So Athena is going in to get spayed on Thursday. I know it is whats best for her but I am so scared. Will it change her demeanor/temperment? I love her just as she is.

Will she know that "i did this to her" and not like me as much?

Will she associate the car with going to get spayed and not trust it anymore? I love taking her places like petsmart.

Is there any risk involved?

Will she cry all the time because she hurts?

This is my first dog and I'm shocked at how much I love her. I never thought I would be a dog person but she totally has be wrapped around her little paw.

Please tell me about your experiences and how your dogs responded to it.

Awwww, I feel your pain! I was so scared to get Mya spayed that we waited until she was 3yrs old! I'm going to be really honest with you...I was freaking for no reason! She was totally fine! When i went to pick her up from the vets office she was happily hanging out with the girls at front desk. She came home and slept that entire night and was back to normal within 2 days. She wasn't crying or anything and does not associate the car, vets office, or definitely not us with it.

It's very scary...I know...believe me...i cried, but it's nothing. She'll be just fine! Just have a new toy for her when she gets home and make her as comfty as possible and she'll be back to her normal self in no time! =)

oh, and the incision might look a bit red and swollen, but that's normal. You'll also need to take her back to have the stitches removed like 10 days later.

THanks so much Melissa!! That helps!

Ditto Melissa!

It had been like 20 years since we had had our first girl sprayed when we took Sabaka in for neutering last month. Be ready for possible crazy questions from the vet that you will not know the answers to. I had to decide on the spot if I wanted him to have blood work done before the surgery... "Nice to have done" and "More $$, please." Then, would you like an EKG and heart monitor hooked up?... Once again, "Less important for a very young pup" but "More $$, please." How about us using a laser instead of a scalpel. And then there's an new post-surgery laser therapy that speeds healing. And, oh yeah, lest we forget... we'd like to shave the forearm and add a port "just in case" we have an emergency... and (you guessed it) "More $$, please"

I actually don't mind paying money if I know I am buying a service that will benefit my dog. I wish I had a list of all these "nice to do" procedures that I could have researched in advance. Perhaps you could call and ask for that so you will not be blindsided like I was.

Funny story... The vet tech who was with me for all the signing of this paperwork secretly asked me NOT to request the laser instead of scalpel for a neutering since it takes longer to set up the laser than to do the whole procedure. LOL

Good Luck!! Make sure you let us know how it goes!!

Melissa's dead on It'd be foolish (and hypocritical) of me to tell you not to worry, so instead ... I'll just offer reassurance that she'll be fine and you'll find that none of your fears will come true. The worst part - truly - is that she'll have to take it easy until the stitches come out, so you aren't supposed to rough house with her or walk her, etc until then. That part sucks cuz you'll miss it, and she'll be feeling fine in a couple days so it'll be hard to remember. Take it easy, mama, she'll be just fine and back to normal soon enough!

All should go just fine, the only time I had an issue post-op with my dogs is with Mishka. She wouldn't eat dinner the first night and just seemed sick/sluggish. I kept her hydrated and the next day she was back to normal. Each react differently to anesthesia and surgery but your vet should sent you home with instructions for what's "normal" and/or what's not. I've had all my dogs done at clinics, never at a real actual vet hospital but they've never had any problems. They were all happy to see me when I picked them up.

My dogs were back to normal and ready to go within a day. Maybe 2. That's going to be the most difficult part! Getting them to calm the heck down...

arooroomom wrote:

That's going to be the most difficult part! Getting them to calm the heck down...

Definitely the biggest issue that I had! LOL! It's like AHHHHHH NO DON'T JUMP YOU'RE GOING TO PULL A STITCH! LOL!

firecallie wrote:

So Athena is going in to get spayed on Thursday. I know it is whats best for her but I am so scared. Will it change her demeanor/temperment? I love her just as she is.

Her temperament will not change, she'll be the same dog coming out of the spay as she was going into it.

firecallie wrote:

Will she know that "i did this to her" and not like me as much?

First off, dogs don't hold grudges like people do. Second, she is not going to view the spay as something "you" did to her. And third, she is going to be THRILLED when you pick her up and take her home and she gets all kinds of extra lovin' and attention from you.

firecallie wrote:

Will she associate the car with going to get spayed and not trust it anymore? I love taking her places like petsmart.

Absolutely not. Don't forget the car already has lots of positive association AND you will be "rescuing" her from the vet when you pick her up and bring her home.

firecallie wrote:

Is there any risk involved?

Of course there is risk involved with any surgery and anesthesia, which is why we ALL worry when our furkids go in for spays/neuters or any other surgery. But keep in mind that spays and neuters are probably the most common surgeries performed, the likelihood of problems is minimal. As long as she's going to an experienced vet I'm sure all will go just fine.

firecallie wrote:

Will she cry all the time because she hurts?

She will probably be sore the first day or two or three. Dogs don't tend to advertise weakness (survival instinct) so I would guess that she'll probably just stay quiet and sleep or lay still in her bed the first 24-48 hours.

Don't be surprised if she refuses to eat the first day or two, that's perfectly normal but do offer her food and keep an eye on her to make sure she's at least drinking. You don't want her to bother the stitches so do keep an eye on her and don't let her pick at them. An e-collar can help if she won't leave the site alone. None of my dogs needed an e-collar, they did regularly check themselves at the surgery site but they never really bothered it and if they did I just focused their attention on something else. Some vets will offer take home pain meds and others won't. I ALWAYS ask for take home pain meds whenever any of my pets have any type of surgery. You do want her to be in a little bit of pain so that she doesn't overdo it with too much activity but at the same time you don't want her in excruciating pain. I'd ask for take home pain meds and administer them per the vets instructions as needed. You can always stop giving the pain meds prematurely if you think she no longer needs them.

I've had all 3 of my dogs spayed/neutered and even had one of my guinea pigs neutered and all of them went just FINE! I will admit, like most everyone here, that I did worry up a storm but in the end everything has always gone smoothly for all my pets and all the surgeries they've ever had.

I hope that helps ease your worry some, I know you'll worry regardless but I'm sure she'll be fine.

Well Athena is back home and the vet told us to make her wear the E-collar. She hates it. She hasn't stopped whining despite the pain meds.

I'm glad she made it through and is back home okay. Don't worry too much, let her rest and recuperate.

Glad she's home Zoey loved the ecollar lol but embry was terrified of her when she was wearing it and wouldn't go near her..

I'm glad that she's home! My vet told me to keep the e-collar on them also, but I would take it off when I was watching them to give them a break. Especially the first night. If you see her starting to mess with it put it back on. Of course, she's not in front of you leave it on. She's probably whining because she doesn't like it. She'll calm down by tomorrow

I'm sure that you're majorly relieved to have to gotten this over with!

I'm so glad everything went well and she's home! I'm taking Niko next Tuesday to get neutered and I'm totally nervous!! He's very lazy and I'm worried that he'll decide anesthesia is nice and not wake up!! :'( I hear you- I never saw myself as a dog person, but I am sooooo wrapped around his little paw!

Dumb question... e-collar? To me this means an electric collar... what am I missing?

Elizabethan Collar - the "cone".

I'm totally the exact same way. I didn't even want a dog as of a few months ago, but Appa has me wrapped around his finger. I'm taking him in to get neutered this friday. Hope it all goes well and he doesn't have to wear his e-collar much. Luckily I can take the week to be with him after surgery to keep an eye on him.

Ah-ha! And me... with a master's in history specializing in the early modern period of Britain...

Koda wrote:

Ah-ha! And me... with a master's in history specializing in the early modern period of Britain...

Too funny!! (But I had to Google image it- I was thinking electric too) I hope Niko does get a cone! Unfortunately, the vet said he probably won't need one b/c they do all internal sutures with the thought- if there is nothing to pick at, they won't pick at it! : ) She also refers to it as the "cone of shame."

I've heard cone of shame, never heard of calling it an e-collar though!

Hailey didn't need one when she was spayed. She was great with it and they did all internal sutures as well

I just got my little Delilah spayed yesterday! She HATED the cone, so I got her the comfy cone. It is definitely an upgrade from the plastic one. For starters, she can actually get to the food bowl and water bowl. It's made of fabric so she has a lot easier time sleeping and even though she doesn't like wearing it, she tolerates it. With the E - Collar, she would just stand in the same place and look at me until i took it off her. She did this for 45 minutes this morning. That's when I decided it was tiem to get her something different haha. I recommend it. The website even has a list of retailers in your area(thank god, I couldn't find it anywhere!). Seriously, if you want your Sib to be happier, just splurge on it.

http://www.allfourpaws.com/the_comfy_cone.php