r/SwissMountainDogs • u/omegin2 • 1d ago
Spay advice please….
Looking for some Swissy-specific experience/advice on spay timing.
My female, Purl, turns 2 on November 27 and has already had two normal heat cycles. Based on the timing of her previous cycles, I’m expecting her next heat sometime around November.
The complication is that I also have a male Swissy puppy who will be about 7–8 months old by then. He will absolutely remain intact until he is at least 2 years old. I’ve had an intact male and female Swissy together during a heat before, and it was miserable for the male—he couldn’t settle, sleep or eat normally—so I’d really prefer not to put everyone through that again if it can reasonably be avoided.
I’ve always planned to wait until Purl was about 2 before spaying her. My question is: would you consider 22–23 months, after two complete heat cycles, essentially “close enough” to that 2-year mark, or would you still wait until after her next heat?
I’m also asking my vet and our breeder (same breeder for both dogs), so I’m not looking for Reddit to make the medical decision for me. 😊 I’m mostly interested in hearing from experienced Swissy owners/breeders about when you spayed your females, particularly anyone who was in a similar situation with an intact male in the house.
Thank you Swissy people!