It’s always good to get your female dog spayed as soon as possible. This will keep her healthy, but it’ll also prevent unwanted pregnancies. But, if you’re looking to have just one litter or find a female who’s already pregnant, when can you sterilize a female dog after pregnancy? We have all the answers here.
Wean The Puppies First
When the puppies are about four to six weeks old, they should be able to begin eating solid food. At this point, you can start thinking about getting your female dog spayed.
Even once the puppies are no longer nursing, you’ll need to wait for the mother’s milk to dry up. This can take up to another two weeks.
The mother’s milk needs to dry up because the surgery for spaying comes close to the mammary glands. So if they accidentally hit this gland, milk could spill out in the middle of surgery.
So, if you’re unsure about whether or not the milk is dried up, then wait a solid two weeks after the puppies stop nursing.
All in all, this could take up to eight weeks total.
Be sure to talk about the process with your dog’s vet. They’ll explain the procedure to you and be able to help determine when the right time is to sterilize a female dog after pregnancy.
Should You Wait For Your Dog To Have A Litter Before Spaying?
Unless you adopted your dog, who was already pregnant, or you plan on breeding her, then no. However, you should spay your female pup before going into her first heat.
If you wait for your dog to have her first litter, you’d be contributing to the rising issue of dog overpopulation.
In addition, it may cause some health issues for your doggo.
Should You Wait For Your Dog To Go Into Her First Heat Cycle Before Spaying?
The short answer is no. If you’re not planning on getting your dog pregnant, there’s no reason for her to go into her first heat cycle.
However, sometimes it may happen before surgery, which can be out of your control. If you can help it, talk to your vet and determine the best time to get her spayed before her first heat cycle.
If you sterilize a female dog before her first heat cycle, you can significantly reduce the risk of her getting mammary tumors later in life.
What Are The Health Benefits To Sterilize A Female Dog?
Puppies are cute, but if you spay your female dog before her first heat cycle, you significantly reduce the risk of getting certain diseases.
For example, spaying can help prevent the following in the uterus (since it’s removed entirely):
- Infections
- Diseases
- Cancer
In addition, the risk of breast tumors will also be reduced.
There are behavioral effects of it as well. So, if you get your female dog spayed before her first heat cycle, you won’t need to worry about that.
Females go into heat for about four to five days every three weeks if not spayed. Their behavior may change, such as howling more and urinating more frequently. If that’s not something you want to deal with, then spaying her beforehand is best.
When Should You Sterilize A Female Dog?
The best time is before she goes into her first heat cycle. It has plenty of health and behavioral benefits for her, but it’s also less expensive than caring for a pregnant pup and then multiple puppies in the litter.
You should be able to get your female doggo spayed anywhere between six and nine months. As with anything else, talk about it with your vet first. They’ll help you decide the best time to get it done for your dog.
On the other hand, if a puppy is healthy enough, it can get spayed as early as eight weeks.
So, if your doggo does end up getting pregnant, you’ll be able to get her spayed around the same time as the puppies. If you get her spayed after a litter, then you should certainly get the puppies spayed and neutered as well. It’ll be healthy for all.
If you get a puppy from a breeder or find puppies at a shelter, they’ll already be spayed or neutered. This is so that no more unwanted pregnancies happen. In other words, depending on where you get your puppy from, you might not even have to worry about getting them spayed.
Spaying Your Female Dog Is Important
To keep up with your doggo’s overall health and prevent unwanted litters, then spaying your pup as early as possible is the way.
