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I have a female American Bully puppy. I have no intention of breeding her and intend to get her spayed. Her breed is predisposed to hip dysplasia and joint issues. I have read that early spay can affect the growth plate increasing these risks. I am also aware that each heat cycle increases her risk of breat cancer. My question is..at what age is best to spay her that will be best for her overall health?

I have a female American Bully puppy. I have no intention of breeding her and intend to get her spayed. Her breed is predisposed to hip dysplasia and joint issues. I have read that early spay can affect the growth plate increasing these risks. I am also aware that each heat cycle increases her risk of breat cancer. My question is..at what age is best to spay her that will be best for her overall health?

Updated On April 13th, 2019

Pet's info: Dog | American Bully | Female | unspayed | 4 months and 28 days old | 39.2 lbs

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Answered By Jennifer Summerfield, DVM CPDT-KA

Veterinarian, Certified Dog Trainer

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Hi there. You're right that the question of when to spay a large breed dog isn't as simple as we might like! It sounds like you've done some research on the pros and cons of spaying at different ages, which is great. In general, for my large breed patients, I recommend spaying at around 10-12 months of age (as long as the owner doesn't mind dealing with a heat cycle, since most dogs will go into heat for the first time prior to this). This still gives us an extremely low risk of mammary cancer, but also minimizes the risk of orthopedic issues since she should be finished growing by then.

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