Bitch on heat? Advice please.

[Fieldette]

My 11 month old Springer Spaniel bitch has been noticedly darker around her genitals over the last week or so. I noticed last night that her genitals appear swollen and this morning the inner top of her 'thighs' are also swollen too.

I've not had a dog before and just wanted to check that I am correct in thinking she is on heat and not an infection that I should be taking her to the vet for.

Thanks in advance.

It could be a season, but if you're not sure, it's probably best to speak to the vet on the phone to see if they think it's worth taking her in.

If it's her season there will be some blood, which you can usually note if you wipe her vulva with a white tissue in the morning before she goes out for a wee or during the day when she hasn't recently been out for a wee. Although she might not be bleeding yet. You might also notice her licking herself more or drops of blood on the floor.

Teats usually get swollen/enlarged during a season too.

Putting a white sheet on her bed is also useful to establish whether or not she is bleeding.

I have just looked at her vulva and her bed and she does appear to be bleeding. After running my hand down her tummy I can feel her teats are more pronounced, you can't see them because she is so fluffy but I can feel them.

How long is she likely to be on heat for? I thought as she will not be fully mature until she is 18 months old that she wouldn't come in heat until then, perhaps I misunderstood.

Thanks for replying

They are all different. I've got one whose season lasts barely a week and one who strings it out for weeks. It's not unusual to have the first season quite young. She may not have another for 12-18 months. The important thing is that after the bleeding stops she will be fertile for 10 days to 2 weeks. Check by scratchig the base of her tail and her hips. If the tail goes sideways she is receptive so keep her away from males

I've just tried the tail trick hazeldog and her tail went right to the side. I will be keeping her well away from the terrier down the lane, I don't want a teenage pregnancy and I certainly don't want spaniel/Yorkshire terrier crosses!

Will her vulva remain swollen the whole time she is on heat? I assume I'll know when she's no longer on heat as she will return to normal?

Most bitches are in season for around 3 weeks. I would assume 4 weeks from now and keep her in/make absolutely certain she'a away from entire males until then.

It is usual for bitches to get their first season between 6 and 12 months and then every 6-7 months after that. Any deviation from that 'norm' can be a sign of problems and is worth discussing with your vet.

You can get her spayed around 3 months after her first season.

Her bits will deflate when her season is over and she will not do the tail thing any more. her mood will probably change too. Good advice from midori assume 4 weeks from when you notice bleeding. better safe than sorry.

She has a dislocated hip at the moment so is restricted to the garden, I shouldn't need to worry about her being accessible to any dogs.

I didn't realise that they are on heat for such a long time, she normally goes to work with DP on the farm and just wanders about, we will have to be careful in the future.

She is a working springer so we won't have her spayed, we plan to have at least one litter of pups from her as a lot of our farming friends have said what a lovely dog she is and that they'd love a pup if she ever has any.

I will keep a close eye on her for the next few weeks for sure.

Fieldette, I don't wish to overstep the mark, but please think very carefully before breeding her and look at the number of dogs being killed every year through lack of homes. There is a very real risk your bitch can die through having a litter and/or all the puppies could die too, especially if you are inexperienced in this area.

In order to know if she is really nice enough to breed, she ideally needs to have proven working ability (herself, not her relatives) or be proven in the show ring, which is unlikely for a working bred springer. You won't really know if your bitch is good enough to breed from until she is fully grown.

If you do decide to breed from her then it is responsible to have all the relevent health tests, which are costly and many for Springer Spaniels. Some info on health tests here:

www.sgurr.org.uk/healthnew.php

Many 'breeders do not bother with the health tests and will tell you they are not necessary, this especially tends to happen in working lines, but they are every important, both for the health of any puppies you breed and the welfare of the breed in general. You should also make sure any stud dog you use is properly health tested and no good stud dog owner would agree to mate an untested bitch anyway.

It is also respnsible, if you have a litter, so as not to contribute to the current rescue situation (around 25,000 dogs put to sleep every year) to remain responsible for any puppies you breed for the duration of their life and ask the new owners to return them if they ever can't keep them, no matter what point in their life they are at.

Just to add, if she has a dislocated hip, that alone would suggest a weakness to me and be a good enough reason to never breed from her. Sorry, I realise that is probably not what you want to hear.

You haven't overstepped the mark, don't worry She has a dislocated hip because she got run over by the tractor 6 weeks ago and the vet is waiting for her broken leg to heal before he puts it back in. He has advised us that it will be as good as new and she will be fine to have a litter in the future if we decided to. Obviously if it doesn't heal perfectly then I would not put her in pup.

I am very much of the mindset that I would not sell any of her litter to anyone that I did not know and would ensure they knew I would take back any of her litter if their circumstances changed.

She comes from a good line of working springers (gun dogs and farm dogs) and she has proven herself very well to date. I would not be looking to have a litter from her til she is at least 2 and half to be honest - carefully timed so as not to fall in the middle of harvest! I'm not really interested in showing her in the ring, I don't have the time and as I said she's a working dog so she is busy working.

I do plan to have her spayed once she has had one, possibly two, litters of puppies (dependent on the outcome of her hip/leg).

Thank you for your help and advice, it is good to know there are other responsible dog owners out there, unfortunately you (generic) do see some awful ones.