As a seasoned dog owner, spaying a dog has always been synonymous with being a responsible pet owner. Spaying has numerous benefits such as: decreasing the chances of cancer, curbing certain aggressive behaviors, helping with overpopulation and the list goes on. My other 2 dogs were spayed immediately and without hesitation. So why did I feel such anxiety when it came to spaying my tea cup Pomeranian?
Well first off, look at my Princessa's face (her given name is Lemon but she sits on a high pedestal in our house 🙄😂). Irresistible right? All kidding aside, her cuteness didn’t factor into my hesitation. My concerns arose from the fact that she was 5 pounds. I was worried about the anesthesia and recovery since she was extremely small. After searching Google, I saw that many owners of small dogs had the same concerns. The general consensus was that spaying is a safe procedure no matter the size with low risk. Some sites recommended spaying the teacup dog when he/she is younger as they reach maturity sooner, which would mean it is commonplace to perform surgery on teacup dogs that weigh much less than 5lbs. After researching, I felt somewhat better but knew the best place for information was our veterinarian.
We go to New Hope Animal Hospital in Cedar Park. The veterinarian there took extensive time with me discussing the risks (or lack there of) and how modern medicine has made spaying much less invasive. We decided given our research, we would get Lemon spayed. As I handed Princessa off, the vet techs assured me that I would get updates and that she would be safe. I am happy to say that Lemon came home SAFE, albeit a little groggy and grumpy. There were no external stitches and only the smallest incision. Less than 2 weeks post, Lemon is back to her energetic posh ways! If you are concerned about spaying or neutering your teacup pup, I get it but truly recommend you speak with your vet to ease your worries. If you are in the Wilco area, I highly recommend New Hope Animal hospital (https://cedarparkvet.com/). They go above and beyond even for the most demanding owners (yes I am speaking from experience 🙈). I can also recommend Texas Humane heroes having fostered with them and the best part is they offer low cost spaying and neutering (https://humaneheroes.org/low-cost-clinics/).