Spaying at almost 7 years old??

JerseyGirlsMom · 07-11-2011, 07:20 PM

Hi everyone! I just rescued a female basset. She was supposedly born around the fall of 04 or the beginning of 05. We had her spayed today and she can barely walk. She was extremely underweight when we got her last week. She weighed in at only 40 pounds at the vet today. She looks even more emaciated today. I was wondering if she should have been spayed since she is an older dog?
Does anyone here have any advice for me as to what to do for her? She is the best dog I've ever had and I don't want anything to happen to this little angel! Thank you so very much!

Princess Buttercup · 07-11-2011, 07:29 PM

I have no idea about her spay. But she sure is very cute!! Hopefully she'll get lots of extra "get well treats" that will stick to her ribs.

AmyB · 07-11-2011, 08:24 PM

I just adopted an approximately 6 year old male who was just neutered 6 months ago. I know it is the policy of rescues to spay/neuter & I would have had it done also to prevent reproduction. I would imagine the surgery would be harder on an older dog vs a puppy. I do wonder if spaying/neutering at an older age still offers the health/behavioral benefits it does when performed while the dog is younger. Anyone?

Wworm · 07-12-2011, 02:42 AM

yeah, prob a bit harder to recover from when a bit older. tho she is not that old. your basset is very pretty! Worm was probably about 30 lbs when he got neutered. but spaying is more involved than neutering. i think she will perk up, is the usual course. just takes 1-2 weeks of recovery, at least.

my understanding about neutering and behaviors like humping, etc. is that whatever they know up to that point of their neutering, they may retain. for example, Worm was 7 months at neutering but didn't hump other dogs or objects yet. so we are lucky (well, we had to neuter him because the daycare required it) because so far, he doesn't do that. he's almost a year now.

Mikey T · 07-12-2011, 10:44 AM

Yes and the health reason for doing so all but vanish doing it an older age as well. Increased risks with virtually no benefits. with females eliminating pyometra is about only advantage. IMHO not worth the risk.

Quote:

She weighed in at only 40 pounds at the vet today.

there are many bassets out their that are overweight at 40 lbs,. besure the dog is actual underweight before embarking on a weight adding program In most cases it is the perception of what an Ideal basset should look like that is skew which is one reason why basset tend to be more overweight than the average breed.

Mikey T · 07-12-2011, 11:03 AM

Quote:

understanding about neutering and behaviors like humping, etc. is that whatever they know up to that point of their neutering, they may retain. for example, Worm was 7 months at neutering but didn't hump other dogs or objects yet. so we are lucky (well, we had to neuter him because the daycare required it)

Humping is a Fix action Pattern ie genetical hardwired in a dog it has nothing to do with sex hormones you often find females doing it etc. Spaying is not likely to increase or derease this behavior. Hormone related behavior like rtoaming and marking even if they occurred before nuetering occured are likely to be reduced or end as the sex hormones deminsh but one can not say with certainte for wich dogs and to what degree if any. But Spaying reduced Marking by 60% and roaming by even more.

Oh behave: Love and mounting

Quote:

Let’s begin at the beginning. Fixed action patterns, or FAPs, are important behaviours that are pre-installed in animals, kind of like bundled software that comes with a computer. Fixed action patterns require no learning and are triggered by something in the environment. A classic example is a moving bit of string that triggers a six-week-old kitten to pounce. The pouncing sequence is stereotyped across all cats. Another example is how a cat will turn sideways, arch his back, puff up and hiss. This is a self-defense FAP, again common to all cats and stereotyped.

Soundtrack · 07-12-2011, 11:20 AM

I normally spay my girls when they are 7 or older. I once spayed a rescue at 11. However, I don't think that she should have been spayed unless she was completely healthy, I would have waited until she put on some weight and was in better condition.

However, she was probably still feeling the effects of the anesthetic and I bet she's more lively today. Just make sure she has adequate rest and good nutrition.

Wworm · 07-12-2011, 11:34 AM

Agree w/what Mikety T says below. you can see from Worm's pics he's pretty skinny and is 36 lbs at almost 1 year old. pre-neutering, he was quite skinny w/ribs sticking out, but even then, got mixed rxns. most people we met thought he was too skinny. but his vet Dr. D did not and was not worried about it, saying that bassets in general tend to carry too much weight. but then she was away once and we saw a different vet-- he was VERY concerned about it, and made us come back in a month to make sure he put on weight.

post-neutering, his ribs don't stick out that much anymore. he currently looks like he does in the Fort Funston pics. the vets aren't worried about his weight anymore. the last time at the vet's couple weeks ago, the head vet (~20 vets in this practice) walked by Worm and said that everyone will tell me he's too skinny, but don't listen to them, he's not. I should keep him exactly where it's at for the rest of his life...! (personally, i think it'll be harderto do that when he gets older. i'm convinced he's in his teenage svelte years right now. i guess that's coming from the perspective of having a weenie dog that was even skinnier than Worm is now as a puppy! i kept getting 'feed him, feed him!' but by the time he was 3-5 yrs old, he was already on the overweight side... and it was hard for him to lose weight.)

so wanted to tell u this since Jersey & Worm look like they have similar body types right now... anyway, of course, best to get the advice of your vet...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mikey T

there are many bassets out their that are overweight at 40 lbs,. besure the dog is actual underweight before embarking on a weight adding program In most cases it is the perception of what an Ideal basset should look like that is skew which is one reason why basset tend to be more overweight than the average breed.

JerseyGirlsMom · 07-12-2011, 04:40 PM

I've tried feeding her every single meat I have in the house, along with rice and also put peanut butter on her nose. She refuses to eat anything I give her. She drank a little this morning but nothing this afternoon. She just slowly wanders around the house or the yard without reason. I'm having to keep her in the crate just so that she will be still. I've never had a dog react to spaying like this and I'm so very scared for her. Her ribs are all sticking out and she looks like she's never had a meal in years. This is so very scary....

Soundtrack · 07-12-2011, 08:37 PM

She's probably very stressed at the moment. She's lost her home, may have been through a few places before coming to you, she's in a strange place with strange people, she's had major surgery, maybe vaccinations too? That's a lot of stress on mind and body. Many dogs will stop eating under such conditions.

Normally I recommend NOT fussing over whether a dog is eating, however if she's already malnourished (according to the vet) or if she appears to be unwell you should discuss with your vet the best way to get some nourishment into her. OTOH, if the vet is not concerned about her weight and her problems seem to be mainly emotional, then I would just give her some time to settle in and recover and expect that she will eat on her own when she is ready.

07-11-2011, 07:20 PM	#1 (permalink)
JerseyGirlsMom Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Amarillo, Texas Posts: 24	Spaying at almost 7 years old?? Hi everyone! I just rescued a female basset. She was supposedly born around the fall of 04 or the beginning of 05. We had her spayed today and she can barely walk. She was extremely underweight when we got her last week. She weighed in at only 40 pounds at the vet today. She looks even more emaciated today. I was wondering if she should have been spayed since she is an older dog? Does anyone here have any advice for me as to what to do for her? She is the best dog I've ever had and I don't want anything to happen to this little angel! Thank you so very much! Attached Thumbnails

07-11-2011, 08:24 PM	#3 (permalink)
AmyB Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: Cincinnati, Ohio Posts: 1,855	I just adopted an approximately 6 year old male who was just neutered 6 months ago. I know it is the policy of rescues to spay/neuter & I would have had it done also to prevent reproduction. I would imagine the surgery would be harder on an older dog vs a puppy. I do wonder if spaying/neutering at an older age still offers the health/behavioral benefits it does when performed while the dog is younger. Anyone? __________________ Amy, mom to Sadie (ATB, 6/9/06) & Spencer (ATB, 8/19/10) - always in my heart and Clifford (gotcha date 7/2/11).

07-12-2011, 02:42 AM	#4 (permalink)
Wworm Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Left Coast Posts: 1,970	yeah, prob a bit harder to recover from when a bit older. tho she is not that old. your basset is very pretty! Worm was probably about 30 lbs when he got neutered. but spaying is more involved than neutering. i think she will perk up, is the usual course. just takes 1-2 weeks of recovery, at least. my understanding about neutering and behaviors like humping, etc. is that whatever they know up to that point of their neutering, they may retain. for example, Worm was 7 months at neutering but didn't hump other dogs or objects yet. so we are lucky (well, we had to neuter him because the daycare required it) because so far, he doesn't do that. he's almost a year now. __________________ see what the Worm is up to: http://bassetworm.blogspot.com/

07-12-2011, 11:20 AM	#7 (permalink)
Soundtrack Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Posts: 2,581	I normally spay my girls when they are 7 or older. I once spayed a rescue at 11. However, I don't think that she should have been spayed unless she was completely healthy, I would have waited until she put on some weight and was in better condition. However, she was probably still feeling the effects of the anesthetic and I bet she's more lively today. Just make sure she has adequate rest and good nutrition. __________________ Rosie-Ch Soundtrack Cracklin' Rose CGN AGN RA Am RN TT Melody-Ch Soundtrack Unchained Melody TT Sailor-Ch Soundtrack Expedition Sailor RN TT Chili-Ch Soundtrack Spice Up Your Life Curry-Ch Soundtrack Canadian Brass Pepper-Ch Pennieslogon Living La Vida Loca CGN Vina-Ch Soundtrack Grand Illusion Leila-Ch Soundtrack Almost Paradise Deela-Ch Soundtrack Wink Of An Eye Hermione - Soundtrack Spellbound Eowyn - Soundtrack Rain Dance

07-12-2011, 08:37 PM	#10 (permalink)
Soundtrack Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Posts: 2,581	She's probably very stressed at the moment. She's lost her home, may have been through a few places before coming to you, she's in a strange place with strange people, she's had major surgery, maybe vaccinations too? That's a lot of stress on mind and body. Many dogs will stop eating under such conditions. Normally I recommend NOT fussing over whether a dog is eating, however if she's already malnourished (according to the vet) or if she appears to be unwell you should discuss with your vet the best way to get some nourishment into her. OTOH, if the vet is not concerned about her weight and her problems seem to be mainly emotional, then I would just give her some time to settle in and recover and expect that she will eat on her own when she is ready. __________________ Rosie-Ch Soundtrack Cracklin' Rose CGN AGN RA Am RN TT Melody-Ch Soundtrack Unchained Melody TT Sailor-Ch Soundtrack Expedition Sailor RN TT Chili-Ch Soundtrack Spice Up Your Life Curry-Ch Soundtrack Canadian Brass Pepper-Ch Pennieslogon Living La Vida Loca CGN Vina-Ch Soundtrack Grand Illusion Leila-Ch Soundtrack Almost Paradise Deela-Ch Soundtrack Wink Of An Eye Hermione - Soundtrack Spellbound Eowyn - Soundtrack Rain Dance

07-11-2011, 07:29 PM	#2 (permalink)
Princess Buttercup Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Oregon Posts: 364	I have no idea about her spay. But she sure is very cute!! Hopefully she'll get lots of extra "get well treats" that will stick to her ribs.

07-12-2011, 04:40 PM	#9 (permalink)
JerseyGirlsMom Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Amarillo, Texas Posts: 24	I've tried feeding her every single meat I have in the house, along with rice and also put peanut butter on her nose. She refuses to eat anything I give her. She drank a little this morning but nothing this afternoon. She just slowly wanders around the house or the yard without reason. I'm having to keep her in the crate just so that she will be still. I've never had a dog react to spaying like this and I'm so very scared for her. Her ribs are all sticking out and she looks like she's never had a meal in years. This is so very scary....

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