Can you help my dog with its phantom pregnancy?

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Can you help my dog with its phantom pregnancy?

The symptoms of a phantom pregnancy may be so slight the owner may not even notice.

By Paul Rawlings

Sunday, 29 July 2007

My two-year-old working bitch is experiencing phantom pregnancies. The vet prescribed her some expensive medication, which yielded some improvement. What is the best course of action for a bitch going through this trauma?

A:

It is natural and very common for bitches to show some degree of false pregnancy, perhaps producing a great deal of milk.

The symptoms may be so slight that the owner may not even notice.

However, there may be a mood change, loss of appetite, digging up the carpet, carrying round toys or just being completely miserable.

It is also true bitches that have never had a season do not suffer from false pregnancies, so many vets will advise bitches be spayed that are suffering severe symptoms, which are likely to worsen with each subsequent season.

Spaying does have side effects in some instances, such as weight gain or urinary incontinence, but both of these are treatable.

The side effects of the more severe symptoms of false pregnancy can be life-threatening, however, such as mammary cancer. Consult your vet for more advice regarding this condition and whether surgery is advisable.

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Comments

lee strange

Thu, 15th Nov 2007 20:37:54

my mallumute dog has had milk dried up round her nippals and she has took all her toys to her bed .we can touch them she is ok with this .what should i do. should i take her to the vets.please could you let me no.thank you mrs strange

What's in this issue?

Don't miss our partridge and duck special in this week's Shooting Times (on sale Wednesday 1st September).
Plus, how to save money on feed on your shoot and as his Labrador nears the end of her pregnancy, Tony Jackson gets ready for the new arrivals. For all this and much more get down to your newsagents today!