There are a lot of health risks for female dogs, such as ovarian and mammary cancer, and a uterine infection called pyometra. Spaying your dog will remove all of those issues. For male dogs, neutering removes the risk of testicular cancer, decreases the chance of benign prostatic hyperplasia - a painful condition that can cause urinary issues - and reduces the likelihood of prostatic abscesses and hernias in the perineum. Overall, it's very helpful to increase the life expectancy of your dog.

We would recommend it. If you're not showing your dog or breeding your dog, there are a lot of health risks that come with your pet being intact or un-spayed or un-neutered.

There are common misconceptions about spaying and neutering. One is that it changes your pet's personality, which is generally not the case. Behavioral changes may occur earlier in puppyhood, and if necessary, we recommend early neutering to address specific behaviors. However, as pets mature, their behavior and personality remain largely unchanged. Another misconception is that spaying and neutering lead to weight gain. While some pets may experience weight issues as they reach middle age, many castrated or spayed dogs maintain a healthy body condition score and remain active.

Typically, a dog's spay surgery takes about 30 minutes, potentially up to an hour for dogs in heat or larger breeds. Dog neuters are quicker, usually around 15 minutes.

As with any surgical procedure, there are potential complications. These include a small risk of infection at the incision site, occasional bruising around the incision, or suture reactions that may occur within a week or up to two to three months post-surgery. Additionally, there can be fluid pockets called seromas, which resolve over time. We take measures to minimize anesthesia complications by closely monitoring your pet during the procedure, but there is always a small inherent risk.

Like any surgery, we prioritize pain control for your dog. We administer pre-anesthetic medications and promptly initiate post-operative pain medication. As a result, the pain is typically minimal. Your dog will also receive pain medications to take home for a week.

The process for dog neuters is similar. You'll review consent forms with the technician in the exam room, and we'll place an IV catheter in one of the front legs. We'll then prepare the pre-scrotal and scrotal area by shaving and sanitizing. Afterward, we surgically remove both testicles and close the skin to the scrotum. Occasionally, there may be some post-surgery swelling in the scrotum, which can give the appearance that the testicles are still present, but they have been removed. All dog neuters are discharged on the same day after recovering from anesthesia. We keep dog spays overnight for close monitoring and recheck the incision the next day.

For dog spays, please drop off your female dog in the morning between 7:30 to 8:00. A technician will guide you through the surgery and anesthesia consent forms, addressing any questions you may have. We will then insert an IV catheter into one of your dog's front legs, allowing us to administer IV medications. This includes pain medication mixed with anesthesia medications. Afterward, we will prepare the abdomen by shaving and sanitizing it aseptically. Next, we make a small incision into the abdomen, remove the ovaries and uterus, and close the abdomen with two to three layers of sutures. The dog then enters the recovery phase, during which we continuously monitor vital signs such as pulse ox, EKG, blood pressure, and capnograph to ensure the safety of the anesthesia. Additionally, we intubate all dogs undergoing spays and neuters to maintain an open airway, with access to oxygen and gas anesthesia as needed.

It'll definitely help. The sooner that it's done the better because once that behavior becomes ingrained and the cat's a little bit older, the benefits are a lot lower. However, if we do that early, they will be a lot less likely to want to get out and run away.

We don't really see much in the way of personality changes, at least not what we would consider to be things that happen in a bad way. There will be personality changes in the scenario that the cat's not going into heat anymore, so we won't have those behaviors. Male cats won't be as likely to mark or want to get outside and roam and do things like that, so those things will change. Generally, the attentiveness of the cat, how loving they are, and their behaviors that we would find desirable don't change very much.