Can spayed dogs contract TVT too?

Hi, its JoTong here.

I would like to share my experience with two of the strays that I have been feeding which contracted TVT after they were both spayed in August 2022.

The answer is YES, spayed dogs can contract TVT too.

TVT stands for “Transmissible Venereal Tumour” and is more commonly observed in the free-roaming, stray, sexually active dogs and the most affected site for this tumor is the external genitalia of both sexes.

I first noticed that two of the female dogs that I had been feeding and spayed more than 6 months ago, Mama Ke Lian and Mama Temple’s genital areas were red and swollen 3 weeks ago. Sensing something was not right, I brought both of them to the vet and both of them were diagnosed with TVT. The doctor who treated them said the tumour most probably had been there before they were spayed and the tumor surfaced at a later stage.

They were treated with the 2nd chemotherapy injection last Saturday and checking by the vet revealed that the swollen genital areas have shown significant improvement as the ‘cauliflower-like’ nodules have subsided at the genital outer area. But there are still visible tumours inside their genitals and they need to continue with their 3rd chemotherapy injection.

So do be aware that even spayed dogs can contract TVT later as the disease could have already been there before the spaying was done.