Lasik Eye Correction

Spay at 4 months with already scheduled cherry eye surgery?

My bulldog has two cherry eyes and we are scheduling surgery for those to be repaired. I have spoken with several vets (more like 20) and half say one thing and half say the other as to spaying her at the same time. The first group says putting them under is very dangerous and so she should be spayed at the same time to avoid anesthesia in the future. The second group says 4 months is way too young to spay so she should have the cherry eye surgery now and the spay at 6 months. We don't have the option of postponing the eye surgery because we are having them tucked and those who know about that understand the risk of waiting--we've already waited a month for her second eye to 'pop'. So my question is, what would you do in this situation? I was under the impression the dangers of spaying under 6months is the risk of anesthesia.. so how does that make sense? When I asked the vets why they wouldn't spay at the same time, they said it was policy (thanks--sheesh!)

Public Comments

1. I would do the spay at teh same time. Some vets believe there is a greater risk of incontinence later in life for a female spayed early, but it is not proven. The anesthesia IS the bigger risk to your breed in my book.
2. if I were you I will let my dog undergo the surgery first
3. There is a forum with several VERY knowledgeable people and vets - I would go to their site and get some feedback there... they won't steer you wrong and you will get pro's and con's. http://www.chatevo.com/forums/
4. spay and have the surgery at the same time. postpone it for 2-4 weeks if needed for the spay, but i do not think she is too young.
5. I'd make sure that my veterinarian was comfortable with spaying her at the same time, since he is the one doing the surgery. But if he was comfortable that he was able to do it, I'd have no hesitation about having both done at once. 4 months is not too young for a spay - there are some vets who can and will spay at 8 weeks.
6. I work at a vet..and because it is so dangerous (and expensive) for anesthesia i would find a vet who will do it at once..Man...Sounds like they just want more money....and there isnt really anything wrong with spaying under 6 months..
7. Anesthesia is hard on them.. She will have to be kept quiet regardless.. I would get them both done at the same time and avoid the 2nd surgery in the future.
8. Tough question to answer. I personally don't like to spay or neuter my pets before 6 mos of age, but I have read that it isn't bad to spay or neuter them that early. Having the cherry eyes corrected at the same time of a spay or neuter is financially smart. You won't have to pay for anesthesia twice unless the "tuck" doesn't work. So, if it were me...I would get the cherry eye fixed first and them spay/neuter later after 6 mos...But that's just me.
9. There is absolutely no reason not to do both surgeries. You are correct, the danger is the anesthesia, NOT the spay. Putting her under again only puts her in that danger again. BTW: New drugs and procedures make anesthesia safer than ever. The SPCA and UC Davis Vet School are spaying animals as soon as they hit 2 pounds. That means, like, 6-8 WEEKS!
10. Any vet that tells you 4 months is to young to get fixed is a crackpot! What they are trying to do is get 2 surgeries...which is 2 full bills. Most vets recommend spay/neuter between 4-6 months.
11. Anesthesia is very dangerous for any animal. Do the surgery at the same time. My cat broke her leg at 3 months, and the vet suggested getting her fixed while she was under, even though he doesn't usually do it at this age, and we did. Leg and body healed just fine. My female dog, Chloe was fixed at four months, because we already own 3 male dogs, and even though all are fixed, we didn't want them fighting. At the vet's suggestion. And she healed so quickly, you'd never even know she was operated on. I've heard of too many dogs having reactions to the seditives on the second time round. So, I'd do it now.
12. If it were me, I would spay at the same time that I did the eye surgery. We had a dog spayed when she was 4-1/2 months old and it did not cause her any problems at all. I would do some online research if you want to check further. Just type spaying or early spaying of dog into your Yahoo or Google search and see what you come up with. Putting the dog under once is much safer than doing it twice.
13. There would be no problem with getting both done at the same time.
14. I would do the spay at the same time.Bulldogs and other pug nosed breeds are more sensitive to anesthesia,so why not have her done while she's already under instead of risking another anesthesia in two months? Four months is not that young for a spay,many shelters routinely spay and neuter puppies and kittens at 8 weeks,or 2 lbs.My German shepherd was spayed ay 5 months with no problems whatsoever.Oh,and good for you for getting your dog spayed! http://arbl.cvmbs.colostate.edu/hbooks/pathphys/reprod/petpop/early.html
15. as long as he is over 2 months and is over 2 lbs then he would be fine