Pups first season - When will she stop bleeding (sigh)?

[LimitIsUp]

11 month old flatcoat retriever. She started bleeding on Thursday 27 January and she is still going (I make that day 13)! We have hard flooring so the bleeding isn't the problem as such, its more the fact that the longer she bleeds the further away it is that we will be able to resume our normal off lead forest walks

Is 13 days of bleeding and still going strong typical?

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Our lab started bleeding on the 26th. Still some blood when I did a tissue test yesterday although it has definitely lessened and is now quite watery.

Get her spayed and then you can walk all year long? Why is she in spayed? Are you hoping to breed from her?

At a minimum bitches should have one season before they are spayed!

@LimitIsUp

At a minimum bitches should have one season before they are spayed!

RCV says otherwise, that the lowest risk of mammary gland cancer in female dogs is to spay before their first season.

www.rvc.ac.uk/Media/Default/Beaumont%20Sainsbury%20Animal%20Hospital/documents/Neutering_%20info%20sheet_female%20dog_April_2016%20PDF.pdf

You can't cite one study as definitive as this is a contested area which is not yet fully resolved in veterinary circles. If you google you will also find scholarly articles suggesting that Urinary incontinence is greater for bitches spayed too early, as is cruciate ligament disease and that in larger breeds the sex hormones are needed for appropriate skeletal development

Yeah, our lab started bleeding on the 27th and it’s still going on. Noticeable marks on the numerous throws and towels down to protect our carpets

Blimey, tedious isn't it.

@Ohshitiveturnedintomymother

Get her spayed and then you can walk all year long? Why is she in spayed? Are you hoping to breed from her?

Flat coat retrievers have an elevated risk of hemangiosarcoma and osteosarcoma and spaying may also put bitches at higher risk of those... so they’re definitely a breed you might decide to leave intact.

They’re also very unlikely to have finished growing at 11 months and are large enough that theres probably a correlation with early neutering and joint issues.

But also, no-one’s going to slay her during a season so it’s kind of beside the point right now.

Yep, @LimitIsUp, I’m over it already! That’s us almost two weeks in, I’ve got four weeks in my head but anything less will be a huge bonus!

I wish the end was a little bit more defined too, I know I'm going to end up erring on the side of caution so prob closer to 4 than 3. Our pup is not quite 9 months so will have to go through this again as won't be spaying until after her second season at hopefully 18 months.

IME seasons tend to be about 18 or 19 days long. I plan for three weeks and am usually pleasantly surprised.

I agree with PP about delaying spaying. It's not just about physical maturity and balancing disease risks either - my older dog didn't mature mentally and socially until she was just turned 3 when, after years of slow progress, she suddenly turned into a grown-up.

Latest research
www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fvets.2020.00388/full

My vet publicly preaches spay at 6 months. Ask her in private if it is better to wait until after second season and she will agree. Her caveat is there are a lot of irresponsible dog owners out there, she needs to know you have done your research.

My mutt bleeds for about three and a half weeks, then fits in a phantom pregnancy. Her first season was about four weeks. Good luck.

Yes I am planning on spaying 3 months after her second season when she will probably be 18-24 months. She is definitely not mature right now (in fact she's quite small)

Hoping not to get the phantom pregnancy!

Oh god @Postdatedpandemic! It’s a good job dogs have so many other redeeming qualities…

My 11 month-old mongrel 😊 (Labrador-sized) started bleeding on Friday 21st Jan, then stopped for a week, started in earnest on Fri 28th and is still going …. Flipping nightmare. She’s definitely been through the fertile period and her undercarriage is returning to normal, but she’s still cleaning herself all day long and spotting. She’s also still very attractive to male dogs.

We are waiting until after her second season to spay her. We had our last bitch (Labrador) spayed before her first season and she ended up with urinary incontinence at the age of 5 or 6 which, although treatable with medication, was a right old pain.

But arrrggh when will this season end??!! I feel your pain OP.

About 4 weeks. Sometimes a bit less. Generally the bigger the dog the more you notice it. Also some are better than others at keeping themselves clean. I have one (chi cross) who I never know she's in season until she starts humping the old pug cross! Never see any blood at all!!

I'm hoping at least by the next season our loose lead walking will be improved which will make things easier. She's pretty good I think for her age, fine on pavement walks in the evening, and good in the daytime if it's just the 5 mins walk to and from somewhere we can go off lead. But longer walks in the daytime are a bit of a nightmare for pulling.

Its now day 17 and the bleeding has all but stopped but she is behaving like a strumpet dangling her bits in my (neuteured) male dogs face (he seems confused) and presenting her hind quarters for mating. I guess this is oestrus? How long should I leave it before I bathe her and resume off lead walks? Would another 7 days from now cover it?

How's it going @LimitIsUp ?

We've resumed off lead walks but I'm sticking to places where we're unlikely to meet anyone for a bit longer.

No off lead walks for us yet tizwozliz - she's day 23 and has stopped bleeding but is standing for our neuteured male dog, moving her tail to one side, shoving her bum in his face and flirting outrageously - so she is in the most fertile oestrus phase. Its quite handy having him around actually, since when she stops trying to cosy up to him I guess at that point it will be safe for her to go off lead again