# Phantom pregnancy ?



## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

It could be a phantom - they are pretty well the norm for dogs. Sophy tends to have a few days when she is a bit clingy and off her food around the three week point, although her coat is so long any changes to her nipples are not very obvious. Mine have shown the most obvious signs around 6-10 weeks after their most fertile date, around the time they would be preparing to whelp and nursing pups. Unless Beckie gets sore and swollen mammary glands I would just stick to routine and jolly her through it - best to talk to your vet about whether it affects the spay date.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Oh I am sorry you are worrying over your sweet girl. I have no advice to offer since I have no experience in this area, but hope it all resolves to the good quickly and easily.


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## zooeysmom (Jan 3, 2014)

We had a golden retriever many years ago who went through a phantom pregnancy. She was broody and had huge swollen nipples. I believe she was less than a year when she went through it. It was really weird! 

I want to reiterate that you can have Beckie spayed at ANY time. Go for it now if you want to be done with all the hormonal hell. I'm glad I had Maizie got spayed before her first heat. It sounds quite annoying to go through. 

Hugs to you and Beckie!


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## Viking Queen (Nov 12, 2014)

I had Poppy spayed at 14 months and she had not come into heat yet......I did this for 2 reasons. Her tail needed surgery and was really making her nuts and we wanted to do the tail at the same time as the spay............and I just did not want to deal with the whole heat cycle, and all that goes with it. 

My Vet and I figured that at 14 months she had pretty much finished growing and there was little reason to wait. She had reached full height at 10 months and adult weight at 12 months.

I am sorry you are having to deal with this false pregnancy. Hope you have a resolution soon.


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## Dechi (Aug 22, 2015)

zooeysmom said:


> We had a golden retriever many years ago who went through a phantom pregnancy. She was broody and had huge swollen nipples. I believe she was less than a year when she went through it. It was really weird!
> 
> I want to reiterate that you can have Beckie spayed at ANY time. Go for it now if you want to be done with all the hormonal hell. I'm glad I had Maizie got spayed before her first heat. It sounds quite annoying to go through.
> 
> Hugs to you and Beckie!


I’m not sure but I think I read that if you spay during a phantom pregnancy, à certains type of hormone will peak and make it considerably worse. I plan on phoning the vet toward the end of the month if she’s still showing signs of it. Hopefully I can get her spayed at the end of July. This is kind of a pain.

On the other hand, I have written to the breeder to explain why I can’t have her spayed now as we agreed, and she didn’t even acknowledge my email. She hates my gut since I had hinted that the fleas Beckie had at the beginning might have come from her. :-( 

I need her to reply because I want the CkC registration transferred to my name because the microchip uses the address associated with the papers. Sigh.


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

You are right - spaying can prolong the false pregnancy. It is a normal part of the canine oestrus cycle, and most dogs sail through it, but she may want to nest with toys in a few weeks time. It may be best to plan on spaying her mid cycle - second half of August, perhaps.


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## Dechi (Aug 22, 2015)

I’m glad to say it’s probably a false alarm. 1 week later, her nipples are starting to retract. Yeahhhh !


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## West U (Jul 30, 2014)

Yep sounds like a false or phantom pregnancy. I didn't realize this is so common until my female Beagle came in heat last year. She had a false pregnancy and her Breeder said it was very common.


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

20 days after flirty games and Sophy is clingy and didn't want to finish her breakfast. I am very glad I thought to note this sort of thing on my calendar years ago, as the first couple of times I got quite worried until I saw the pattern emerging. It is an interesting one - for the first 7 years Sophy came into season, and Poppy had very secret, silent ones. Then Sophy skipped an Autumn heat, and Poppy had a full blown one. Now they are both 9, and have a few days of minor discharge and 24 hours of flirty games (it used to be up to a week of riotous humping games). Dogs may not go through a menopause as such, but mine certainly seem to be losing interest in the whole kaboodle!


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## Dechi (Aug 22, 2015)

fjm said:


> 20 days after flirty games and Sophy is clingy and didn't want to finish her breakfast. I am very glad I thought to note this sort of thing on my calendar years ago, as the first couple of times I got quite worried until I saw the pattern emerging. It is an interesting one - for the first 7 years Sophy came into season, and Poppy had very secret, silent ones. Then Sophy skipped an Autumn heat, and Poppy had a full blown one. Now they are both 9, and have a few days of minor discharge and 24 hours of flirty games (it used to be up to a week of riotous humping games). Dogs may not go through a menopause as such, but mine certainly seem to be losing interest in the whole kaboodle!


I’m curious as to why you don’t spay them ? It’s uncommon for non-breeding dogs not to be spayed these days.


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

I considered long and hard, reviewing all the evidence, and came to the conclusion that the risks outweighed the benefits. The downsides of not spaying - possibly increased risk of mammary tumours and continuing risk of pyometra - are for conditions that are comparatively easy to spot and treat early, and have to be balanced against the more insidious increase in risk of other cancers, autoimmune disorders and joint issues. In the end I decided that I could manage them being in heat with no risk of unwanted pregnancy, and was reluctant to slice out a whole chunk of the hormonal and endocrine system, in addition to the risks of anesthaesia, post operative complications and spay incontinence. I think the general approach in the UK is rather different to the US - there is less of an assumption that all dogs will be neutered. The cats are done - living with entire cats is much more difficult!


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## Dechi (Aug 22, 2015)

fjm said:


> I considered long and hard, reviewing all the evidence, and came to the conclusion that the risks outweighed the benefits. The downsides of not spaying - possibly increased risk of mammary tumours and continuing risk of pyometra - are for conditions that are comparatively easy to spot and treat early, and have to be balanced against the more insidious increase in risk of other cancers, autoimmune disorders and joint issues. In the end I decided that I could manage them being in heat with no risk of unwanted pregnancy, and was reluctant to slice out a whole chunk of the hormonal and endocrine system, in addition to the risks of anesthaesia, post operative complications and spay incontinence. I think the general approach in the UK is rather different to the US - there is less of an assumption that all dogs will be neutered. The cats are done - living with entire cats is much more difficult!


I think it’s a good choice if you’re very dedicated like you are. Most people are not, though. In Canada most dogs are spayed and neutered also.


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