Thanks guys.
I understand the risks of spaying before the first heat and doing a full spay vs a tubal ligation. My 9 year old dog was spayed at the age of 7 months. we learned later that the vet we went to was NOT known for being good (we had just moved there, and this was in Serbia, so nothing like Angie's list or a way to verify their quality, and those people we did know who had animals didn't use vets, and I was 12 and knew little and my parents knew even less), and he stitched her up improperly, and she bled on and off for about four months out of the sutured area... and he just told us it was normal. In addition to that, the spay was the start of her occasional incontinence. But that experience didn't turn me off to spaying, just that vet.
So, I know things can go wrong. Tubal ligation isn't an option in my location, nor is waiting until after her first cycle, unless I lock her inside the whole time. I live in a pretty rural area and there are a LOT of unfixed males either loose or stray, and they could very easily get into my backyard, or go after me and her while walking and on a leash. Making modifications to my backyard fence isn't allowed with my landlord (I can add a smaller mesh to the inside, but can't build higher or anything along those lines), and I don't have several hundred dollars to spend on an appropriately kennel to house her when she goes outside during that time, especially since it's for one heat cycle and I wouldn't use it any other time.
I feed a balanced raw diet (usually prey model) to all my carnivorous pets. I use only stainless steel bowls. I also only use natural/simple ingredient (as in baking soda and hydrogen peroxide) cleaners for my own health. The backyard is extremely sandy so no lawn to speak off, so no lawn cleaners. The most dangerous chemical-related things in my house are my art supplies, which I keep in one room. On a desk if in use, in drawers on top of said desk or other type shelves if not in use. I can also put up a baby gate if need to be to keep her out of that room, as there's no door to it.
I don't personally plan on working hand in hand with any of the vets in my location on a regular basis. Apart from the first shots, bill of health if I need it, rabies (for legal reasons), bloodwork if it's ever needed, emergencies, and spay/neuter... I do it all myself. I can assure product quality, I have knowledge and experience of how to deal with 95% of things that may arise. So while I would not necessarily recommend my method of veterinary involvement for most dog owners (especially those who are not knowledgeable and experienced or have issues with blood if a small cut happens), it has worked for me. Minimalism. I do my own tests for heartworm. I was trained by the veterinarian I worked for for 2 years how to draw blood safely, and perform intravenous, intramuscular, and subdermal injections. I've never had to perform any kind of teeth cleaning with any of my animals, and while it still could be an option, due to her diet of raw meaty bones and so on, the likelihood is very small.
I just don't trust the vets in this location, pretty much within a 2 hour radius. We're very rural, and while they can do what they were trained to do and perform a basic spay or neuter considerably well, they have very different mentalities on preventative and basic health care than I do (and yes, I have talked with them, as I'm searching for a vet to potentially be willing to work with me on a spay/neuter voucher system in our county), and so... unless it's something I know I am not knowledgable to deal with (not talking about looking stuff up on google, if I have to google it, and can't trust my own eyes/my own simple canine first aid reference book, I do go to the vet), I just deal with it myself.
And really... the worst I've had to deal with so far is my older dog's arthritis, which improved on the raw diet, but is now starting to return, and while she is still comfortable and showing no signs of pain, I will probably be adding some more cartilage in her diet or another glucosamine source.
With training and exercise, I have high expectations from my animals. First and foremost is bite inhibition and general manners. My older dog is not a candidate for canine good citizen due to her reactiveness around other dogs and exciting situations... in neither situation does she get even the least bit aggressive, just will lose focus, get excitable, and needs to be taken away to a quiet area to calm down. Otherwise, she has great bite inhibition, manners, and a small list of commands (though she knows a ton more words, very few commands... I was 12 when I got her, we lost a LOT of time due to my inexperience and lack of knowledge).
With this pup, I plan on doing some sort of work with her. She will be trained all of the basics and receive her Canine Good Citizen. From everything I have seen of her so far, she's an EXCELLENT candidate. In addition, perhaps some therapy work, agility, and of course, be my trail buddy. All of which she has so far shown great promise for. Very friendly and outgoing, and just takes everything in stride. How do I know even though she's only 7 weeks old? Well... the girl (my friend) who is fostering her until I take her home had taken her to a horse show with her this past weekend. I went to the same horse show. She was taken along with another pup that was supposed to be receiving a home at said show... and needed some company. Anyways, Arya (the pup) was EXCELLENT. While the other puppy needed alone time and got stressed out, Arya took it all in with FLYING colors. As I said, wasn't what I would have done, but I'm not necessarily in control of her for another week. But she was absolutely EXCELLENT. Loved attention, would wag her tail and perk up anytime anyone came near, was already starting to recognize her name and would come when called, very gentle with everyone, especially the kids who came up to pet her (gently), and just loved every minute of it.
So... she's going to be active. She'll be going on 20-30 minute daily walks in the morning and in the evening as well when I don't have class. In addition to that, she will have the backyard, room to roam when I'm at the barn (part of my training is horse appropriate behavior), and when she's old enough and has a solid recall, will go on several hour long trail rides with me.
I have a lot of plans for her... all of which are subject to change depending on how she develops.
But yeah. I wasn't considering juvenile spay for her... but it was something I hadn't ever seen at the vet's office I worked at, and didn't realize it was a thing until I started trying to figure out the voucher program and getting contacts on facebook with various rescue groups. And was just wondering what other people thought. I saw a lot of things that said it was actually better for the pup to do it that young, and others that said it was extremely bad. So... hence my curiosity.