veterinarian tells me to spay her before her first heat. Who is right?
With all deference to your friends, unless they have a D.V.M beside their name, you should listen to your veterinarian. Unless you are particularly interested in letting your female dog have puppies, your veterinarian is correct in recommending that she be spayed before her first heat. There are two major reasons. The first is that female dogs spayed before their first heat have almost no chance of developing mammary cancer (breast cancer) in later life. This is a definite plus as intact female dogs are very prone to mammary cancer. This occurrence will possibly result in a shortened life. It will at least result in surgery and rather expensive veterinary bills. The second reason is that a female dog spayed before her first heat is considered an immature bitch and her reproductive organs are immature, less well developed with less blood supply, less abdominal fat and surgically much easier to perform with a lot less risk of surgical complications. As an added bonus, because the surgery
