Ok if you're a vet why don't you post the actual statistics and medical studies. Let's take cholesterol medication for example and how it affects heart diseas. You can find study after study on boths sides of the argument. Did you that statins cause cancer long term? Did you know that early spaying and neutering can cause bone cancer in Rotts? Again most of these stupid articles and info promoting spaying and neutering is concerned with overbreeding and unwanted litters. This whole spaying and neutering nonsense is based on 1970's research. Vet can you post the statistics of how many unspayed dogs get pyometra? No you can't. Unless it comes from some prospay/neuter website! Say what you want about your own profession but I work in human healthcare and I see the same shit day in and day out. Pets are no different. There are as many or more drawbacks to spaying a female dog as there are to not spaying one. Dogs have been around hundreds of years. I guess only in the last 30 years dogs have been living to 15 years old right? I mean I guess all dogs of yesteryear died of cancer and pyometra at one year old? Gimme a break. The stats and research is either nonexistnent or misleading.
Lets not talk about statin drugs. I've been one of themembers of the medical community who has fought feverishly AGAINST those drugs. Their side effects and the fact that the majority of the research was directly funded by the pharmaceutical companies makes all of the research surrounding them very suspicious.
You are very wrong saying that the pyometra recommendations are based on 1970's research.
Here are two relatively recent studies on incidence of pyometra published in respected peer reviewed journals:
Breed risk of pyometra in insured dogs in Sweden
J Vet Intern Med. 2001 Nov-Dec;15(6):530-8.
A Egenvall1, R Hagman, B N Bonnett, A Hedhammar, P Olson, A S Lagersted
Abstract
An animal insurance database containing data on over 200,000 dogs was used to study the occurrence of pyometra with respect to breed and age during 1995 and 1996 in Swedish bitches <10 years of age. A total of 1,803 females in 1995 and 1,754 females in 1996 had claims submitted because of pyometra. Thirty breeds with at least 800 bitches insured each year were studied using univariate and multivariate methods. The crude 12-month risk of pyometra for females <10 years of age was 2.0% (95% confidence interval = 1.9-2.1%) in 1995 and 1.9% (1.8-2.0%) in 1996. The occurrence of pyometra differed with age, breed, and geographic location. The risk of developing pyometra was increased (identified using multivariate models) in rough Collies, Rottweilers, Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, Golden Retrievers, Bernese Mountain Dogs, and English Cocker Spaniels compared with baseline (all other breeds, including mixed breed dogs). Breeds with a low risk of developing the disease were Drevers, German Shepherd Dogs, Miniature Dachshunds, Dachshunds (normal size), and Swedish Hounds. Survival rates indicate that on average 23-24% of the bitches in the databases will have experienced pyometra by 10 years of age. In the studied breeds, this proportion ranged between 10 and 54%. Pyometra is a clinically relevant problem in intact bitches, and differences related to breed and age should be taken into account in studies of this disease.
Incidence of pyometra in colony-raised beagle dogs. Exp Anim. July 2001;50(4):325-9.
S Fukuda
Abstract
Incidence of pyometra observed in our colony-raised beagle dogs over a 12-year period is described. Pyometra was observed in 25 female dogs of more than 4 years old, frequently at 8-11 years, with the average age of onset 9.36 +/- 0.38 years. The incidence of the disease was 15.2% of the female dogs (n = 165) more than 4 years old. Clinical findings useful in the diagnosis of this disease included an excretion of pus from the cervix, rapid increase in leukocyte count, and enlarged uterus as revealed by radiography. The relationships of delivery, estrus cycles to this disease are discussed. Ovariohysterectomy or uterectomy was the only effective method of treatment. In conclusion, the results indicated that pyometra might be an age-related disease because it occurred particularly in aged dogs
This article isn't a population study, its a review. Its good because it points out pyometra isn't the ONLY major problem that develops in an intact female dog. Spaying will prevent all of thesemedical problems.
Clinical presentation of canine pyometra and mucometra: A review
Theriogenology. August 2008;70(3):359-63.
S D Pretzer1
Abstract
Cystic endometrial hyperplasia (CEH) in the bitch can result in either pyometra, hematometra, or hydrometra, and many facets of these uterine diseases can make them difficult to differentiate. The conditions differ in their systemic effects, since pyometra, particularly closed-cervix pyometra, can be a life-threatening condition that must be recognized, managed, and treated expeditiously. Mucometra is an accumulation of sterile intraluminal mucoid fluid, hematometra is an accumulation of sterile, bloody fluid, and hydrometra is an accumulation of sterile, watery fluid; none of which have any significant systemic outward clinical signs. This paper will describe the definitions, signalment, historical findings, incidence, clinical signs, physical exam findings, and diagnostic findings in canine pyometra and mucometra, and hematometra and hydrometra.