We recommend that your pet is spayed / neutered around 4 - 6 months of age, before the
first heat cycle of the female cat or dog.
This helps to avoid the inconvenience
of heat cycles in females and provides health and social benefits to both males and females.
Often, female dogs will experience some personality changes
during heat cycles, such as becoming short - tempered or anxious.
The first
heat cycle in a female cat can be at or before 4 months and does not occur at an exact age in any animal.
Female cats go
through heat cycles for four to five days every three weeks during breeding season.
No more
heat cycles for spayed females, and no urge for neutered males to roam to find a female in heat.
Female cats normally come into heat several times a year, and can have their first
heat cycle as young as 4 or 5 months of age.
If she is allowed to experience one
heat cycle before spaying, the incidence rises to 7 percent (still quite low).
This simple surgical procedure removes reproductive organs, permanently
stops heat cycles and eliminates the potential for unwanted pregnancies.
Plus, we all know that a female dog should never be bred during her first (at least) couple of
heat cycles so her body matures fully to support a healthy pregnancy.
Female cats come
into heat cycles every three to four weeks during certain times of the year.
A female dog can have her first
heat cycle usually between 6 and 12 months of age and come into heat twice a year.
Dogs will experience their first
heat cycles when they reach puberty, which is usually around the age of six months but will vary depending on breed.
Once your dog is spayed, there are no
more heat cycles and there is no uterus to become infected.
Cats can have their first
heat cycle between 4 - 6 months of age and will go in to heat approximately 3 times a year.
One common myth is that a dog will somehow mature better if she is allowed to go through one
heat cycle prior to being spayed.
This happens quite often, and this behavior will stop once the
canine heat cycle is completed.
In most cases it will be another six to twelve months before the
next heat cycle begins.
If done prior to their first
heat cycle nearly eliminates the risk of breast cancer and totally prevents uterine infections and uterine cancer in females.
Female cats experience
regular heat cycles lasting three to four weeks during prime breeding season which is typically late spring or summer.
The first
heat cycle typically begins around four months of age, putting even young kittens at risk of becoming pregnant.
Generally, dogs go into heat every six to eight months and experience their first
heat cycle around six months of age.
Dogs go into heat at about 6 - 9 months of age and typically have two
heat cycles per year.
For the first two or three weeks of pregnancy you probably will not notice any changes in your cat other than the lack of
repeated heat cycles.
I will not breed my females on
consecutive heat cycles that fall within a 12 month period, nor will I initiate breeding a female that is 8 years or older.
However, the benefits still outweigh the risks even if the pet has experienced
multiple heat cycles or delivered a litter.
Overall, an old female dog's
heat cycles generally yield a very low rate of successful and healthy pregnancies.
By the time you wear the tires down that far they've had a LOT of
heat cycles put on them.
Smaller breeds can become sexually active from six months, with some females having their first
heat cycle slightly earlier, at four months.
As a matter of fact, dogs that are spayed before their first
heat cycle tend to be less likely to be prone to breast cancer.
We like to breed once but not when she first comes into heat: possible at her
2nd heat cycle.
Cats that have not been spayed and have been through
numerous heat cycles run a substantial risk of developing this uterine infection.
When you spay your female friend, she doesn't have to deal with what can be numerous and
stressful heat cycles that can result in injury from roaming the neighborhood.