I made it!  And so did the dog.   Turned out to be a pyometra (an infected uterus), which is why I was spaying her in the first place.  Because massive badness happens if you don't get that puppy-maker out of there.  But fortunately everything went okay - it took me a little over two hours, when usually it takes me between 30 - 50 minutes, depending on the size of the dog or cat.

Jeanie, bigger dogs do have bigger ovaries, etc., but the biggest issues with spaying big dogs are the size of the dog itself (harder to find what you're looking for) and the amount of fat around the uterus and ovaries.  Fat makes it more challenging to find what you're looking for, and makes it harder to tie off blood vessels.  Because this dog had a pyometra, her uterus was about three times the size it should have been.  Wasn't the most fun surgery, but it was easier than I was anticipating. 

This just goes to show that we all should spay our girl dogs at 6 months of age.  Your vet will love you, your dog will be healthier, and she won't need pseudo-emergency surgery at middle age when her puppy-maker gets her sick.  Oh, and neuter the boys.

Time to make the donuts...

Actually, time to take Tumnus out and get ready to leave.