Yes, your dog your choice Jazzi, (no choice for the dog) but please think what is best for your dog not just for you. I certainly would let her have a season and then spay three months after (it makes complete sense to me when her hormones will be stable and she has had time to mature). No harm will come to her if she waits another few months. Even if letting her have her season causes you a little inconvenience, that amounts to nothing in terms of her lifetime.
Sorry for the plain speaking, but your dog should come first and IMO spaying should not be for the convenience of the owner.
Okay, let me make one thing clear. I put up a post stating Holly was booked in for a spay next week. I didn’t ask for, or expect, criticism, and biased opinions.
I am getting very, very disillusioned now with this forum, and on that note, am taking a break.
Jazzi she’s your baby and you and your vet know her better than us. Personally even if I ask advice here I still do what I and my vet decide is best.
There are often things we all do for years then suddenly it becomes obvious it’s better to do it another way. The idea of spaying after a season may be one of them, I have no idea at the moment but any things possible.
If I was having a male I’d keep him entire all his life after our experience last time, but a girl is different and the protection this gives them is immense. When you do it is up to you what’s important is its done.
Now I really hope it all goes well, I’m sure it will. I am betting you are more worried on the day than she is. She’s a happy girl from what you say and that won’t change, she will be happier after a few days.
Good luck let us know how it goes.
I think that you have to take into account that vets are not totally altruistic they do these things for money .
The operation for a male dog is much simpler and rarely leads to complications .
Unneutered dogs can breed indiscriminatory and there are far too many unwanted dogs in the country as it is .
The key is find a vet you trust. And research as much as you can. I didn’t realise how castration affected a nervous dog until we did it to one. I can stop a male breeding easy enough with out castrating him. The medical reasons for castration aren’t there either unlike the reasons for spaying a girl.
Vets are going to spay I can’t imagine they are telling anyone to spay early for the money as they will get it anyway albeit a few weeks later. That makes no sense at all.
Jazzi knows her dog and her vet. That’s enough for me.
There are definite benefits to getting a make dog castratated if there is no intention to breed from him.
Entire male dogs roam and are very clever at getting away after a bitch in heat .
Some also mark their territory by peeing all over th eplace including furniture .
They can become more aggressive .
They also have an increased risk of testicular cancer .
Castrating doesn’t not in my experience change a bold dog into a nervous one .In fact I have never known of such a case .
It can change a nervous dog into a nervous aggressive dog. I never mentioned a bold dog.
as for roaming not on my watch they don’t. Keep them on a lead or in a secure garden. That goes for girls and boys. Dogs roaming are illegal in most areas.
I am sorry Jazzi is cross and is taking a break and feel I have contributed to this decision. However, she did say she felt wicked inflicting it on Holly, but knows it has to be done and was of the opinion that the sooner the better. From this I formed the impression that Jazzi was not sure. Jazzi has had more than a few problems with Holly as a puppy and has had concerns about her health and how robust she is (or was) and we have PM’d each other about it on one or two occasions. Apart from my belief that bitches are better to have a season before they are spayed I took this history into account when I posted. I will desist from giving Jazzi further advice as she is obviously annoyed with some of the responses folks have made and I have no wish to add to it.
No it can’t .
I have had many dogs castrated as I worked as a volunteer in humane shelters all over the world .
Castrating doesn’t make dogs nervous .
Maybe yours was a one off and would have been nervous anyway .
Nervous dogs can be aggressive .
Of course we know you are perfect Julie and would never let a dog roam but others are less infailible .
Most male dogs don’t know that’s it’s illegal to roam and will do it anyway .
Don’t we all feel wicked when we put them through medical things I certainly do, I always think I’d rather it was me at least I understand why things are happening.
Jazzi had a difficult start, I can see why she’s fed up, each time she posts about her little fur ball she gets someone thinking they know better than her. All she wanted and needed was a virtual hug to get her through the ordeal not a thesis on why she was wrong.
Oh do stop it muddy. I’ve had many aggressive dogs you learn quickly how to control the situation that’s why mine never roam. That and it’s illegal and livestock have to be protected.
Nothing to do with perfection.
And it’s well known now nervous dogs can easily become nervous aggressive after castration. If I’d read up about it properly we would have avoided the problem. I didn’t and followed advice on forums like this and had 9 years of aggressive dog that could so easily have been avoided.
How people put their own neuroses onto a dog .
A dog live s in the moment it doesn’t know it’s been castrate for neutered it’s asleep for one thing .
Dogs like food shelter and companionship .
What they have never had they will not miss.
No Julie you are completely wrong in this
It’s not well known at all it in fact it’s pretty unknown
Nervous dogs are nervous dogs .
Castrating them makes no difference or perhaps may make some improvement .
A nervous uncastrated male will grow up to be a more nervous uncastrated male as it regularly will get beated up by other dogs
If you had had so many nervous dogs perhaps you would reconsider your way of managing them .
Dogs pick up on their owners behaviour.
Well that’s not anything to do with it, it’s the amount of hormones they produce. Take away the ones that help them be brave and you ruin the chance they might get over being nervous.
Dogs in fact any animal all need certain hormones to be the best they can. That’s one reason many menopausal women end up quivering wrecks with anxiety. Take away the hormones you get anxious.
I have read up enough to know you are wrong on that. Do some research you might see that too. Don’t and we can just agree to differ but don’t read post properly and you’d see I had one nervous male that became aggressive. All my others came that way that’s why we stopped getting rescues we were tired of the risk. My puppies are not nervous they grow up in love. It’s the bad starts made the others come to me with luggage.
Not always Julie
I have always had rescue dogs usually from horrendous situations .
Usually I found these dogs are so pathetically grateful they are very loyal and affectionate .
Some are aggressive but I am good with dogs ( just a gift I have been blessed with I don’t do anything special)
Also it depends on lot s of factors one is how socialised the dog has been in it first six weeks of life .
So let us agree to differ on this .
Meanwhile as regards neutering personally I think dogs should be neutered when they are mature there is no benefit at all doing it too young .
No thesis was given Julie - that’s an exaggeration. And no we don’t all feel wicked when we put our animals through surgical/medical things. We do our best for them regardless of what we want and/or what is convenient for us - we do not think of how we ourselves feel in these circumstances. IMO that’s a commitment and promise we make when we take responsibility for any animal.
Well I can only say I feel awful when mind are put through things then. I always take responsibility and never let it stop me but that doesn’t mean I can’t feel wicked while it’s going on.
Ah I didn’t realise you were so special muddy, obviously far more than me or anyone else. I just do best I can by the ones I take on. That’s all I have to give them.
Exactly Aerolor 
I think those of us who gave advice did so with the best of intentions based on our own long experience of dog ownership. Whether a person chooses to take any notice of what we say is up to them.
My vet would refuse to spay a puppy that might be going to come into season at any moment so it was not just my opinion.
I think Holly should be fine. I am just extra cautious with my dogs and like to eliminate any possible risks if I can .