document? That said, what does your vet recommend? I would be inclined to go with his/her recommendation.

The only concern with not spaying, and allowing the dog to come into heat, is the male dogs will FIND your dog. Also, your dog will be trying to get away and find her mate. So if you wait, you will have to be very diligent with confining the dog. Even dog walks, you will need to make sure the dog can't slip it's collar, and you can actually control the dog. Dogs you don't even know will be showing up in your yard.

Since this is your first dog, talk this over with your vet. So love your fur baby but remember this is a dog, and will act like a dog when it gets in doggy situations.

I have large breeds - both were spayed/neutered just before 6 months old, and we've never had any problems at all (including unwanted pups). I think the importance of not having an "accident" probably outweighs the potential problems in this case, especially since this is your first dog, and I'm thinking you've probably never experienced just how strong the mating instinct is with an animal in heat.

I don't mean to be patronizing, I'm just saying that a leash or even a high fence may not help you keep other dogs away from yours when she is in heat. It's something I certainly wouldn't want to deal with, anyways.

You may want to talk to your vet too about nutritional ways to mitigate possible bone problems from an early spay. It's already recommended not to feed "puppy food" to a large breed dog to avoid problems - do some reading and see if you can't devise a feeding plan that could help support good growth regardless of spaying at 6 months.

Good luck, and congratulations!

Jamie

Actually feed a large breed growth formula, not regular puppy food. These are formulated for optimal bone health.

As long as you spay her before the first heat cycle, you are still greatly reducing the chances of mammary tumors later in life. In large breed dogs, the first heat cycle can occur anywhere between 6 and 18 months of age. There is no definitive proof that spay/neuter at a certain age increases risk of bone problems later in life. However there is no denying that sex hormones affect growth. We just don't know exactly what, if any, the effect of early spay/neuter is on dogs who are at high risk for joint problems anyway. All giant breed dogs are genetically predisposed to all kinds of orthopedic problems. I personally believe that optimal nutrition throughout life, never allowing the dog to become overweight, and lots of moderate exercise have much more effect on orthopedic health than when the animal is spayed/neutered.

The larger the dog, the more difficult the spay. Younger dogs tend to wake up faster and do much better under anesthesia than larger and older dogs. At the shelter, we routinely spay and neuter at 8 weeks, so every animal leaving the shelter is already spayed/neutered.

I fed my boy large breed puppy food for a year. He was neutered at 6 months. Still grew extra large and happy :OP

This is him fast asleep on the couch.

{{gwi:553959}}

Enjoy your new puppy!

There have been a few studies reporting that juvenile S/N results in significantly taller dogs (Salmeri et al JAVMA 1991;198:1193-1203) and a resulting higher incidence of cranial cruciate ligament rupture (Slauterbeck JR, Pankratz K, Xu KT, Bozeman SC, Hardy DM. Clin Orthop Relat Res. 2004 Dec;(429):301-5) and dysplasia (Spain et al. JAVMA 2004;224:380-387). There may also be a correlation between prepubescent S/N and osteosarcoma ((Cooley DM, Beranek BC, Schlittler DL, Glickman NW, Glickman LT, Waters D, Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2002 Nov;11(11):1434-40)

The problem is that one can always find a study or two to back up just about any hypothesis. As meghane states, there's nothing definitive and I also think that I personally believe that a good diet, optimum weight, and effective exercise have much more effect on overall health than waiting until after puberty to S/N.

The two rescues I work with will absolutely not release a dog for adoption before S/N. One will de-sex as soon as the dog comes into rescue (as early as 8 weeks) The other rescue prefers to wait until the dog is 6 months old and will foster until that time.

Both are bad,the growth issues and the heat cycles, I would do whatever is most comfortable to you, she's your dog. Spaying is un-natural-but we don't live in a natural world anymore. cancer is a "might" so is "bone growth"

Bone growth sounds more serious then if its detected early ( the cancer)

I would feed Orijen adult or Innova EVO adult and spay soon. The really good dog foods are good for all stages.

***YIKES*** Runsawalken, have you ever had a large breed dog??? Do you know they need the nutrients, especially glucosamine? BTW, I will never use Innova ever again. It did terrible things to my dogs. The fiber in the food caused their rear ends to become so raw they bled.

I would listen to Meghane's advise, she has a degree in Veterinary Medicine.

runsnwalken - the "really good dog foods" such as EVO are not for large-breed puppies. Natura knows this and warns AGAINST feeding these foods to puppies. A high protein/high calcium food such as EVO is absolutely the wrong food for a large breed puppy

If you think there is even a chance that you will not follow the rescue's contract then you should not adopt the dog. You can second guess their requirements but the fact is that they are in business for several reasons... irresponsible people not spaying and neutering, and "accidents" are at the top of the list. The rules they have in place are there for a reason and you should not go into the adoption with the intention of not honoring the agreement you have with them.

Origen has a Large breed dog formula.

Innova isn't like EVO and uses whole grain, grains of any kind are bad for carnivores like dogs and cats (especially cats), but whole grains is even harder on a carnivorous digestive tract.

( Now that I think of it, EVO is very rich)

Have you ever eaten Cattail shoots or tubers, how about Dandelions, clover and other wild edibles? When I was eating them( still do), my pooping was much like you described, but not as bad, because humans are actually more vegan then carnivore we are still able to handle it and indeed its good as long as you get from proper sources, but it was still different from say eating a domestic meal such a pizza or a cheeseburger.

Anything whole is going to be more difficult to pass through, however depending upon the species and whether its vegan or meat, its ideal.