PSEUDO PREGNANCY AMONG DOGS

 ' Mishti.' Nicknamed her "MAMMA".Very docile   

        and attached to the kids of the house.

The more I see of humans, The more I love Dogs


Pseudo Pregnancy among dogs


DOES YOUR DOG SUFFER FROM FALSE PREGNANCY?  Mine does!
The first time she went through false pregnancy, I was absolutely confused. My bitch showed every sign of pregnancy yet I was sure that she couldn't have mated and conceived as she stays in a compound where other dogs cannot venture.
It was only after consulting the vet I understood that she was suffering from false pregnancy. I have tried to list the symptoms, causes and remedies for the problem.

Symptoms :
1.The animal believes that she is pregnant. She will have enlarged mammary glands with production of milk.
2.There might be a swelling of abdomen.
3.The appetite changes. She might go off food.
4.At whelping time she shows extreme  excitement accompanied by panting and trembling.
5.Many of the bitches may go through labor pain as about the time they normally would be delivering.
6.Often a bitch makes a" nest" and proceeds to collect her "puppies" which may be toys, towels or anything she can carry in her mouth.
7.She may curl up with her "puppies" , tightly snuggled to her breasts.
8.Restlessness, whining, crying, scratching at rugs are other very visible symptoms.
9.Mannerism and behaviour changes. She tends to become over friendly to her human companions.
10.The dog might have fever due to the enlarged mammary glands full of milk.

Causes :

Dogs which love children and are extremely attached to them, are more susceptible to  false pregnancy. My Dalmatian has literally adopted my younger son as her "puppy". Bitches in false pregnancy have been known to have adopted an entire litter of puppies and to have produced enough milk to raise them during their 6 weeks of suckling.
In medical terms this problem  arises due to imbalance of hormones and abnormalities of the ovaries.

Remedies :


1. The vet usually prescribes tranquilizers and antibiotics. The animal is in trauma and in pain and needs instant help.
2. Camphorated oil applied gently to the breasts help relieve inflammation and drying up of milk.
3. The vet may administer a variety of hormones to correct the imbalance
4. Such bitches should be bred to have their own puppies.
5. Another alternative is to get the bitch spayed if the owner doesn't want to raise puppies.

The signs of false pregnancy usually lasts for about 5 to 6 weeks after which the bitch returns to her normal self. False pregnancy is generally repetitive. A bitch which had false pregnancy, is prone to have such problems again.

Raj Prateek Verma
http://www.dogalogueofraj.blogspot.com