“Desexing” is the name given to the permanent removal of your pets’ reproductive organs. Males are ‘castrated’ which involves the removal of the testicles only. Females are ‘spayed’ which involves the removal of both ovaries and uterus to the level of the cervix (ovario-hysterectomy or OHE).
While desexing is a routine surgical procedure, any procedure, especially involving anaesthetics, carries an element of risk to the patient. It is important that you understand the level of risk and our protocols that provide your pet with the safest possible outcome.
If you are unsure about surgical desexing, why not consider chemical desexing, which involves administering a drug that temporarily halts the production of testosterone. Click here for further details, FAQs and to take the ‘suitability quiz’.
Common myths about desexing
There are a number of myths surrounding pet desexing, many of which can deter pet owners from making the decision. Lets debunk a few.
Myth 1: Desexing makes pets overweight
While it’s true that desexed pets may have a slower metabolism, this can easily be managed with proper diet and exercise. Desexing alone won’t make your pet overweight, but adjusting their food intake to suit their new energy levels will prevent unnecessary weight gain. As a general rule, we suggest reducing food intake by 25% in the month after desexing.
Myth 2: Desexing changes their personality
Desexing can influence some behaviours, such as reducing aggression or roaming tendencies, but it doesn’t fundamentally change your dog’s personality. Your pet will remain the loving, playful companion you know, only with fewer of the hormonally-driven behaviours.
Myth 3: Female dogs should have a litter
There is no medical benefit to allowing a female dog to have a litter before being desexed, and there are definite risks to pregnancy, including the need for a caesarian in some instances.
What age is safe to desex?
In short, there is no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ answer but there are a few things to consider when deciding when to desex your pet.
Historically the recommended age for desexing a dog was six months, however at Nicklin Way Veterinary Surgery we know that each of our patients are unique. Our veterinary team will take into consideration everything that is special about your dog before giving any recommendations:
- breed
- adult body weight
- behaviour
- whether you are going to breed from your pet.
Most smaller breeds have few or no known issues with the age of desexing, but many medium and larger breeds benefit from a delay until they have reached skeletal maturity. Delaying the age of desexing in medium and larger breed dogs can help reduce the incidence of hip dysplasia and cruciate disease, and can also be helpful for females to help prevent urinary incontinence later in life.
Dachshunds, although small in stature, are unique because of their length of spine and benefit from a later desexing to reduce the incidence of intervertebral disc disease (IVDD).
Brachycephalic dogs (bulldogs, frenchies, pugs, etc) could also benefit from waiting until they are older to allow their airways to mature, and if they suffer from BOAS (Brachycephalic Airway Obstructive Syndrome), this can be corrected before or at the same time as desexing, depending on the severity of the condition.
Recommended desexing age by adult weight
- Under 20kg: 6 months
- 20-30kg: 12 months
- 30-40kg: 15 months
- Over 40kg: 18 months
Recommended desexing age by breed
- Shih Tzu, Maltese, Pomeranian, Miniture Schnauzer, Chihuahua, or small cross breeds: 6 months
- Labrador, Golden Retriever, Borzois, Australian Kelpie, Bassett Hound, British Bulldog, Mini Dachshund, Dachshund, French Bulldog: 12 months
- Doberman, German Shepherd, Greyhound, Old English Sheepdog, Rhodesian Ridgeback: 15 months
- Great Dane, Bullmastiff, Rottweiler, St Bernard, Newfoundland: 18 months
It is important to note that it is not a “one size fits all” operation. It’s more a “case-by-case” decision based on the dog’s age, adult body weight, breed and medical history.
If you have any more questions or would like to discuss further, then please call us on 5493 2655.
So what happens when my pet gets desexed?
On arrival your pet will receive a thorough examination to check their general health prior to the procedure. This includes listening to your pet’s heart, taking their temperature and documenting their respiration and pulse rates. We can answer any questions you may have at this time.
A pre-anaesthetic blood test is recommended to provide us with critical information about the function of your pet’s organ systems. Generally this cannot be detected by a physical exam. A healthy organ system is essential for metabolising anaesthetics. Diseased organs can be adversely affected by anaesthetic, or make the anaesthetic unsafe.
When your veterinarian is happy with the condition of your pet, they will receive a sedative by injection. This will ensure your pet is comfortable and not stressed. It also minimises the amount of anaesthetic we have to use which means a faster recovery.
The dedicated surgical theatre is thoroughly cleaned every day to provide your pet with the most sterile environment possible. Each surgical kit is sterilised before use to stop cross infecting your pet and other patients.
Your pet’s intravenous anaesthetic agent is administered via an indwelling cannula and induces anaesthesia within seconds. Your pet is then intubated to administer gaseous anaesthetic agent and maintain unconsciousness.
Gaseous anaesthetic is used to ensure a smoother and faster recovery. All pets (except male cats as their procedure is less invasive and much faster) have gaseous anaesthetic.
Once safely under anaesthetic our qualified surgical nurse will clip the surgery site and clean the skin with an antiseptic cleaning scrub. Your pet will receive intravenous fluids during the procedure to help maintain blood pressure and protect heart and their kidneys while under anaesthetic.
Your pet is then transferred into the theatre and a sterile drape is placed around the surgery site to help prevent contamination with non-sterile items such as hair.
Our anaesthetic monitoring equipment is state of the art. This monitoring equipment will alert us of any complications. A big investment, but well worth it.
During your pet’s procedure , our qualified veterinary nurse remains with your pet in the theatre and records vital signs every 5 minutes. Although we have the highest level of monitoring equipment, we also manually record your pets vital signs, again increasing the safety.
Your surgical nurse will wait with your pet until the they are alert and their tube can be removed. When safe, your pet will then be transferred into recovery bed where they will be closely monitored until fully awake. In recovery, pets have their own bed with a warm blanket and heating pad to keep them warm. Like you and I, it is vital to be kept warm during and after an anaesthetic. Your pet’s surgical nurse will monitor their temperature during recovery.
Your vet or surgical nurse will contact you when you’re pet is out of theatre to give you an update on how quickly they are recovering and to confirm the discharge time. The instruments are then cleaned and sterilised using an autoclave. Our autoclave reaches extreme temperatures to ensure sterility. Sterilisation takes approximately 30 minutes per kit.
Our staff will telephone you 24 hours after your pet’s procedure to ensure they are recovering well and are comfortable. We then invite you to bring your pet in for complimentary post operative check up 3 days later. Your pet will have dissolvable stitches placed underneath the skin. There are no external sutures visible which increase post-operative comfort for your pet and minimises wound infection and self trauma.
Desexing prices for quality surgery at Nicklin Way Veterinary Surgery
Desexing prices include all the outlined quality care, plus:
- Pain relief – an injection given to relieve pain, effective for 24 hours and three days of pain relief to go home with.
- Intravenous fluids – help to support kidneys throughout the procedure and maintain blood pressure.
- Post operative check – our veterinary nurses will check over the wound and make sure your pet is recovering well.
Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any questions on 5493 2655,
