What is sterilization?

A surgical procedure to remove the female ovaries, uterus, or male testicles so that they can no longer reproduce. Female dogs: The operation is abbreviated as OHE (Ovario-Hytero-Ectomy), which is "ovario-hysterectomy". Male dogs: The main procedure is to remove the two testicles from the scrotum.

When to do sterilization

When is the best time to do sterilization? In fact, there have always been different opinions on this. There are different reports abroad, and domestic animal doctors also have different timetables determined by themselves. Generally speaking: After a female dog goes into estrus for the first time, because it has gone through an estrus, the pituitary gland, ovaries and the entire hormone cycle have gone through it. Its sexual orientation is stable, and its personality and development have reached the most complete stage. , is the best time to be neutered; male dogs are mostly determined according to the owner's wishes. After the dog reaches sexual maturity, they will have territorial behavior, so some dogs are sterilized when they are 6 to 8 months old; However, dogs develop at different speeds. Some dogs may develop relatively slowly and have not yet passed the stage of sexual maturity, which may have an impact on the sound development of the body, so you can choose to delay it a little later. Most animal doctors will also recommend 9 ~10 months to undergo sterilization surgery.

Before spay/neuter surgery

Before spaying or neutering your dog, you must have a physical examination and make sure the dog is healthy before performing the surgery. 1. If it is a female dog, it is not recommended to undergo neutering surgery during estrus; 2. If it is a male dog, it is recommended to go out less and avoid contact with female dogs for a period of time before the operation. It is also not recommended to perform surgery during estrus. For sterilization surgery, you need to make an appointment with the veterinary surgeon. Because anesthesia is used during the operation, the dog needs to be on an empty stomach. Otherwise, the anesthesia will stop its gastrointestinal peristalsis and cause flatulence. If there is food in the stomach, it may vomit. , is very dangerous; because the dog cannot swallow under anesthesia at this time, and it is easy for the larynx and trachea to be blocked due to regurgitation, causing suffocation. Therefore, you need to fast for 12 hours before surgery.

Operation duration

The duration of the sterilization surgery for female dogs is about 20 to 25 minutes. The surgery for male dogs is faster, only 5 minutes. The recovery time from anesthesia is about 2 hours. Usually, the patient is sent to the hospital in the morning and can be taken home in the evening.

Do you need to be hospitalized after surgery?

Some hospitals may recommend staying in the hospital for 1-2 days before performing surgery. In fact, for the dog's sake, the hospital is more scary for it, because it doesn't know what happened. If it is left in a strange place for two days, it will feel uneasy and feel that it has been abandoned. Another is the hidden danger of nosocomial infection, if the hospital is not disinfected enough, it is likely that other diseases will be contracted in the hospital after the operation. Therefore, from both psychological and physical considerations, it is not recommended that dogs be hospitalized (especially before surgery). After surgery, it depends on the dog’s condition. If possible, it is best not to live in the dog.

Care after sterilization

The recovery situation after sterilization is different for each dog. Male dogs will be much faster than female dogs because the surgery is performed outside the body and does not touch the abdominal cavity. As for female dogs, internal surgery is required. In order to avoid wound infection, it is very important to keep the wound dry. Do not expose it to water or take a bath. In addition, do not let the dog lick the wound, so it is recommended to prepare Elizabethan rings in advance. Because licking can cause the wound to become inflamed, swollen, or even bitten. If this happens, take your dog to the hospital quickly and have it re-sutured. The wound on a girl's dog will be larger. It is recommended that the owner stays with her for a few days after the operation and does not allow her to lick the wound and avoid strenuous exercise. After going home from surgery, do not eat immediately. The anesthetic has not completely worn off yet. Eating food at this time may still easily cause vomiting. After the anesthesia completely wears off, it is recommended that the female dog feed half of the usual amount before defecating to avoid eating too much; it is best to return to the normal diet after the first defecation. During the sterilization operation, the blood loss of dogs is generally about 2 milliliters, and there is no need to supplement with special nutrients. There will be a wound recovery period of 7-10 days after the operation. The doctor will prescribe anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs to the dog, and then take the dog to the hospital at the time informed by the doctor to check whether the sutures can be removed. When the dog recovers well, the sutures will be removed. You can take a bath and resume your normal life. One thing to note is that after sterilization, you need to pay attention to the control of feeding to prevent excessive obesity from affecting the body.

Other preparations required

1. Elizabethan ring to prevent the dog from licking the wound diaper, because when the dog comes back after surgery, the anesthesia may not be completely effective, and urinary incontinence may occur
2. Diapers, because when the dog comes back after surgery, the anesthesia may not be completely effective, and urinary incontinence may occur
3. Paper towels, wet wipes, etc. The dog may drool and can be used to wipe it
4. Eye drops. When the anesthesia has not expired, the dog’s eyes may be dry when they are open. You can drop eye drops to avoid drying of the cornea.
5. Garbage bags, which can be used in case of vomiting.
6. Warm items such as blankets. If the sterilization operation is performed in winter, the dog can be wrapped in a wrap if he is afraid of the cold on the way home after the operation. The dog's resistance is relatively low just after the operation, so as to prevent catching a cold.
7. Fans pointed out that the most important thing is to put on a show with the doctor, pretending to be snatched away by the doctor, and pretending that he cannot be snatched away.