Critical Information on Spaying or Neutering Your Pet

During the pandemic lockdown, elective surgeries for spaying or neutering dogs and cats decreased by approximately 13% (Guerios, Clemmer, Levy, 2025; Guerios, Porcher, Clemmer, Denagamage, Levy, 2022).  According to these authors, this trend continued long past the pandemic lockdown, albeit at a lesser rate of decline.  While it appears that the pandemic was the driving force behind this decline, there appear to be two basic reasons for the trend continuing, 1) economics; and 2) a study published in 2020 suggesting that spaying / neutering your dog too young may have a negative impact on their health.

Economically Speaking

The cost of everything has increased; that’s just the reality we all face right now.  As the cost of utilities to medication to salaries and everything in between rose, veterinarians needed to raise prices simply to keep the lights on and meet their payroll.  Unfortunately, our clients were/are facing the same situation, so a lot of us are making tough choices.  It appears that many pet owners are choosing to either delay surgery or forego it all together.  Unfortunately, the consequences of either choice may be more costly.

Pyometra: The Expensive and Potentially Lethal Disease

Pyometra is a bacterial infection of the uterus and a common manifestation in intact female dogs and cats (McCallin, Hough, Kreisler, 2021; Xavier, et al. 2023).  Sepsis, septic shock, peritonitis, disseminated bacterial infections and multiorgan dysfunction can result when Pyometra is not diagnosed in a timely fashion and the animal spayed.  The result of additional diagnostics and treatment increase the cost.  If the animal must undergo surgery while the Pyometra is active, not only is the cost of the surgery itself significantly increased, but the health risks involved with the surgery increase, as does the recovery time.

The Real Cost of Behavioral Issues

According to Hart, Hart, Thigpan, and Willis (2020), male aggression will decrease following neutering, regardless of the animals age at the time of surgery.  The issues are how much of your furniture do you want sprayed by the animal, whether the aggression will lead to snapping, biting, etc., and how much of this behavior will become a habit independent of the hormonal issues.  Most of us do not like our furniture smelling of urine, and if the animal is destructive as well, there is a cost associated with that destruction.  Hopefully, only non-animated objects are destroyed.  When animals fight each other, the veterinary bill, particularly for emergency services, is very high.

The Cost of Waiting

Surgeries are priced according to time (manpower) and material (medication, anesthesia, bandaging, etc.).  The older the animal, the larger the animal and the larger the animal, the more time and material needed.  There are also health costs involved because puppies and kittens bounce back from surgery quickly, but the older the animal, the more prolonged (and expensive) the recovery, not to mention the increased pain and risk of infection.

The 2020 Study

Hart, Hart, Thigpen and Willis (2020) did a statistical analysis of the database of the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital in California to see if there was a correlation between spaying / neutering, joint disorders and/or cancer.  Keep in mind that it is a basic scientific tenet that correlation does not necessarily mean causation.  However, there was a correlation between joint disease and early spaying/neutering of 5 breeds of large dogs (German Shorthaired/Wirehaired Pointer, Mastiff, Newfoundland, Rhodesian Ridgeback, and Siberian Husky); no correlation was found between spaying / neutering and cancer (Hart, Hart, Kutzler, Atema, 2024).

 

When evaluating studies, it is important to look at whether there are any other studies with similar results; there are not.  Also important is how limited the study is in terms of geography, population, timeframe and sample size.  This study is limited to one area of California; the population is limited to the clientele at one facility; the timeframe and sample size were adequate.

Unfortunately, we are hearing this study cited as the reason behind the delay of spaying / neutering dogs of all breeds, not only by clients, but in some literature as well (Dodd, 2025).  The reality is, Hart, Hart, Thigpen and Willis (2020) did not find a statistically significant correlation between early spaying / neutering and joint disease for small breeds, giant breeds, or for most large dog breeds.  In addition, the American Veterinary Medical Association (2025) states that the health and behavioral benefits of spaying / neutering outweigh any risks that may be associated with these commonly performed surgeries.

Decisions, Decisions

The decision of if or when to spay / neuter your pet is always a personal choice and we will provide you with the information and support you need to make a decision that is comfortable for you and your pet.  Please refer to our Mission, Values, and Vision statements for more information.

References

American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA). 2025.

https://www.avma.org/resources-tools/pet-owners/petcare/spaying-and-neutering 12/23/25

Dodd C. 2025. New study updates spay-neuter timeline guidance for popular dog breeds. American Kennel Club.

Guerios SD, Clemmer G, Levy JK. 2025. The pandemic’s cruel aftermath: Progressive decline in spay/neuter capacity. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 2025 Mar 21. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2025.1558235. PMID: 40191087; PMCID: PMC11968670.

Guerios SD, Porcher TR, Clemmer G, Denagamage T, Levy JK. 2022. COVID-19 associated reduction in elective spay-neuter surgeries for dogs and cats. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 2022 Sep 13. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2022.912893.

Hart LA, Hart BL, Kutzler MA, Atema KN. 2024. Editorial: Effective options regarding spay or neuter of dogs. Frontiers in Veterinary Medicine 2024 Jun 18. Doi: 10.3389/fvets.2024.1442805.

Hart BL, Hart LA, Thigpen AP, Willits NH. 2020. Assisting decision-making on age of neutering for 35 breeds of dogs: Associated joint disorders, cancers, and urinary incontinence. Frontiers in Veterinary Medicine 2020 Jul 07. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2020.00388.

McCallin AJ, Hough VA, Kreisler RE. 2021. Pyometra management practices in the high quality, high volume spay-neuter environment. Topics in Companion Animal Medicine, 42.

doi.org/10.1016/j.tcam.2020.100499.

University of Florida. 2025. Fewer spay-neuters at intake, longer stays in shelters: What the data tells us. Shelter Medicine Program: College of Veterinary Medicine.

Xavier RGC, Santana CH, de Castro YG, de Souza TGV, do Amarante VS, Santos RL, Silva ROS. 2023. Canine pyometra: A short review of current advances. doi.org/10.3390/ani13213310.