Retaining Ovaries May be a Key to Prolonged Life In Women and Dogs

Dr. Andrew Jones, DVM, shares with us an article from DVM Newsmagazine.  This information is critical for both humans and animals alike.  New studies are being administered every day in centers around the world, and I would like to thank people like Dr. Jones for keeping us up to date on important findings that can make a significant difference in the quality and longevity of our lives.

DVM NEWSMAGAZINE

West Lafayette, Ind. — We know that women tend to live longer than men, but a new study shows that the same may be true in dogs, especially if a female dog’s ovaries are not surgically removed early in life.

A study conducted at the Gerald P. Murphy Cancer Foundation compared the medical histories, ages and causes of death in 119 long-lived rottweilers with a longevity of at least 13 years with 186 rottweilers with a normal longevity of about 9 years. The study was published in the December issue of the journal Aging Cell.

“Like women, female dogs in our study had a distinct survival advantage over males,” said the lead researcher David J. Waters, associate director of Purdue University’s Center on Aging and the Life Course and a professor in the Department of Clinical Sciences.”But taking away ovaries during the first four years of life completely erased the female survival advantage. We found that female rottweilers that kept their ovaries for at least six years were four times more likely to reach exceptional longevity compared to females who had the shortest lifetime ovary exposure.”

This study’s findings are in line with those of a study conducted earlier this year at the John Wayne Cancer Institute in Santa Monica, Calif., of 29,000 who had hysterectomies because of benign uterine disease. Although those women whose ovaries were removed before 50 years of age were protected against ovarian, uterine and breast cancer, increased mortality from other causes was noted compared with those who had their ovaries for at least 50 years.

Both studies call into question the automatic removal of the ovaries when hysterectomies are performed in dogs and women.

So do you NOT spay your dog?

Dr. Jones shares his thoughts with us on that age old question. “I always said what I was taught that the benefit of spaying is to PREVENT things like Mammary Cancer.

Now I would wonder about spaying ( and neutering) the larger breeds later in life- such as after 2 years of age. Clearly we are in a learning phase- Talk to your own Veterinarian, and point him or her to the article.”

Given this information by Dr. Jones, I feel it is more important now than ever to make sure you are feeding your dogs good quality food, giving them a supplement to help support their immune system, keep them away from pesticides and cleaning chemicals, and communicate directly with them to ensure you are dealing with issues in the early stages of development when you have more options for treatments.

Need a good quality supplement developed by a vet? http://budurl.com/dogsupplement

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