26/07/2022
So, youβve heard us talk about the many benefits to having your pet desexed. Weβve discussed the evidence suggesting that desexed pets live longer and have fewer diseases then those pets that are left to be entire, but have we shown you?
The picture below shows the parts of the female reproductive system removed during a desex operation of 2 different dogs - one aged 8 months and one aged 8 years. Neither dog had ever had a litter of puppies. Both dogs were Border Collies. Both dogs were almost the same weight and size.
Despite how similar they looked on the outside, their reproductive organs looked vastly different on the inside.
The 8 year old femaleβs reproductive organs were frail and possessed multiple fluid filled cysts, some of which had burst as you can see. These cysts can develop if pregnancy does not occur for several heat cycles of an un-desexed female. The lining of the uterus continues to increase in thickness resulting in the cysts forming within it. The thickened, cystic lining secretes fluids that create an ideal environment in which bacteria can grow, leading to an infection of the uterus called a pyometra.
Lucky for this old girl, she had not yet developed the life-threatening pyometra, but it is clear to see that the risk was very high.
People chose not to desex for many different reasons, but it is our highest recommendation that if you choose not to breed from your pets, or if their breeding days are behind them, that you have them desexed - their life might just depend on it.