When should I spay my puppy to protect her joints and ligaments?

Question

Hi! I live in Japan and have just adopted a puppy.She is a mix breed(poss. lab x okinawa dog x shiba)so we have no idea how big she is going to get.She has really long legs at present, and weighs around 6.5kg at4months old.It was suggested that she should be neutered at6months,but having read around this it seems that it could be better left until she was fully mature to help all her ligaments etc develop properly.We are both very active,so I would ideally like to protect her joints.Any advice? Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed | Female | unspayed | 5 months and 2 days old | 14.3 lbs

Dr. Elizabeth · Accepted Answer

The veterinary world is still undecided upon the benefits of waiting until after a pet has had a heat cycle relating to the ligaments. For smaller breed dogs, there may not be benefit. We do know there is a benefit as far as cancer reduction in dogs spayed before their first heat cycle. It is true that spaying a pet will decrease the sex hormones and this affects the joint physis. This however tends to be more of a concern for large breed dogs. At only 6.5 kg at four months old, Luna is not very likely to be a big dog. For the most part, when waiting until later to spay or neuter a pet it is involving dogs who are expected to be 34kg or above. I recommend to discuss your concerns with your primary care veterinarian as they will be the best to advise you. In general, maintaining good health of the joints involves maintaining a healthy body weight and feeding an appropriate food. Luna should eat a puppy food until she is about a-year-old. I hope this answers your questions and please feel free to post any additional questions.

When should I spay my puppy to protect her joints and ligaments?

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