18 month old doodle - how to spay?

[howtospay]

Sorry no doubt this has been discussed many times, but can I get some advise on how to spay a 18 month old retriever/mini-poodle?

Is it worth sparing the ovaries? I like the idea of it, but didn't realise it meant that you still get the seasons. We have an elderly un-neutered dog in the house. Do we just sit back and watch them mate if we have the ovary sparing spaying? Does this confuse the dogs? Does it mean a lifetime of wiping up dog menstral blood?

Is keyhole surgery a big benefit?

Oh, I now realise that you still have to keep an overy-spared spayed dog away from males. The un-neutered dog we're looking after for a friend is 11, he won't be around for ever, but still, it's a lot of work to keep them apart - we've already done one season with them both under one roof.

I'm now wondering if there's enough reason for an ovary sparing spay to justify all that effort.

has anyone done the traditional full spaying and regretted it?
what kind of changes did you see after the op?

Sorry for the drip feed - i'm just learning what the key issues are. My dog already has issues resource guarding and she's anxious at the groomers. She hates clippers or anyone touching her feet. The groomer recommended we find anxiety meds for her next visit.

If she has a traditional spaying is that all likely to get worse?

Personally I am all for full spaying. No unwanted pups, no having to keep away from other dogs and no life threatening pyometra.

Do it properly, the whole hog. It protects against other issues such as pyometra (which can and does kill), and periods.

In general in the UK spaying is either an ovarohysterectomy - removing ovaries and uterus or ovaroectomy - removing the ovaries.

one of the main reasons for spaying is to reduce the risk of mammary cancer, you do not gain this benefit if you keep the ovaries.

We went for the laprascopic spay which removes the overys but generally leaves the uterus unless there's a reason to remove it.

Recovery wise the laprascopic spay is definitely my recommendation
My little lass is very energetic and bouncy, always jumping on and off the back of the sofa
Her recovery was quick and easy, it was more expensive but watching my dm worry and panic when her labradors were spayed traditionally for the first week or more every time they would try to play or run wasn't worth the saving.

Other family's members dogs have had to go back to the vet after the wound reopened.

There is some evidence that leaving the womb in can help with incontinence but my vet said it's not been proven yet.

The most recent study has found that certain breeds are predisposed to incontience regardless of method of spaying - in particular carriage dogs.

Vet here - I think you would struggle to find a vet willing to perform an ovary sparing spay. It is controversial and very uncommon in the UK. It carries none of the benefits of spaying except avoiding unwanted pregnancies. She would still be at equal risk of mammary tumours and pyometra (infection) of the uterine stump if any remains, and would still have regular heats that would attract male dogs. We often perform ovarioectomies (just taking the ovaries and leaving the uterus) as this removes the hormonal influence but means the wound doesn't need to be as big. Laparascopic (keyhole) surgery is a great choice for bouncy dogs although it may be a bit more expensive because the kit is costly and you need extra training to use it. Hope that helps!