A question about heat cycles?

Question

I have a German shepherd who was diagnosed with panosteitis around 6 months of age. I want to have her spayed, but as she also belongs to my husband and he wants to breed her it is taking time to get him to see that this is the right thing to do.

My question is this: our pup is now right at a year old and has not been spayed - she has also not come into heat. Is this normal? Is this related to pano? Should I be as worried as I am?

And I have gathered sources in support of having her spayed - I am just concerned that she's not spayed, is a year old and has not gone into heat.

Just wanted to thank you all for your informative answers. I've never bred dogs before nor do I want to. If I have anything to do about it (and I will) our dog will NOT be bred.

And also, for Dane Lover (and others who are interested), if not for her health problems our girl would be highly acceptable for breeding. Her parents are German imports with schutzhund 1 & 2 certification. Our girl is also in training under schutzhund. We've had people asking about her pups already, which makes my husband excited and makes me exasperated.

My husband bred Shepherds a long time ago and wants to get back into it, so he knows what goes into being a responsible breeder - as do I. Too much time and investment for my tastes which is partly why I'm against it!

Answer 1

Well, this is one dog that should not get extra calcium. She has to much bone density, eventually her lameness should subside but because Panosteitis is more prevalent in Shepherds it is thought to be genetic. it is not unusual for your dog not to have been in season for the first time yet though. Many breeds and lines within different breeds do not come in until 15 to 24 months, and of course anywhere before that up to only six months of age. This is NOT a dog I would recommend spaying until she has had at least one season because spaying her before that will change her bone growth, so in my opinion I would wait until after she has had a season to spay her. One more reason the government should not get involved in such decisions; Please read the following:

Orthopedic Considerations
A study by Salmeri et al in 1991 found that bitches spayed at 7 weeks grew significantly taller than those spayed at 7 months, who were taller than those not spayed (or presumably spayed after the growth plates had closed).(1) A study of 1444 Golden Retrievers performed in 1998 and 1999 also found bitches and dogs spayed and neutered at less than a year of age were significantly taller than those spayed or neutered at more than a year of age.(2) The sex hormones, by communicating with a number of other growth-related hormones, promote the closure of the growth plates at puberty (3), so the bones of dogs or bitches neutered or spayed before puberty continue to grow. Dogs that have been spayed or neutered well before puberty can frequently be identified by their longer limbs, lighter bone structure, narrow chests and narrow skulls. This abnormal growth frequently results in significant alterations in body proportions and particularly the lengths (and therefore weights) of certain bones relative to others. For example, if the femur has achieved its genetically determined normal length at 8 months when a dog gets spayed or neutered, but the tibia, which normally stops growing at 12 to 14 months of age continues to grow, then an abnormal angle may develop at the stifle. In addition, with the extra growth, the lower leg below the stifle likely becomes heavier (because it is longer), and may cause increased stresses on the cranial cruciate ligament. In addition, sex hormones are critical for achieving peak bone density.(4) These structural and physiological alterations may be the reason why at least one recent study showed that spayed and neutered dogs had a higher incidence of CCL rupture.(5) Another recent study showed that dogs spayed or neutered before 5 1/2 months had a significantly higher incidence of hip dysplasia than those spayed or neutered after 5 1/2 months of age, although it should be noted that in this study there were no standard criteria for the diagnosis of hip dysplasia.(6) Nonetheless, breeders of purebred dogs should be cognizant of these studies and should consider whether or not pups they bred were spayed or neutered when considering breeding decisions.
Cancer Considerations
A retrospective study of cardiac tumors in dogs showed that there was a 5 times greater risk of hemangiosarcoma, one of the three most common cancers in dogs, in spayed bitches than intact bitches and a 2.4 times greater risk of hemangiosarcoma in neutered dogs as compared to intact males.(7) A study of 3218 dogs demonstrated that dogs that were neutered before a year of age had a significantly increased chance of developing bone cancer.(8) A separate study showed that neutered dogs had a two-fold higher risk of developing bone cancer.(9) Despite the common belief that neutering dogs helps prevent prostate cancer, at least one study suggests that neutering provides no benefit.(10) There certainly is evidence of a slightly increased risk of mammary cancer in female dogs after one heat cycle, and for increased risk with each subsequent heat. While about 30 % of mammary cancers are malignant, as in humans, when caught and surgically removed early the prognosis is very good.(12) Luckily, canine athletes are handled frequently and generally receive prompt veterinary care.

Answer 2

Some times large breeds don't come in to heat until the are 12- 18 months of age.If she hasn't come in by the time she reaches 18 months then she should get a complete work up from the vet.

Also be advised breeding done responsibly is expensive and there is no money to be made. Before considering breeding:
1) she MUST be 2 years old or older
2) she MUST have OFA/PennHip, CERF/PRA, thyroid, burcellosis tests etc
3) she MUST have an impeccible pedigree that has been carefully researched for health, temperament, longevity and breed standard
4) she should be temperament tested
5) she must either be shown/pointed/championed or evaluated by at least 3 unbiased, breed knowledgable people/judges to make sure she meets breed standard

after all of that you will need to find a stud that meets all of those same requirements.

You will also need to learn the basics of breeding, whelping, newborn care and what to look for and what to do if complications arise. You also will need to be prepared to feed puppies 24/7 for at least 2 weeks if mom won't feed them, develops mastitis or other complications, has low milk/no milk or toxic milk or if there are weak or sickly puppies, needs an emergency c-section or develops an infection among other things.

Answer 3

Pano is not a disease that takes dogs out of the gene pool, it occurs in many large breed dogs and does not necessarily mean it is inherited. Personally, I would keep training the dog, title her in shutzhund or whatever else you wish and then when she is 3 years old if she is healthy and has passed her hip and elbow dysplasia xrays and passed her eye , heart and thyroid tests, I might consider breeding her IF I was set up to properly provide for the puppies including having a large run for them and be able to keep them all indefinitely until the right home came along. You will know a lot more about the breed and about your individual dog by the time she is 3 years old than you know now, you may absolutely know by then that you would never want to breed or you may be more comfortable with it. There is certainly NO hurry and no GSD should be bred without all its health tests.

Answer 4

I don't know if her not coming into heat yet can be the result of her panosteitis, but it's not uncommon for large breed dogs not to have their first heat until they're around 1.

However, your husband must know that this dog should absolutely not be bred! She's got a serious disease - do you really want to pass this on to a litter of puppies and have other owners go through the expense and heartache of being stuck with an unhealthy dog?!?!?

You don't say if her problem is in her shoulder and elbow or her hock and stifle. In either case, surgery will be required to scrape away defective cartilege. And if her problem is in her hock and stifle, degenerative joint disease is very likely as she gets older.

This dog needs to be spayed - she does not need the trauma or weight a pregnancy would entail. Not to mention producing defective puppies.

Answer 5

I have a shepard mix, she didnt go into heat until she was about 13-14 months old (we've had her spayed since then). It's totally normal. I found the following info at a vets website:
"The age of onset of the heat cycle varies with the breed of dog. Small breeds tend to begin cycling sooner, as early as six months of age. Larger breeds begin later, sometimes not until 12-18 months of age. Heat cycles then occur approximately every six months and last approximately three weeks."

Answer 6

Panosteitis has nothing to do with her heat cycles. However, not having a heat by now is unusual, but not unknown. Have her checked over by the vet.

Reproductive difficulties/abnormalities ARE inherited, so there's more ammo for your "spay campaign". If she is bred, she will likely pass this problem on to her puppies.

Answer 7

I would ask your vet to chech her out again because since we dont personally know your dog and her health problems we can say. But usually a dog should have gone into heat a few times before know! But panostetitas has a potential genetic link so no one may want to breed their dog with your dog.

Look at this link and at the bottom it says How is panosteitis prevented? it says how there is a potentail genetic risk.
http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=2&cat=1561&articleid=466


i ve never heard of this before untill i looked it up.... i feel so bad for your dog it sounds soooo painfull not only fo rher but for u because ur seeing her suffer.
GOOD LUCK

Answer 8

A. The age of which they come in heat varies, but if she doesent come in heat by 2 years, she probably has something wrong
B. I wouldn't breed her, either, no matter what kind of disease she has, her pups may not only carry that disease but pull other diseases off of that one.

Answer 9

First off..it would be irresponsbile to breed a dog that has this disease. Never breed a dog with any genetic problems. It's simply unethical.