Spaying and Growth

Veterinarians and pet enthusiasts alike have brought up various concerns about the best time to have female pets spayed. While those seeking to keep dog and cat populations under control strongly support early spaying, others suggest that it may be in the pet's best interest to wait until maturity.

  1. Concerns

    • Pet owners and veterinarians who suggest that animals be spayed after they are sexually mature bring up several reasons why it may be better to wait. For example, some have suggested that early spaying affects healthy growth, contributes to obesity and hinders urinary tract growth. Other owners simply believe it is cruel to subject kittens and puppies to surgery at such an early age. Veterinarians have performed multiple studies to confirm whether these concerns are valid.

    Urinary Tract Development

    • A combination of studies, including one published in April of 1998 by the College of Veterinary Medicine at University of Illinois, have reached several conclusions about early spaying. The first of these results revealed that early spaying does not hinder urinary tract development in any way. Female pets that have been spayed early in life have fully functioning urinary systems. Furthermore, there was no difference in the urinary tracts of pets that were spayed at 7 weeks as opposed to those who were spayed at 7 months.

    Genitalia

    • The studies did show that early spaying is likely to affect the growth of the external genitalia. In cats that were spayed while they were kittens, vulva size was significantly smaller than in cats that were not spayed. However, the diminished vulva size did not affect the health of the animal.

    Size

    • An article published by Dr. Rick Rosebrock states that early spaying affects the growth plates in a way that makes certain bones grow slowly for a longer period of time, causing spayed animals to grow larger than those that are not spayed. Spayed animals also tend to have slightly more fat than pets that remain unspayed. While the increase in growth is measurable, it does not have a major effect on the size of the pet.

    General Conclusions

    • The overall conclusion from studies on the effects of early spaying show that, while spaying may have minor effects on the growth of the pet, none of these results are significant to the quality of life or health of the pet. Veterinarians continue to maintain that spaying, especially when done early in life, is ideal for both the health of the pet and the size of pet populations at large.