# Spaying can help prevent breast cancer



## MiniGrace (Oct 31, 2011)

I was talking to my vet the other day about having Taz spayed and he told me that if you spay a dog before its first heat, the incidence of breast cancer is reduced by 100 fold, and that if you spay before the second heat, the incidence is reduced by 10 fold. After the second heat, there is no effect on the incidence of breast cancer. He said they are seeing more and more dogs with breast cancer. Have any of you ever heard this? I'm taking Taz in as soon as I can after she turns six months.


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## lynx8456 (Feb 26, 2009)

Yes, I have heard of this. Our little girl was a product of over breeding and hence was not spayed until she was 10. (She was taken in by us 2 yrs ago). Hannah, has been through 2 rounds of mammary gland tumors (most recent in Nov., 1st round>last year which occurred just around the time of her spaying). You can almost wipe out the chances of a dog getting breast cancer if they are spayed before their 1st heat and yes everything else about how the chances of "BC" decrease the sooner you spay is correct. It is unfortunate that the more heat cycles a female has the higher of a risk she becomes as she hits her senior years. Even once spayed as a senior, the females chances diminish, but it is never completely out of the realm of possibility. 

*I posted this back in Nov. during pet cancer awareness month: "The next time your pet wants a belly/chest rub take a moment to appease them. It just may save your pet's life" It saved our Ms. Hannah more than once.


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## svdreamer (Feb 20, 2010)

Yeah, this is what killed Ling Ling. I couldn't get her spayed due to her other health problems and she got mammary cancer and it spread to her spine. Or it lowerd her resistance and another cancer was able to attack her spine. Not sure which, I just know that if things were changed and I could have been able to get her spayed, she probably still be with me.


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## Nancy (Feb 4, 2009)

Yes...its true....I've had many many many pets thought my 45 yrs on this earth...I've had all of my dogs and cats fixed b4 they went into heat...all but one cat I got when she was older...she got fixed at 9...and died at 14 with mammary tumors...none of the others ever got cancer...I also have a friend who didn't get her lab spayed til she was 5 and she ended up with mammary tumors as well...and died at 10..


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## ~LS~ (Oct 29, 2011)

bumping this up, it's good info.


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