Vet Blog
09/12/08
 Why does my female Toy Poodle have a knot in the
middle of her stomach? She also has a small one close to
one of her nipples. She is 7 1/2 years old. I’m getting ready to
have her spayed.
Kym
Caldwell, Ohio
The knot in the middle of the stomach sounds suspiciously like the infamous canine umbilicus, or belly button. I discussed canine and feline belly buttons in a recent post.
However, the mass adjacent to the nipple is more troubling. It may a mammary tumor. Malignant mammary tumors are known as breast cancer.
Female dogs and cats have very low rates of breast cancer if they are spayed before their first heat cycle. However, older, unspayed females develop mammary tumors at relatively high rates.
Most mammary tumors in cats are malignant. In dogs, many mammary tumors are less aggressive. But no matter what, the mass needs to be checked by your vet.
You say that your pet will be going to the vet to be spayed soon. The veterinarian should assess both areas before surgery. He or she will probably want to remove any suspicious masses at the time of the spay surgery. If a mass is removed, a laboratory pathologist will be able to analyze it to determine if it’s dangerous.
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08/12/08
 I rescued a two-year-old dog from the local
animal shelter. I was told that she was one of
many dogs taken from the home of a hoarder and had
lived most of her life in a crate.
Lily seems to be trying to “adopt” the
various squeeky toys that she and my other dogs
play with. She’ll lay near them and growls when
any of my other three dogs go near them. I’m
concerned about issues with the false pregnancy
syndrome. Do you have any suggestions on how to
deal with this before it escalates?
Gerry
Norco, CA
Not long ago I treated a female Border Collie that was having trouble giving birth. She was very sweet and friendly at first. But once she successfully delivered a puppy, that changed. If I approached the room where she and her puppy were located, she would lunge at me to keep me away from the puppy.
Protective maternal instincts are natural in dogs. Based upon your description, it sounds very likely that Lily is confusing her toys with puppies. This is leading to defensive growling that could escalate to outright aggression over time.
Maternal instincts in dogs are driven by hormones. Spayed dogs lack the hormones that cause protective maternal aggression. Therefore, the simplest way to deal with this problem is to have Lily spayed.
If Lily already has been spayed, two things could be going on. First, if she was spayed recently, she could still be under the influence of lingering hormones. In that case, the behavior should resolve over time as the hormones clear out of her body.
Second, there is a chance that the behavior you are witnessing is an expression of dominance rather than maternal instincts. Dominant dogs aggressively guard toys, food and anything else of value to dogs.
If spaying Lily does not solve the problem (or if she is already spayed), your best bet will be to consult with a behaviorist about managing dominance issues among your dogs.
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06/19/08
 My six-month-old, 3.5 pound Chihuahua is due for
spaying. I am nervous about complications. How do
I know if my vet does a good job? What is the
difference between my vet and a pet pal
rescue-spaying clinic (it is less expensive)?
Robin
St. Petersburg, FL
This is a very good question. The overwhelming majority of spays and neuters performed by veterinarians do not lead to major complications. Nonetheless, the risk of complications exists any time a pet undergoes surgery. Your desire to minimize that risk is very understandable.
Here is what I recommend: ask your vet some questions.
Surgeries performed by experienced vets generally have lower rates of complications than those performed by vets fresh out of school. Ask your vet how long she has been practicing. Ask her how many spays she has performed.
As well, surgical safety precautions vary widely among veterinary facilities. Does your vet run blood tests before surgery to ensure that your pet’s organs are functioning properly? Does she give IV fluids to help support blood pressure? Does she monitor heart rate, blood oxygenation levels, and blood pressure continuously throughout surgery? Does she provide thermal support to prevent low body temperature? Is she aggressive and proactive about treating pain? Does she use the most modern and safest forms of anesthesia?
The only way to know whether your vet does these things is to ask her. You can ask the same questions at the rescue-spaying clinic. Once you have the answers you will be able to make an informed decision that is in the best interest of your dog.
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06/09/08
What do I need to do to prepare my pets for their
operations - my female and male are getting
“fixed” today.
Kelly
Cardiff, CA
For young cats and dogs, surgery does not require a great deal of home preparation. The most important thing is to ensure that their stomachs are empty when you drop them off for the operations. Food or water in the stomach may cause them to regurgitate during the procedure, which can lead to pneumonia or throat problems. Your veterinarian should provide specific fasting instructions prior to the surgery.
Some veterinarians prescribe oral pain medications or antibiotics to be given the day before surgery. These are not used in all cases. If your vet has prescribed these medications, be sure to follow the instructions carefully. If your pets are on regular medications that have not been prescribed specifically for the surgeries, ask your veterinarian whether they should be administered in the period leading up to the operations.
Although you did not ask about the days after the surgeries, I have some advice to offer on the matter. Monitor your pets´appetites, thirst and production of urine and feces carefully. It is not abnormal to have a mildly depressed appetite for 24 hours after surgery. Mild constipation is also common. However, call your vet if your pet experiences complete loss of appetite or total inability to urinate or defecate.
As well, monitor your pets´activity levels. They should be kept quiet for several days after surgery. Do not let them play roughly together. And, call your vet if either one seems exceptionally lethargic or inactive.
All pets need medications to treat pain after surgery. Follow your veterinarian´s instructions for these medicines.
Check the incisions daily. Call your vet if you notice swelling, redness, discharge, a strange odor, or an open area on the incision. Do not allow your pets to lick their incisions.
I have one final piece of advice. The vast majority of spays and neuters go well and do not lead to complications. Nonetheless, do not hesitate to call your vet if you have any questions or suspect that something might be wrong. It is better to be safe than sorry.
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04/23/08
The April 1, 2008 issue of the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association (JAVMA) reports on a law that will take effect this month in Los Angeles. An excerpt from the article is below.
This April in Los Angeles, one of the nation’s strictest pet sterilization laws takes effect, mandating that most of the city’s pet owners have their cat or dog spayed or neutered by the time the animal is four months old. Certain animals, such as service dogs and those belonging to registered breeders, are exempted from the law.
Supporters of the law hope that it will reduce the number of unwanted cats and dogs that are euthanized each year in the city. The JAVMA article states that in 2007 8,960 cats and 6,049 dogs were euthanized because homes could not be found for them.
However, not everyone supports the law.
Pedigree groups such as the American Kennel Club and the Cat Fanciers’ Association are opposed to mandatory spay and neuter laws, saying dog and cat overpopulation is a complex problem that goes beyond reproductive status to multiple aspects of owner irresponsibility. The Los Angeles ordinance will be difficult to enforce and evaded by owners who don’t licence their pets with the city.
Ah, controversy. Personally, I am ambivalent about this law. From a population standpoint, it makes perfect sense. It breaks my heart to think of 15,000 unwanted pets being euthanized each year in Los Angeles. The law likely will bring that number down.
But I do not treat populations. I treat individuals. The jury is still out on whether four months of age is the best time to sterilize a pet, as I mentioned in a previous post. So, although the law may be the best thing for Los Angeles’ cats and dogs in general, there are some individuals for whom the law may be less than ideal.
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04/21/08
When my little girl Hae Yu (a cat) was spayed, she
developed a seroma. The swelling went down pretty
well and I thought it was gone. On her check up a
a month or so after the spaying, the vet said she looked fine.
It is now about three months later and she’s
nearly a year old. I am noticing that she
has a swinging belly. I’m not sure if it is just
belly fat or what. It does kind of feel like
fluid.
Her sister, Sally, healed just fine and
has a flat belly. Do you think it’s just fat?
She sure doesn’t seem to be in any distress.
Can they have loose bellies at
such a young age? Thanks for your thoughts.
Barbara
New Jersey
Seromas are common, generally mild complications that can follow any type of surgery. They occur when fluid accumulates underneath the skin in the area of the incision. Most seromas resolve within two or three weeks, and they usually don’t require any major treatment.
If your vet re-evlauated Hae Yu and determined that the seroma had healed, then I doubt that it is playing any role in the current situation.
What is most likely is that Hae Yu is developing fat deposits on her abdomen. These are officially called abdominal fat pads, but some folks prefer terms such as “Buddha belly”, “beer belly” (which isn’t really appropriate since most cats shun beer) or “dangling participle”.
These fat deposits occur primarily in spayed and neutered cats. They occur on the rear portion of the abdomen. Cats do not have to be overweight for them to develop. They do not form in all cats, but in some cats they are pronounced. One patient of mine, a Sphynx cat, was completely hairless and developed an exceptionally prominent pair of fat pads on his abdomen after he was neutered. The pads were unsightly, but they were harmless.
And that is the key thing to remember. Abdominal fat pads are, in general, harmless. You might want to have your vet take a look at Hae Yu to confirm that nothing else is going on. But my hunch is that there isn’t much to worry about.
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04/15/08
I have a 15-month-old female reindeer type
Chihuahua that has been going about halfway into
heat. Then she stops. I do plan to spay her but was
wondering if there could be a serious problem
that’s causing this?
Tammy
Jacksonville, FL
It is very unlikely that your dog has a serious problem.
Heat cycles are controlled by hormones. And, especially in younger animals, hormones sometimes seem to have a mind of their own. As anyone who has lived through their teenage years can attest, hormonal surges and ebbs are the norm during the transition to adulthood.
What you are seeing with your dog probably is temporary. If you did nothing, she most likely would begin to cycle normally over time. However, since you are planning on spaying her, I recommend that the procedure be performed soon. Spaying her will eliminate the chaos that the hormonal fluctuations cause in her body.
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03/31/08
I have 2 female cats, that I would like to have
spayed. What I am wondering is if it is a good
idea to have them both done at once, or one at a
time? They are both 5 years old, house pets, and
were born here in our house, never separated. They
are inside cats, but their “heat cycles” always
seem to be on and off, then on again. Please
advise me what is the best to do, bring them both
in, or let one heal before the other one gets
spayed? Thank You.
Linda
Oak River, Mb. Canada
It doesn’t really matter.
If both cats are spayed at the same time, they will recover at the same time. This will reduce the total recovery time. While your cats are recovering from their surgeries, they must not run or play. It will probably be easier to manage this if the surgeries are done at the same time.
What are the downsides to performing both surgeries on the same day? For some people, having both cats in the hospital could lead to worrying, hand-wringing, and loneliness. And, I suppose that a freak event, such as a fire at the veterinary hospital on the day of the surgery, could put both cats at risk. The odds of that are very low indeed!
On balance, it probably makes the most sense to spay both cats at once. But you should do whatever makes you comfortable–either choice is completely reasonable.
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03/01/08
People who have adopted a new pet often wonder about the ideal time to spay or neuter their cat or dog. In fact, questions of this nature are among the most common that I receive through Dogster and Catster.
A recent and very lengthy survey in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association (JAVMA) served as a comprehensive review of available information on the subject. And there is a great deal of information. The article cites 183 sources.
Sadly, even 183 sources are nowhere near enough to sort through a subject this complicated. The author’s final conclusion is that there is no particular age that can be considered the “best” age for spaying or neutering a pet.
The most basic decision to make regarding the timing of spay or neuter surgery is whether to perform the surgery before or after the pet reaches puberty. Surgeries performed before puberty are sometimes called early spays and neuters.
Some of the benefits of early spaying and neutering include decreased surgical time and lower rates of surgical complications (it is simpler to spay or neuter an animal that is not fully grown). Females that are spayed before their first heat are at no risk of pregnancy and almost no risk of breast cancer. Males are less likely to become aggressive.
However, there is some evidence that early spays and neuters may contribute to obesity later in life (other evidence suggests that they do not). As well, dogs that undergo surgery early in life may be at increased risk of knee injury and hip dysplasia.
The more you research the subject, the more confusing it becomes. Pets that are spayed or neutered early may be less likely to suffer from separation anxiety, but more likely to suffer from fear of noises. They suffer lower rates of some cancers (breast, testicular, ovarian, uterine) and higher rates of others (prostate, bladder, bone). They are more likely to develop incontinence, and less likely to develop prostatitis.
So, what is the best course of action? The preponderance of the evidence suggests that performing spays and neuters before puberty is what’s best. But it is not an open-and-shut case.
I recommend that you find a good vet who is willing to discuss your pet’s situation. Since no formula can provide an answer regarding the ideal timing of spays and neuters, your best bet is to work with your vet to time the surgery based on your pet’s lifestyle, needs, and breed.
The survey cited in this post is J Am Vet Med Assoc 2007;231:1665 - 1675
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Why does my female Toy Poodle have a knot in the
You have questions. 