Expert: Delores Beck - 2/19/2011

Question
hey....i have a 8 and a half month old female english cocker spaniel and a day ago i saw her vagina swell so i took her to the vet today so the vet said that she may get her heat cycle and he also told us about sterilisation.i wasnt aware before that sterilisation will avoid various health problems and will lead dogs to live a longer and better life.i only thought that it led to unneccesary gain in weight of the dog and laziness so i never thought about it. i live in an apartment and so i dont have plans of givin my female cocker spaniel for crossing as it'll get difficult for us to look after evrythin .so i browsed the net and got to know that sterilisatin is best if its done before the dog gets her first heat cycle and the chances of mammary cancer and other health issues will be less if its done before her first cycle.since my dog has all symptoms of gettin her cycle anytime from now the vet said that we can do the sterilisation after her first cycle. But after seeing in the internet that its always better to get ur dog sterilised before she gets her first cycle im scared that sterilisation after the first heat cycle may cause health issues or any kind of problems. could you plz tell me if sterilisation after d 1st heat cycle is absolutely safe or can it cause minor or serious health hazards.please tell me what to do.
thank u soooo much in advance :)

Answer
It's okay if she has one heat - but as soon as this is finished - get her spayed.  No, it won't cause health problems and it's very hard on her to go through endless heat cycles.
I'm kind of amazed your vet waited 'till now to talk to you about this.  

It helps to make a list of questions before any vet visit.  And don't hesitate to call your vet with questions - they do return calls and it costs nothing.