breeding from my springer/lab

Question
hi, i have a 6 year old springer/lab bitch in excellent health (& still behaving like a 2yr old!!!)i was told by someone that if you dont have your bitch spayed & do not breed from her that she'll be more prone to mammary problems later in life. i would like her to have a litter of pups but is she too old? she is 7 in january & is due her next season then too. i would be very grateful for any advice you can give me. thanks for your time.

Answer
(Hi Claire! Please forgive me for taking so long to get back to you. We had a small crisis. Our 3 year old decided to paint the carpet and couch!:-)

Well, the first question I would ask is this: Has she had any puppies before this? I ask this because most people reccommend to not breed a bitch for the first time after they're 3 years of age. If a dog does really well being bred before the age of 3, and her puppies do really well, then some people may breed their dog until they reach 6 years of age. If she's never been bred before, then I really wouldn't reccommend breeding her now. I would have her spayed to help prevent ovarian, uterin, breast cancer, and to help prevent pyrometra. (It's a serious infection in the uterus that can lead to death.) As for the mammary problems you stated in you question, that's not true. Any dog that is not spayed, weither their bred or not, has a much higher chance of getting breast cancer then a dog that is spayed. I hope that I have been of some help. If you need anything else, please let me know!