For most of us chihuahua owners, taking our dog in for surgery is something to be dreaded and avoided. Chihuahuas are a toy breed, and that means they are at higher risk for complications up to and including death when they undergo anesthesia.
Unfortunately, chihuahuas are also prone to a number of health conditions, including dental problems that benefit from regular care under anesthesia. As a pet parent, it can be hard to figure out the right thing to do, especially as our pets get older.
Anesthesia Risk in Healthy Dogs
As it happens, a very broad study encompassing over 150,000 dogs was conducted in the UK. No doubt, this included not only chihuahuas but other high-risk breeds as well. Out of 157,318 dogs, 159 passed away within 48 hours of anesthesia, or about 0.10% (A tenth of one percent.) 219 (0.14%) dogs died within two weeks of being put under anesthesia.
Another words, death from anesthesia does happen, but it’s very rare. The study goes on to look at whether the risks increased for certain breeds of dog, and whether older or infirm dogs were more at risk.
It turns out, if you’re the owner of a rottweiler or a West Highland White Terrier, your dog does have an increased risk of anesthesia, but happily chihuahuas were not mentioned as more at risk than other breeds. You can check out the full study here.
Dogs who are old or have chronic illnesses did have an increase in risk, which we will discuss more in a future article.
Risks of Not Performing Surgery
If your dog is in good health, why put them through surgery? In our chihuahua’s case, anesthesia for a healthy dog is usually because the dog is either getting spayed or neutered, or because they need their teeth cleaned. Is the dog safer for avoiding anesthesia?
Let’s take a look at two common types of surgery for healthy pets, sterilization and dental cleanings.
Long Term Impacts of Sterilization
Spaying in females and neutering in males involves removing the reproductive organs of the animal so they can’t breed. The practical reasons for doing so are to avoid female dogs bleeding everywhere, male dogs peeing everywhere, and unwanted litters of puppies.
Additionally, spaying and neutering can help reduce certain health risks for your dog. Up to 25% of unspayed female dogs end up with pyometra, a potentially deadly infection of the uterus.
Mammary cancer in unspayed female dogs is also relatively common, again at an estimated 25%.
In male dogs, up to 27% of intact males end up with testicular cancer. Over half of all intact males will experience an enlarged prostate.
Yet there’s some concerns that sterilization can lead to problems too. When the reproductive organs are removed, dogs are unable to produce reproductive hormones as well. Those hormones are primarily for breeding purposes, but there’s evidence they may be used in other ways.
Sterilized dogs are more at risk for obesity, urinary incontinence, and diabetes. Large breeds are at risk for joint problems, soft tissue injuries, and certain forms of cancer as well.
While it’s hard to say for sure whether sterilizing your pet is worth the risk, it’s worth noting that a study conducted on over 2.2 million dogs found that sterilized male dogs lived an average of 13.8% longer, and female dogs an average of 23% longer than their unsterilized counterparts.
Long Term Impacts of Dental Health
Over 80% of dogs over the age of 3 will have developed some form of periodontal disease. Some degree of gum inflammation and plaque build up is inevitable across all breeds of dogs. In chihuahuas however, dental disease can be particularly problematic.
It’s common for chihuahuas to have poor dental health, lose teeth, and suffer bone loss from dental disease. What’s worse, the bacteria that causes plaque build up in their mouth can spread to other organs.
Poor dental hygiene can cause heart, kidney and liver problems in your pet. It’s even possible for dental disease to lead to a pet’s death. Dogs with poor dental health are more likely to die from congestive heart failure.
This is a sneaky disease, because although dental health is the root cause of the problem, death or illness presents as something else—kidney failure, liver failure, heart failure. It’s not always easy to track those diseases back to whether poor dental health was to blame.
Is It Worth It?
The odds of a healthy dog dying from anesthesia are very low. It is so low in fact, that the focus shouldn’t be on whether they will die from anesthesia, but the long-term health impacts of the care provided. Dogs who already have health issues, of course, should have these factors taken into account. We will talk more about anesthesia and dogs with health problems in a later post.
Similar Posts:
- Chihuahua Lifespan: How Long Do Chihuahuas Live?
- Congestive Heart Failure in Chihuahuas
- 3 Supplements for Chihuahua Heart Health
- Do Dental Sticks Help With Plaque Reduction?
- Do Dogs Need Grain for Heart Health?
Excellent and informative post, Andrea! I share your thoughts, it is always a concern having a dog go under anesthesia, but I agree with you in the instances you stated that it can be far worse to not do the procedure, i.e. – spay/neuter and dental cleaning. When my Huskies were spayed and neutered, I opted to have the microchip done at the same time, so a 2 for one! I was lucky that only a couple of my dogs when they were older I had the dental cleaning done, but that coincided with another surgery they required, so I did not have to make that decision as a stand alone (thankfully). Sometimes our dogs require “going under” for a procedure. I always have an in-depth conversation with my vet, and typically – because they knew and loved all of my family’s pets so well for so long – it helped put my mind at ease. I’m Pinning and sharing this important post with my readers!
Great article based in fact, Andrea! I agree that it’s best to weigh the pros and cons of not doing a procedure. Spaying and neutering is a good idea. And dental cleaning can be very beneficial. After Henry was attacked and nearly lost his eye and life, I needed to make a decision if Henry should undergo more eye surgery. I discussed it with my vet and discovered that if I committed to the surgery it would mean that every few years he’d need the surgery re-done. I couldn’t imagine putting him through that process. So, I asked my vet what he’d do if Henry was his pup. He said he’d keep his eye clean, make sure the fur around his eye was always trimmed, and use warm compresses daily. So, I went that route and it’s worked well so far.
I’m sharing with all my dog parents so that they understand the facts and not live in fear.
Great post and I am afraid of anesthesia unless it is really necessary, I think all pet parents should read this article to understand it fully especially when you have the choice, as for spaying and neutering I am very pro this procedure as there are too many dogs dying in shelters because they were dumped. I have always had a spayed dog and cat and will always do so.
Excellent post Andrea, very important considerations in terms of anesthesia for dogs. Dental disease is a huge one. Small dogs seem to be more at risk for poor dental health. I didn’t get my little dog’s teeth cleaned under anesthesia more than once when she was about 8 or 9. I relied on dental chews and brushless teeth cleaning, and eventually found a non-anesthetic cleaning. In retrospect, I wish I’d had both types of dental cleanings for her a lot more often.
A thoughtful post that addressing a fear I know many dog owners must have. I particularly appreciate the section on the impact of dental health. This was an eye opener to me.