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We currently have a 3 year old black male Champion Miniature Schnauzer, and bought a black female puppy with champion lines last September. She is currently 8 months old, and our hope is to show her, and perhaps breed our two dogs in a couple of years. We are extremely conscientious dog owners, and do not believe in indiscriminate breeding.

The problem is this... our female came into heat at 5-1/2 months of age, and it lasted for over 4 weeks and she was bleeding the entire time. I have never had a bitch come in heat this early (usually around 8-9 months old,) and have never experienced an estrus like this with any of my dogs.

Now, it is approximately 65 days later, and she has come into heat again! This is the age I would have expected her to come into her first season, and it is about the same length of time of gestation had she been bred and become pregnant.

Our vet has told us to just spay her. If she was not of Champion stock, and our male was not a Champion, I would not hesitate to spay and neuter them. I would never do anything that would jeopardize the health of my dogs, but I want to give her a chance at her confirmation and perhaps a litter or two.

Any input or advise?

>>We currently have a 3 year old black male Champion Miniature Schnauzer, and bought a black female puppy with champion lines last September. She is currently 8 months old, and our hope is to show her, and perhaps breed our two dogs in a couple of years. We are extremely conscientious dog owners, and do not believe in indiscriminate breeding.
>>
>>The problem is this... our female came into heat at 5-1/2 months of age, and it lasted for over 4 weeks and she was bleeding the entire time. I have never had a bitch come in heat this early (usually around 8-9 months old,) and have never experienced an estrus like this with any of my dogs.
>>
>>Now, it is approximately 65 days later, and she has come into heat again! This is the age I would have expected her to come into her first season, and it is about the same length of time of gestation had she been bred and become pregnant.
>>
>>Our vet has told us to just spay her. If she was not of Champion stock, and our male was not a Champion, I would not hesitate to spay and neuter them. I would never do anything that would jeopardize the health of my dogs, but I want to give her a chance at her confirmation and perhaps a litter or two.
>>
>>Any input or advise?

>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Ask your veterinarian to refer you to a veterinary reproductive specialist. If you are going to put the female's life on the line by not spaying as per his advice (these problems can become fatal with virtually no warning--you may have now had all the warning her body will give you), you really do owe this to the dog.
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Kathy Diamond Davis, author, "Therapy Dogs: Training Your Dog to Reach Others," 2nd edition, and the free Canine Behavior Series at www.veterinaryforum.com

Thank you for your input. I have an appointment to take my little girl to see a veterinary reproductive specialist this afternoon. She has already seen two vets, one says, "spay" and the other says "just wait and see if she outgrows this." Now you are telling me her life could be in danger, and I am afraid!

I see that you are an author, but I am curious if you are also a veterinarian? If not, could you please tell me what source your advise is based on? I am not trying to be argumentive, I just want to be as informed as possible before making a decision this profound.

Thanks...

>>Thank you for your input. I have an appointment to take my little girl to see a veterinary reproductive specialist this afternoon. She has already seen two vets, one says, "spay" and the other says "just wait and see if she outgrows this." Now you are telling me her life could be in danger, and I am afraid!
>>
>>I see that you are an author, but I am curious if you are also a veterinarian? If not, could you please tell me what source your advise is based on? I am not trying to be argumentive, I just want to be as informed as possible before making a decision this profound.
>>
>>Thanks...

>>>>>>>>>.

I'm not a veterinarian, no. I have a lot of breeder friends and acquaintances, and uterine infections in dogs are often very hard to diagnose. Many people I've known have had dogs spayed just in time to save their lives, when they didn't really seem ill. There's a lot of information around about reproduction in dogs. I don't particularly study that field, but wind up reading quite a bit about it in my other dog areas. We had a reproduction specialist come and talk to us in a big chat, and he had some great information. I read that chat transcript. Good stuff. You might also want to attend the breeder chat on this forum. There are some very knowledgeable breeders there.
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Kathy Diamond Davis, author, "Therapy Dogs: Training Your Dog to Reach Others," 2nd edition, and the free Canine Behavior Series at www.veterinaryforum.com

I took my girl, Star, to see Dr. Von Dahn, a Reproductive Specialist, and I really liked her and felt comfortable that she was extremely competent. She also consulted with another veterinarian from UC Davis Veterinary School that specializes in fertility. She did an ultrasound, urinalysis, cytology, bloodwork, and a digital examination of Star's vagina. There was no indication of infection of any kind, and the ultrsound revealed that there were several follicles on her ovaries, and her uterus looked normal. Her progesterone level was at 9, which she told me means she has already ovlulated, and is ready for breeding. The cytology showed all normal cells, and the walls of her vagina felt normal.

She felt that this was not a 'split heat' but indeed a separate estrus cycle from her first in early December. What she advised was to just wait and see how her next heat goes, and that 'shortened estrus cycles' is not that uncommon in young females. She said that small dogs usually come into heat earlier than large dogs, and her heat cycles could take another year or so to even out. She advised to have her hormone level checked again in about 60-65 days... right about the length of a normal gestation period. If her progesterone level is still very high, we will need to be on alert. If the next heat comes in less than 4 months, we will need to repeat the same lab tests and possibly make a decision to either go ahead and breed her at that time, or think about spaying her. This might indicate the increased risk of developing a uterine infection in the future.

Star is a beautiful black Miniature Schnauzer, and both of her parents are champions. Our 3 year old black male is a champion, also from champion stock. Star will not be able to qualify for confirmation competition if she is spayed, so we would like to give her every chance before making that decision. I feel much more informed and confident in the ability of this vet to keep Star's health foremost in concern.

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Marcia McGuiness
Golden Gate Geckos
www.goldengategeckos.com