My lovely girl is getting spayed tomorrow and I can't stop crying!

[sirlee66]

I'm so sorry. I'm 7 months pregnant with my first and full of hormones and extremely emotional...

My darling baby Dog is getting spayed tomorrow and I'm so worried about her!!

She's only a baby... Well she's 7 months now.... and she is used to having me around most of the day (work part time) and is my little shadow. We have such a lovely bond and we really love being with each other.

She's also nervous of strangers and gets the shakes so she will be all alone with people she doesn't know. She won't understand what's happening to her and she'll be so afraid!!!!

And my dog loves cuddles. She just wants to be close all the time. I can't stand the thought of her in a cage all alone and scared and then in pain after her spay, alone and frightened. She might wonder where I am or if I've abandoned her. My heart is literally breaking!!!

I'm so sorry I must sound so dramatic and I can hear myself sounding so stupid and I want to get a grip but I just love her so much and I can't stop crying cause I can't bare the thought of her being scared.

Just looking for a bit of support really. So sorry for rattling on!

[Edited by MNHQ to remove identifying names]

She'll be just fine.

She's just the most loving, sensitive little soul.

She will soothe herself and then after the surgery she will be too groggy to be scared. Animals forgive easily when they know you love them!!

Ask the vet to call as soon as she is recovered so that you can collect her earlier .

Seriously, she'll be fine.

If she's so afraid of strangers that she shakes, may I gently suggest you really need to work more on socialising and training her about this? That level of anxiety is not healthy for her or practical.

She'll be fine!

But I strongly rather than gently suggest you ask your vet about puppy classes for socialisation and what else they might suggest.

If you miss this window of the next month or so, she'll find it soooo hard. It's not her being sensitive. It's just her not having been socialised.

Socialised dogs are happy dogs. You don't want her to be miserable when she is apart from you. That's not healthy or kind or fair on her.

Best of luck for tomorrow.

Put it off. The latest evidence is that it's better to wait till they are fully grown anyway.

Speaking from experience it can also make a nervous dog worse if they don't get a full dose of hormones (I panicked as of just lost a dog to ovarian cancer at a young age and did my current girl too young)

When my dog had to have an operation rather than just leaving her there in the morning I actually arranged with the vet a time for the procedure so I dropped her off as close to this time as possible so this stopped the need to put her in a holding cage and then they sedated her before she went in for the actual operation so she fell asleep in my arms and then they took her down for surgery, my dog is extremely anxious and cannot bear to be away from me so I feel your pain! Maybe this could be an option for you?

Ps Poppy is adorable!

Also I did all the socialisation classes, mixing with other dogs etc in her formative weeks and months, made absolutely no difference all my dog wants is to be with me and my family.

It's very young, I think I'd wait a while too. She's adorable.

Sorry i know this isn't the point of the thread but why not wait at least until she's stopped growing? She's really young to be under such stress and studies are increasingly showing it's better to wait until puppies are older before spaying.

Would it help if you asked your vet to talk through exactly what Poppy's experience will be? I doubt she will be left alone for long periods - they will check her regularly to make sure she is OK after the anaesthetic. You could ask about having her favourite blanket in the pen with her, which will smell of home. As a pp said, you can ask them to let you know as soon as she is ready to go home. She will be fine, OP.

Thank you so much everyone! I feel really silly! Pregnancy hormones are running wild and I can see I've been a bit of a Wailing Winnie!

Thanks so much though for all your kind words and advice. I will take it all on board. Thank you

My dog (15 months) was spayed last week and like you I was upset at the thought of her being distressed. She was fine and soon returned to her usual bouncy self. Remind yourself it's for her health, and it will soon be over.

I’m sure she will be fine
However, it might be a good time to try and work on her social skills and separation
Things will have to change once the baby arrives I’m afraid and it won’t be as easy to give her the same level of attention she gets now and you might not appreciate a “ little shadow” quite so much if you are sleep deprived and just want 5 minutes peace without a small demanding thing bothering you .
We didn’t have our dog when the first baby arrived but I did have a hand reared (by me) cat who was glued to me most of the time and it was difficult. Luckily she loved dd but things did change and she could t sit on me all the time

Op I am a vet nurse. I cuddle and soothe all my patients, if they let me! we're very experienced at relaxing anxious animals plus she won't care once the drugs are on board . She'll be fine

Mine got done before Xmas - for 12 hours she was tired then back to normal.

She will be fine!!!

When my dog was neutered, I was dropped him at the vets then went home. I had a Tesco grocery delivery and I was crying my eyes out to the poor delivery bloke. He thought I was insane 😂 you're little lady will be fine ❤️

7 months and you’re getting her done already?! If she understood I reckon it’d be her who’s crying

I agree with PP, it's too young.

Bullshit, PPs who are saying it's too young. Advice is that a bitch of this type should be spayed before her first season, which for a small breed could be any day. OP doesn't need false scaremongering to add to her anxiety. OP, if there's anything to take from this, it's the urgent recommendations that you encourage some happy independence for your very nice little dog. The hyperattachment you describe has the potential to make her life very unhappy, and we can all see that you want only the best for her, as will the veterinary practice tomorrow.

Not bullshit @villainousbroodmare.
Latest evidence suggests that all dogs should not be spayed until the growth plates have fused - this varies depending on breed. It's especially important in larger breeds due to potential cruciate ligament problems.
Also if it's done in the secondary fear period you risk trapping them there (as happened with my youngest).

www.dogsfirst.ie/health-issues/dog-neutering/

I've got a sprocker spaniel and got told to wait until she'd had her first season before getting her spayed

Mine was older and had the operation two years ago. Once I picked her up I would never have actually known she'd had anything done although obviously a little sleepy. She had no pain and the only distress was from the collar. I removed it and spent the next week next to her ( worked from home so easy). I cant tell you what a relief it all was.
I think when you love an animal it's understandable to be distressed to think of their fear or pain. Get through it and it'll be over so quickly