Unwanted or false pregnancy!?!?

[Luvs]

I know that I am going to get slammed for this but I need to ask about it anyway and I am willing to take that chance.

Akasha is showing signs of being pregnant. Even though she was kept separate from her brother and our poodle for over 30 days and I am almost positive that she is NOT pregnant, although I have to admit just the fact that we have two intact males in our household makes a pregancy a unfortunate possibility. I know for a fact that there is absolutely NO WAY she got pregnant while I was home with her I am not sure that my husband and daughter were as vigilant as I was. Even though I threatened them with sterilization (for them not the dogs) if the dogs got together and she got pregnant. Both my husband and daughter swear up and down that there is no way she could be pregnant. The boys were kept in a different part of the house and we alternated letting everyone out of their kennels. Akasha was watched and on leash while she was outside and was NEVER left unattended. I know how persistant boys will be and the only thing I can think of is maybe the poodle (yuck!) got out and bred her through her kennel. Is that even possible? I know it wasn't Keil because he showed absolutely NO interest in her through her whole heat cycle. Of course to be totally honest the poodle was more interested in Keil than Akasha and refused to leave poor Keil alone (yes, our poodle is bi )

I spoke to the vet yesterday and Akasha has an appointment to go in next week. They said that an x-ray would not show the puppies yet if there were any so they want me to wait a week or two before bringing her in. The vet also suggested that I go ahead and let her have the puppies and then euthanize them after she has them. I don't know if I could bring myself to be strong enough to do that though. They said that it wouldn't hurt her to go ahead and have the puppies and put them down. I am pretty sure that if she is pregnant that I am going to just go ahead and get her spayed no matter how much I want to continue to show her:( At least I can still do obedience.

I am sooooo upset about this. I feel like such a horrible owner. Even though I know for a fact it didn't happen when I was home I should have taken her to work with me every day or taken the boys someplace else while she was in.

I am praying that she is just going through a false pregnancy. Her cycle was somewhat abnormal and lasted over 30 days, so that makes me think that there is possibly something wrong.

If you were in my situation what would you do? Would you go ahead and spay or would you wait and let her have the puppies and euthanize them? Would euthanizing them make me a bad person? I refuse to add more unwanted dogs to the world!

Please don't tell me how irresponsible I was because I already know that. I have cried many tears over this already and I don't even know if she is pregnant or not. I am so frustrated and angry with myself and my family.

This was really hard for me to write because I know how everyone feels about people who have unwanted litters (I feel the same way) and I swore I would never be one of "those" irresponsible people. I know I should probably have waited until I went to the vet to post this but I want to be totally prepared when I take her in.

Can't the vet do a physical exam to find out if she is pregnant? Don't they use ultrasounds to verify pregnancies? How far along do they have to be to do an ultrasound? I am going crazy waiting to find out and I don't think I can wait another week or two. She went out around the middle of September and the vet said I had to wait. Should I talk to another vet? I just can't stand not knowing:(

Carol

[poohbearsmom]

You just need to take care of things in a timely manner.

When did her heat cycle end? Do you know WHEN she was in standing heat?

It is possible to perform an ultrasound of Akasha approx. 30 days after the "conception" would have taken place. At that point, you should be able to know for sure if she's preggers or not, and you can deal with the situation accordingly.

Pooh had false pregancies every heat starting at around the age of 4. Hopefully this is what Akasha's dilemma is.

If Akasha is pregant, go ahead and spay. She's too young to be pregnant...and these are not planned puppies. No need in burdening yourself with dealing with all that goes with rearing a litter and homing them.

Most of all, don't beat yourself up. Just do what needs to be done, and take care of your girl.

Good luck with this.

Kind regards,

[Burnsway]

If she is pregnant and you decide to terminate, given her age in your signature is correct, I would most defiantly go the spay route not letting her deliver first.

But don't freak out it could be a false pregnancy.

[spidey]

I agree with the others - if she's pregnant, spay her before she delivers (pregnancy and delivery are not harmless, they can be fatal). If you decide to allow her to deliver the puppies, please don't euthanize them, please surrender them to a shelter where they'll have a chance of being adopted, puppies are very easy to place. I feel very strongly that if you're going to put your dog through the physical and mental stress of a pregnancy and delivery, you should at least give the puppies a chance, otherwise, spay her before she delivers (and I do think this is your best option).

I have no idea why your vet would tell you it "wouldn't hurt her" to deliver the puppies - bitches can and do die from pregnancy and labour.

[Bruce Lanthier]

Originally posted by Luvs
If you were in my situation what would you do?

I would establish whether she was pregnant or not. If she was pregnant I would spay her.

You sound like you are/were a responsible owner so don't be to hard on yourself. If she isn't pregnant then your precautions DID work and anything you question yourself on now can be remedied in the future. Here's hoping it's a falsie. lol

[pbach]

It sounds like you've been very protective in that keeping the others away. Let's hope this is a false alarm. If not, spay!

Patty

[Rott-Wiley]

Carol, I don't agree with your vet. Was this her first heat? You never did say exactly why you did think she is pregnant.

Another thing I wanted to add is the fact that she is a young inexperienced bitch that does live with intact males. I have known bitches that will have a false pregnancy after their first heat cycle.

I think the best thing now is to confirm if she is or isn't pregnant. If it were me and she is in fact pregnant then I would have her spayed before matters get more complicated. Best of luck with her.

[Sharon Marples]

I'm with all the rest.....don't slam yourself, you tried your best. If you don't have the kennel situation where you can be assured of full protection for her when she is in season, then I believe you should spay her, but first of all make sure she is pregnant.

Vets cannot do an ultrasound until she is at least 28 days along. How long has it been since her cycle? If she is showing even a false pregnancy, she should be far enough along to do an ultrasound.

If she is pregnant, spay her. If she is not, and if you really do want to show her in breed, you have anywhere from 4-6 months to make sure that your kennel situation is fully protected so that you do not have this worry the next time she comes into season. You need to be able to go off to work each day and not worry about the other family members having to take care of her. She will not suffer if she is kept in a kennel run for the time you are gone during the day while she is in season. Especially with two intact males in the house. Better safe than sorry!

Please let us know how long it has been since her cycle. She may be a bitch that will experience false pregnancies all the time.

Good luck

[Luvs]

Thank you everyone for being so supportive! If it turns out she is pregnant I am definately going to go ahead and spay her. I don't have any inentions on ever breeding her but was really enjoying showing her. Her health is much more important than showing!
Besides I don't think that I could let her have the puppies and euthanize them. It is easy to say I could but would be so very hard to do and I really don't think that I am strong enough. I don't agree with the vet about letting her have the puppies because I feel that she is way too young for that!

Her cycle ended either the 11th or 12th of September(it was her first heat cycle). She was supposed to go out on the 5th, (that would have been 25 days) but still had some discharge and was swollen, so we continued to keep them apart until the discharge stopped almost a week later. The reason I think she may be pregnant or is going through a false pregnancy (keeping my fingers crossed!) is because her teats have gotten bigger. She has also put on a little bit of weight. I am not sure if that was just to her inactivity during her cycle or because of what she is going through now.

If it turns out she is not pregnant, the next time she does come in, both the poodle and her brother will not be at the house! My daughter has been working on finding a place to rent and is planning on taking Keil with her. The poodle can go stay at her house also during Akasha's cycles!

Thank you again for all your support! It is REALLY appreciated!:)

Carol

[TrishB]

I wanted to offer my support too. I agree that it's either spay or raise the pups (preferrably spay). I don't agree with putting down healthy puppies.

I've heard of the most responsible breeders / owners making mistakes. That's just it - a mistake. It doesn't make you irresponsible. Not taking care of it makes you irresponsible. ;) So it doesn't apply to you! :D

Keep an eye on her, let us know what happens in a couple of weeks. Best of luck!

[Luvs]

Akasha is NOT pregnant!!

I took Akasha to the vet today for her exam and he said that she is definately not pregnant! I am soooooo happy and so relieved!!!

I want to thank everyone for all the support you gave me! You have no idea how much it was appreciated!:)

I am still going to make sure that we are set up differently next time she comes in or have the boys stay somewhere else (if my daughter hasn't moved out by then). I don't even want them at the house when she is in season so that I don't have to go through this again!

Carol :)

[Birdie'sMom]

Great!!! You must be so relieved!:)

[TrishB]

WOOHOO!!!! :D

[thoradopter]

Carol,

I was just about to add my support to you not bashing on yourself and feeling like an irresponsible owner. You clearly put her health first.

Fortunately, that is now not the issue since Akasha is not pregnant. Make the arrangements you need for her next cycle and enjoy showing her.

I am so glad that you did not have to deal with the issue of puppies and possiblly having them euthanized, which it sounds like you could not have done (me neither). Have you thought about getting a different vet?

Linda

[Trinitii]

Great news. Now you can take a deep breath and have fun with your girl.

Trinitii