One of the biggest decisions pet owners need to make is whether or not to desex their dog or cat. As dog breeders & animal lovers it is our duty to encourage & promote the spaying & neutering of all pets, not just the dalmatians bred by us. Responsible pet care is what we promote & believe in, and once our show dogs reach a certain age or are no longer used for breeding perposes they are promtly desexed for their on well being. Spaying & neutering your puppy will save lives therefore we recommend all our puppies not going to show homes, to be de-sexed at the age of six(6) months. To the statement we hear too often from people who want their children to experience the "Joy of birth", or "we want another just like them", & "we don't believe in desexing". Please read the information below & reconsider for your dog's sake.
Allowing your pet to breed should not be undertaken lightly. It can increase the risk of reproductive cancers, listed below, & complications during birth. Always consult your vet & know what you're getting yourself into before even thinking about puppies. Let me remind you that 10,000 cats & 8,000 dogs are destroyed each year at the RSPCA, in NSW alone, these being unwanted, & abandoned, or un-rehomeable, through no fault of their own. The number of puppies born each year is far greater then the number of available homes & many of these animals end up in shelters/pet shops or put to sleep due to not enough facilities & money to look after them. Desexing will help prevent this & we hope by reading this information you will reconsider desexing your dog or future puppy.
Why should I get my dog desexed? There are many different reasons for males, & females, but the number one reason is to stop unwanted pregnancies & puppies. Other reasons include;
For Females:
- Reduced risk of Mammary Cancer; this being the most common form of cancer in female dogs. 40% of these tumours are malignant. Early desexing at six(6) months means your dog will only have a 0.05% risk of developing this form of cancer, where as, after her 1st season she'll have an 8% chance, & after the 2nd season she'll have a 26% chance of developing mammary cancer. The protective effect is lost after four seasons.
- Prevention of seasons; occurring once every 6-12 months depending on the breed & lasting approximately twenty-one(21) days. Desexing avoids this unwanted bleeding & prevents any changes in behaviour. Some undesexed bitches will also experience false pregnancies, where they display nesting behaviour & can start lactating or even experience labor pains, even though they are not in fact pregnant.
- Prevention of Pyometra; a life threatening infection of the Uterus, which occurs in older bicthes who have continued to cycle. Usually presenting a few weeks after a season, the bitch may have vaginal discharge or none & just appear unwell. Pyometra requires an emergency Ovariohysterectomy & is expensive.
- You will also eliminate the risk of Ovarian or Uterine Cancer.
For Males:
- They are less likely to; become aggressive, stray in search of females in season, resulting in car accidents, reduce the tendency to cock their leg on every available tree or post to leave their scent behind, & are less likely to display unsociable behaviour such as mounting.
- Eliminating the risk of Testicular Cancer; rare but unpleasant it usually occurs in only one teste & can be surgically removed but has a high risk of spreading to the abdominal organs. In dogs with only one descended teste, the "retained" is at greater risk of developing cancer because it is maintained in the abdomen at a higher temperature than it would normally be outside the body.
- Reduces the risk of Prostate Problems; Prostate Disease is common in older uncastrated male dogs. It causes constipation, back pain & blood in the urine. Castration eliminates benign Prostate Hyperplasia, an increase in size of the gland, & reduces the risk of Prostate Cancer.
Other Benefits to desexing your dog are:
- Your pet may actually live longer.
- Be less likely to develop the problems listed above, as well as, eliminating the sexual frustrations of the dog pursuing another on heat but not being able to reach her.
- Reduced registration fee for desexed animals with your local council.
- And eliminating the need to house or confine female pets to protect them from keen males that are attracted by her scent if she is on heat.
There is no benefit in letting males or females have one litter before they are desexed.
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