The Dog Questions You Send
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Q. Dear Digital Dog,

I have a 3 yr old bishon(spelling: Bichon Frise see breed profiles for more information).The past week she has been walking around with her slipper and whining, she also sleeps with it under her belly. She has not been fixed and just came out of heat about a month and a half ago. She seems to have lost her appetite. Is this what you call motherly instincts? Should she be seen by her vet? > Thank you.

Bishon Mom

Ans. ~ Hello Bishon Mom

Dawn She is having a false pregnancy. I would highly suggest spaying her, otherwise, everytime she is in season she will go through this. It's very stressful and uncomfortable for her and everyone. Additionally, the false pregnancies tend to become more pronounced over time (which is why you noticed this one and the not the ones she'd had before). So yes, you should make an appointment to the vet for her to be spayed once this is past.

At the same time, this is not something to be considered unusual. Because of the way dogs are made, everytime a female has a season her body acts as if it were pregnant. They lack the hormonal system (such as the one people have) to detect pregnancy. So with each season, every female goes through a "pregnancy". For some females it will be more pronounced than others, but it always occurs unless the dog is spayed.

Thankfully, this is something that's very easy to make right with everyone!

Please let DigitalDog know if this advice helped!

Best

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