Dog Spayed Attitude Changed.

Sharpshooter

Looking for some advice about a total change in my dog Shadows personality.
When Shadow was 7 months we got her spayed on advice from our vet, beforehand she was a friendly pup
wagging her tail at everyone and even pulling on her harness to follow people who would pass us on our walks.
She is now 10 months and showing a totally different side to her.
She gets very aggressive if anyone approaches her and when l try to trim her fur around her bottom she attacks me enough to draw blood.
Before being spayed l trimmed her fur all the time and she didn't mind a bit.
l have noticed that she doesn't like her tail to be touched at all and as l have to lift her tail ( gently ) to trim the fur she is having none of it.
l did enquire at the vets to a possible solution and they
gave me a tablet to give her to make her calm.
lt was the tablet or 50 euro to leave her in to be put
asleep for a little while so they could trim her.
l will be trying the tablet at the weekend , but l was wondering if anyone else's dog showed aggression after being spayed?
Sorry for the long post.:)

Glowing

It sounds like she's in pain tbh ....

peasant

That would be my first thought as well.

Bring her to a different vet and get her checked.

Sharpshooter

peasant wrote: »

That would be my first thought as well.

Bring her to a different vet and get her checked.

Our vet has looked after our poms now for 20 years and
we have never had a problem before.
When l inquired about trimming her fur at the vets yesterday l spoke only to the receptionists, they seemed to remember shadow judging from the looks on their faces ( l had her with me ) they weren't too keen to
take her in to trim her and suggested the tablet.
l think maybe l will bring her back down to see the actual vet and see what he thinks.
She is very playful with us and never shows aggression
towards us until we touch her tail , what is confusing me is she wags it so much ( its like a mini helicopter )
when she is greeting us and it doesn't seem to cause her pain .

Beth

What breed is she?

A wag is a reflex reaction - like a doc hitting your knee and it jumping.

I'd get the vet to check her over definitely first before doing anything else.

Is she a breed that is prone to having the anal sacs fill up? That can hurt, and change them quite a bit. Is she scooting along the floor? Lethargic? Not really herself at other times? If she's a breed that is prone to it, seeing as she's a puppy still - a lot of dogs end up having to get their sacs squeezed from being on the puppy food. If it was the sacs, a wag of the tail would still happen as its a reflex reaction, but going near the area can cause them to get worried. They cant say STOP! or Go away, so can snap. If you had a sore bum you wouldnt want anyone going near there either!!

If there is nothing medically wrong, she might have been spayed too soon.
If they're spayed while the hormones of heat are still in their system, they can be a bit aggressive.

"While estrogen increases in the dog's body for a short length of time, progesterone remains in circulation, influencing the brain for two months after each estrous and can have a dramatic effect on canine behavior. The most common behaviors are those associated with pregnancy, nest building, guarding possessions and milk production."
The most notable problem arises when the dog guards items maternally. Other problems can involve irritability, conflict with other dogs and energy reduction. "Guarding toys, dolls, rags, slippers or anything else that can be carried is another common behavioral consequence of the surge in progesterone." (Fogle, 1990, p.55) Possessive guarding in intact females that occurs in cycles is usually a hormonal guarding of the type described.

Female dogs are at increased risk of disease if they are allowed to experience their first heat. For this reason it is often suggested that a female dog be spayed prior to 6 months of age. It would appear that dogs who demonstrate control complex aggression (aka dominance aggression) toward owners prior to 6 months of age are at risk for becoming more aggressive after ovariohysterectomy. If a dog demonstrates a significant propensity to control complex aggression it may be wise to avoid spaying these dogs.

"When the female dogs neutered at or after puberty were compared to intact controls, several differences were noted. One difference was a significantly greater tendency for dominance aggression to be shown toward family members by the neutered females. What is not clear about the study is whether the surgery was performed in more of these dogs because aggression had already been identified as a problem, or whether there is a direct cause-effect relation. Ovariohysterectomized bitches also showed significantly more excitement in the car and less discriminate appetite than did the intact ones, even immediately post surgery." (Beaver, 1999, p.229)

These observations are backed by Fogle, (p. 56) and Overall (p. 97). It remains unclear exactly why some undesirable behavioral side effects occur. Inconclusive evidence exists that androgens may be implicated in dominance aggression in females (Overall, 1997, p.97). Experiments performed on hamsters (Brain & Haug, 1992; Vom Saal, 1984, 1989, as cited in Overall, 1997, p.98) suggest that females positioned in the uterus between two males will be more aggressive than other females and this conflict behavior more resembles male conflict behavior. We know that the male brain is exposed to testosterone prior to birth, which masculinizes the male brain. It is theorized that this masculinizing of bystander females results in aggression in females, again adding to the debate of how important testosterone is in the development of aggression and other behaviors. Animals experimentally injected with testosterone, including females, tend to take on male sexually dimorphic behaviors. It would seem that testosterone may turn out to be very important one way or another in the development of aggressive behavior.

Spaying will prevent the cycling of estrogen and progesterone, which may prevent associated behaviors. Whether to spay or not should be advised on a case by case basis depending on the presence or absence of significant excessively controlling aggressive behaviors toward owners prior to six months of age.

link

There's a lot of information on the net about spaying and aggression. Thats just one of many. Some of it is conflicting of course, so only you will know about previous form before she was spayed and whether this could be a factor - seeing as you know your own dog.

If you're not happy with your vets performance and still suspect something is wrong, go to another vet. Find one that you are comfortable with and can trust, because they are dealing with your best friends life after all.

Sharpshooter

Hi Beth , thanks for the reply.
ln answer to your questions she is a Pomeranian and was spayed before her first heat on advice from our vet.
The vet reckoned if we were not going to breed her then this was the best thing for her.
She was a normal playful puppy and did not have any of the agression she is showing now.
lf anyone she doesn't know goes to pet her she reacts like they are going to hurt her. She backs away and then shows the aggression by barking very loudly (huge bark for a pom , she sounds more like a larger dog ) and we have to pull her away.
lt is confusing to us as she was so the opposite to what she is now.
Regarding her tail we are going to bring her back to the vet and get her checked properly.
Thanks so much to all who replied.:)

Beth

Yes, spaying is best alright, when you're not breeding or showing a dog. Depending on the time being done though, can create the conflicting advice that is found all over the net.

I was told not to get my bitch spayed for at least 100days after her last heat cycle to give the hormones a chance to go back down to normal levels.

She's also be going through the second fear imprint stage (First fear imprint stage: 8-11 weeks, Second fear imprint stage: 6-14 months) so the paper bag that she loved to play with could suddenly become like something she has never seen in her life and bark, howl and run away from it. Dogs are weird

If there's nothing medically wrong, and its not the spaying, it could be just the fear. It does sound like a fear reaction, with her barking if someone is trying to pet her.

Training her and letting her know you are the boss is probably the best way to go. If you are the boss, you make the decisions, so she will look to you - rather than trying to make the decisions herself for which she is ill equipped for being a dog in a human world. So if she sees there is no reaction from you, then she wont react.

I'd a Pom bitch years ago, but never had problems with her glands, and i dont remember anything about them having problems as a breed so it might not be that. Thats not to say that it cant happen - just keep an eye out for other signs in case it could be.

Sharpshooter

Thanks Beth l will do , we were inquiring about a muzzle
( again on advice from vets,) for when l would be trimming her and the guy that owns the Pet Shop said
that maybe they had some trouble at the Vets getting her ready for surgery, and might have crowded her to
get her on the table.
He said Dogs are not stupid and that she would associate someone bending towards her with the fear she might have felt if this did happen.
Do you think that could be it?

Beth

Dogs do see people bending over them as a threat so its possible. A tall (to them) human being towering over them, and then making their presence even more threatening by bending right over them into their personal space, is quite scarey whether in a a fear imprint stage or not

Dogs have 3 options when they are fearful. Freeze, flight or fight. If she was cornered and then there were a lot of people around her, freeze might have been tried, at which point they could have made a grab for her, and flight wouldnt have been much of an option for her. Whats left, but only fight. Fight = aggression or lots of noise in the hopes of scaring off whatever it is.

If you are thinking of a muzzle for her for just trimming her, the nylon ones are the ones that don't let them open their mouth. They are only to be used for a very short space of time though.
If you are considering muzzling her at any other time, get a basket one as the basket ones let them pant, drink etc.

It can be any number of things if medical reasons are ruled out.

Sharpshooter

Thanks again
Guy in the Pet shop recommended the basket one as well Beth so we will go with that.
l think your Freeze Flight or Fight explanation is very
interesting and you know l could see that it may have happened when we left her in for her op.
For sure they did not seem to relish taking her back in.:(

Beth

Thats such a shame
Its possible that if she felt threatened in there first off with someone, and gave a growl that she saw they backed off. Thats a learned behaviour. She can think growl=result and could keep doing it.

Its hard not to back off when a dog is growling but the more you do it, or anyone else does it, the more the behaviour is reinforced that it is the correct thing to do for her when she is feeling threatened.

If you're getting the basket muzzle you can use it to train a different behaviour for the times she is growling. Wearing a muzzle keeps your hands safe, so try not to back off if she growls. That way she sees that the behaviour isnt working any more.

Good luck.

Sharpshooter

Hopefully the vet will be able to give us an idea of whats
wrong , but just to clarify she does not growl at us and the only time she went for me was when l tried to snip her fur ( and had to gently raise her tail ) as l had done
before her op and she never minded then.
Its just other people that she shows the aggression to and had never done so before.
Will let you know how l get on though.:)

Beth

It might be worth roping in a friend to help manage it so

She could have bashed her tail or bumped into something, and its sore. You'd never know. A bruise is sore in human terms and we dont like anyone at it, why would they

Good luck. I'd be interested to know how you get on, even if its weeks down the line

Sharpshooter

l will definitely get back to you and let you know.:)

XxlauraxX

maybe she has labrador tail it happened to my dog from wagging it too much !:D

XxlauraxX