to have the dreaded op or not

[bibathediva]

i know this as probably been covered before,but I'm new on here and wanted to know of first hand experience,
biba has just finished her first season (11 months old) and was throughly miserable all through it,went off her food,didn't want to go for a walk,very clingy,
but now cant decided weather to get her spayed as have been told it makes them old quickly,they dont enjoy exercise and there have woolly coats after,
any advice would be appreciated 

[lyn]

i was like this a few weeks back. ellie is a working cocker and i like the no nonsense coat so i was a bit worried about speying. after some reasurance on here i decided to get her speyed. problem i have now is i never got round to booking her in when i meant to and now i will have to wait until she has finished her second season so the earliest i can get her op is probably october. just the time we were planning to move abroad. not sure now if i will wait until we have moved and i have found a good vet there. otherwise she would have to wait here at my daughters for a few weeks and i don't want that. i want her with me from the start of our new life

[bibathediva]

i think its the coat I'm most concerned about as before she had her first cut she was a woolly bear ,it was fluffy puppy fur which Ive been told it will go back to that and it Matt's so easily and looks so dull, but i don't want her to be miserable every 6 months and to put her at risk of Cancer
where are you moving too?

[Sheryl]

Have been agonising over this too recently and decided to go ahead.  Unfortunately her op was cancelled so she is due in again on Tuesday   TBH I never considered the cosmetics of it all as in coat or the not wanting exercise but more along the lines of if I left it, would she get Mammary cancer or pyometra   I had a dog die at 6 with mammary cancer and her last few weeks were not very pleasant.  That reason alone has made me decide to go ahead

[bibathediva]

i know the cosmetics are not important and i have no plans to show her,
i suppose i always want her to be full of life like she is now,as i love to take her for walks ,but my old dog had the op(not a cocker, a heinz 57) and she was still running around like a puppy at 16 years of age,just wanted to know if it was a cocker thing?

[Sheryl]

I had my other cocker Holly spayed after the first season and before she went blind, she could run like the clappers!  She was just a blur so spaying didn't make her a couch potato. (I think the sight did that or she would still be going strong now!!)  I totally sympathise though with your dilemma

[bibathediva]

arrhhh,is she totally blind and how?
i do think i will get her done,just need reassurance and is it true you have to wait awhile after there season?

[Alpha]

One of my friends fathers is a vet and he is really against having bitches speyed. I will see her tomorrow and find out what it is he objects to.
As this is something I will have to consider for Lilly in the future.

[bibathediva]

  that must be a first a vet whos against spaying,thats all i ever get from my vet when we go,let me know though it would be interesting to know why!!

[LurcherGirl]

There are unfortunately still a few vets around that are against neutering like there are occasionally some vets that promote letting a bitch have at least one litter...  Unfortunately those vets aren't the ones that then take in the homeless dogs resulting from accidental and ill advised matings, are they!!!

Vera