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Neutering the guinea pigs before rehoming!

furryfriends (TEAS)

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We currently neuter all males, before rehoming, regardless of whether they will be living with a sow or a boar. I like to do this, as I can be sure they will never be used for breeding, but it also gives more options, in the event of them losing/or falling out, with a little friend and needing to be re-bonded.

However, I am currently thinking about getting all sows spayed, before rehoming. I see so many posts about older sows having problems with their reproduction system, especially becoming very hormonal, due to cystic ovaries and think it would be very beneficial to their health to get them spayed when they are younger.

I just wondered what the general feeling would be regarding this? Obviously a spay costs much more than a castrate, so would people be willing to pay a larger rehoming fee more for a spayed sow?

The only reason I am considering this is that I have an excellent operating vet (Simon Maddock).
 
No experience here at all (so far fingers crossed) but I think regardless of whether people would be willing To pay more, if you feel it’s beneficial then you should charge more for spayed sows. How much would it be for a (spayed) sow/boar pair compared to a sow/neutered boar?
 
No experience here at all (so far fingers crossed) but I think regardless of whether people would be willing To pay more, if you feel it’s beneficial then you should charge more for spayed sows. How much would it be for a (spayed) sow/boar pair compared to a sow/neutered boar?
At the moment we only ask for a donation, so some people cover the cost of the castrate in their donation and others don't get anywhere near it! I've always been more concerned about getting a 5* home, rather than a large donation. I am going to have a chat with Simon about how much it would be to get a sow spayed - we do get a charity discount for neutering the boars, so hopefully we would get the same percentage off a spay, but would need to confirm that.
 
If I could have found a spayed female for Ted instead of having to have him neutered at 5 then I would have been very happy to pay the extra x
Yes, I think there are a lot of people in that situation. I remember years ago, getting a spayed sow from Tracy at Rabbit and Guinea Pig Welfare, for an older bereaved boar.
 
I think for older males, spayed sows can be very beneficial. I have three sows at present and none have had issues with the ovaries (touchwood).

I have paid more for a spayed sow and would do again if needed / equally I have always paid the castration fee as well as an adoption fee. I appreciate this isn't always possible for everyone, however given how much vet fees can cost it's important people take this onboard. Many people may say it's just a guinea pig, however that's not something I ever think about they are part of the family.

As for the health benefits, I don't think I have enough knowledge surrounding sows.
 
It's a shame for the boys as I genuinely feel boars have the best personalities however they also have the biggest bonding issues. I would happily re-home an established pair, although that's not possible well I have my girlies.

I started with a single male piggy, and ended up adopting from Rugby due to them being spayed. This is the fist time, I have not had a boy in my group. 😔
 
It's a difficult one isn't it. I think because Simon is your vet it's definitely worth considering. Inevitably it will put some people off adopting if their finances aren't as good as others but then it's whether you would have scope to have a conversation about affordability. Maybe you could have a suggested donation for adoption and breakdown the costs involved in getting the piggy ready for adoption so that it's clear that this is what you would like but leaves it open for adoptees to still have the focus on getting the best homes
 
It's a shame for the boys as I genuinely feel boars have the best personalities however they also have the biggest bonding issues. I would happily re-home an established pair, although that's not possible well I have my girlies.

I started with a single male piggy, and ended up adooting from Rugby due to them being spayed. This is the fist time, I have not had a boy in my group. 😔
The boars are great and have such huge personalities! I also like the fact that what you see, is what you get with the boars! None of this being your bezzy mate one minute and then getting all narky and snappy, a few minutes later! (a bit like human females 😂 )
 
We currently neuter all males, before rehoming, regardless of whether they will be living with a sow or a boar. I like to do this, as I can be sure they will never be used for breeding, but it also gives more options, in the event of them losing/or falling out, with a little friend and needing to be re-bonded.

However, I am currently thinking about getting all sows spayed, before rehoming. I see so many posts about older sows having problems with their reproduction system, especially becoming very hormonal, due to cystic ovaries and think it would be very beneficial to their health to get them spayed when they are younger.

I just wondered what the general feeling would be regarding this? Obviously a spay costs much more than a castrate, so would people be willing to pay a larger rehoming fee more for a spayed sow?

The only reason I am considering this is that I have an excellent operating vet (Simon Maddock).
I would feel much more relaxed knowing that if I'm rescuing a sow that won't run into ovarian cyst problems.

There's something I'm not sure about though. Is a spay different to a full spay, for example, Dot had her uterus removed also, this is a full spay?

I'm all for it with Simon doing the operations, and I'd happily pay a lot more for a sow who won't run into ovarian problems down the line. I read somewhere that the chances of it happening is somewhere like 80%
 
It's a difficult one isn't it. I think because Simon is your vet it's definitely worth considering. Inevitably it will put some people off adopting if their finances aren't as good as others but then it's whether you would have scope to have a conversation about affordability. Maybe you could have a suggested donation for adoption and breakdown the costs involved in getting the piggy ready for adoption so that it's clear that this is what you would like but leaves it open for adoptees to still have the focus on getting the best homes
I like that idea! 🙂

Getting the very best home is always going to be parmount, rather than recouping costs, but we also can't risk running out of money, particularly as our main focus is on the dental piggies!
 
I would feel much more relaxed knowing that if I'm rescuing a sow that won't run into ovarian cyst problems.

There's something I'm not sure about though. Is a spay different to a full spay, for example, Dot had her uterus removed also, this is a full spay?

I'm all for it with Simon doing the operations, and I'd happily pay a lot more for a sow who won't run into ovarian problems down the line. I read somewhere that the chances of it happening is somewhere like 80%
I would get a full spay - ovaries and uterus removed!
 
I would get a full spay - ovaries and uterus removed!
After seeing dots scar from it and the healing time, I admit it is pretty darn invasive, but she had no issues and heeled fine, ate straight away after pretty much, give an hour or 2👍
 
After seeing dots scar from it and the healing time, I admit it is pretty darn invasive, but she had no issues and heeled fine, ate straight away after pretty much, give an hour or 2👍
I've always found they bounce back, just as quickly as the boars do after castration.
 
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