First heat for Niki -- or is it?

[greekblue]

I just noticed that Niki might be on her first heat. I am not sure how long she is been or if for sure she is in heat, although I am almost certainly that she is. She licks herself A LOT (much more than I ever saw her licking herself), I think her nipples are bigger (if I can see well under all these hair of hers, and today and yesterday, I noticed that she would stop a lot during our walks, she urinates more, or she simply squats as if she was to pee for a couple seconds, but then she moves on. I noticed that behavior a few days ago too, but I did not think anything of it as she did not display any other problems. However, I have not seen any blood. Is she is heat, or something else is going on?
I read about dogs been in heat, and I think Niki has all the symptoms, except that I have not seen any blood.

Now, Niki is 8 1/2 months old -- not spayed yet because the breeder wanted me to show her, and I could not start her due to money and her health issues. However, Niki is a service dog in training for me, so eventually she will be spayed. I just wanted to wait and see if I could show her at least a little. I am NOT going to breed her, and her breeder already knows that I would never breed my dog. She just wanted her to try to get a championship, or at least some titles. Anyway, she will not be spayed for a while.

I am VERY responsible. I know how to prevent so called "accidental" litters, and I CAN definitely supervise and protect Niki while she is in heat from other males. That is NOT a problem for me.

However, Can you have a dog in heat and not see drops of blood at all?
? and how long should I wait after she is off heat to let her be more free and without leash at a park?
Do dogs get tired easier when in heat?
Is there anything else, besides supervision, that I should be aware of?
I know that might sound stupid, but do dogs are in pain during heat cycle, like people do? Is there anything I can do to make her more comfortable during her heat cycle?

Really, do not worry about her safety or pregnancy -- Niki is in good hands, and her mommy does not believe in "accidental" pregnancies. Her mommy believes in responsible, educated, and caring ownership.


Ok. I just looked at Niki again, and I did noticed a very tiny drop of blood behind her, so she is indeed in her first heat. I would still appreciate it if anyone could answer my questions. I do not see any drops on the floor; is that because she is cleaning herself (sorry, I know she is a dog, but that is sooo gross. It will be for a while until she is allowed to give me kisses again )

[greekblue]

Also, Can I bath her while she is in heat?
Should I do it at home, or I can still take her to the Doggie spa, like we have started doing? We always go late when there are rarely any other dogs around. Usually, it is just us and maybe another dog.

[dogs4life]

I know you like to keep Niki with you all the time, so when you are in public I'd suggest a doggy diaper from the store or homemade if you are worried about the "mess" but you will still need to keep a close eye on her even with her "area" covered. About parks, I would not go to dog parks or any area with off-leash dogs, too risky behavior wise. All my personal female dogs were spayed before first heat so that's all I got for you, sorry.

Hopefully someone with intact dogs can give you more info soon.

[greekblue]

Dogs4life,

Niki is with me all the time because of her service dog status, but until she is off heat, she will not be coming with me everywhere like before. I do not think is good to be taking into a store a dog in heat -- service dog or not. One of the many reasons I have to spay her sooner than I had planned. I can totally see why she should not be going to places with dogs off leash, and I am all the way with you. Niki does not go to dog parks anyway because of different reasons I might post on another thread some other time, but it is just a personal preference. She is still going out now, but I do not take her leash off like I was doing before and I am walking her only near our house because I know there are not dogs to be afraid of. I do not want to take any risks either. I wish I had spay her earlier too, but for showing purposes I had to keep her unspayed. If I see that for sure I cannot show her within the next 6 months, I will spay her and be over with it. I have to admit, it is kind of annoying to have a dog in heat. We have not seen any real mess so far, but I was planning to take her to the beach for first time this weekend and of course, we had to cancel our plans. No beach fun for Niki until she is off heat.

PS. Your new avatar is soo cute!

[k9hullio_sam]

Mandi had a heat before she was spayed.

I know what you mean with how annoying it is! I had Mandi wear a doggie diaper, and I put little cut up pantiliners in it. It was so gross, I can't even imagine not spaying. lol I don't think Mandi had any change in her temperment for the most part. She did seem a little grumpy at times, but nothing really noticeable.

Good luck! I know it is gross!!

[britishbandit]

Originally Posted by greekblue

However, Can you have a dog in heat and not see drops of blood at all?
? and how long should I wait after she is off heat to let her be more free and without leash at a park?
Do dogs get tired easier when in heat?
Is there anything else, besides supervision, that I should be aware of?
I know that might sound stupid, but do dogs are in pain during heat cycle, like people do? Is there anything I can do to make her more comfortable during her heat cycle?

Yes, some dogs have heats where they have little to no blood. Tysa wasn't like that though, she had quite a fair bit of blood when she was in heat, and absolutely had to wear a doggie diaper.
I say wait a month from the first sign of heat before allowing her without a leash at the park. And I'd suggest if you seriously don't want any problems, don't walk her till then at all. Limit her outdoor time to your own yard. It's all fine and dandy putting a diaper on her, but male dogs can still sense it, and if there's an intact male off leash in the vicinity, things might not go well. If one tried to mount her and you tried to step in, you could be putting yourself in danger. Not to mention a male dog ready to mate could find a way in through that diaper.
I can't say with all dogs, but Tysa didn't have as much energy and was tired more during certain parts of her heat. I suspect dogs feel much like we do when we're in "heat". I'm sure some dogs do get pain, but if they do, they're a lot more tollerent of it than we are. LOL Make sure she has plenty of water, and let her be mopey if she wants to be.

As far as baths go, I'd say no, don't bath her right now. At least not with shampoo. It might irritate her already swollen privates. A wipe with a damp cloth if you want to cleanse the area would be fine though.

[greekblue]

Thank you all for your advice. I do not have a yard; I only have a small patio, so Niki has to be walked, but I play with her at the house and she is learning more tricks, so burning off her energy is not a problem. She does not mind staying inside as long as I am there with her -- I know sounds strange, but she does not get distractive or anything. She had to stay inside when I was really sick and she only went out for bathroom breaks and she was fine. Of course, it is not good for her, and that was an exception; usually, she goes out A LOT! Now, however, I am going to be creative and still keep her safe, happy, and confined. I will only take her out for potty breaks. One month sounds sooo long, but is for her own good. I am going to miss our walks and our fun games at the park Plus, I can go out because she goes out with me. Now, I will have to stay inside longer too. When we have to stay inside due to my health issue, I have quite a few games that I play with her inside the house and she still have some fun -- at least a little. I highly doubt I will be able to ever again deal with a female dog in heat, soooo..... you know what comes afterwards....

Oh, I forgot to ask. Niki does not seem in pain, but she seems to have developed some fears that I had never noticed before the week she went into heat. Could that behavior related in any way and it might stop when she is off heat?
If her irrational fears continue, I will need to get some more help with training her out of it -- I have already started, but I am not sure I am doing the right thing. Anyway, that might be a topic for another thread.

[britishbandit]

Greekblue, do you have a friend or family member with a yard that would be willing to let you bring Niki over to get some exercise maybe a couple of times a week? I didn't walk Tysa because I had a yard where she could run around and still burn off some energy, since you don't have one that makes things a bit tough. A month with no walks but plenty of yard play is a bit different than a month with no walks, and no exercise.
If you have to walk her, just try do it every few days rather than daily, and shorten them up if they are usually long walks.....for now. Not all dogs are the same with their heats, but generally after the first signs, it's usually around day 10 before they hit the point where they can conceive and will accept a male. This is also the time when a male won't be able to resist, so maybe walk her for now, and when day 8-9 hits, don't walk her for a week starting then. A week of no walks would be a bit easier on her than a full month.

What kind of irrational fears has she been showing? Her body is experiencing a pretty major event right now, so any kind of behavioral change could be due to that. But keep an eye on it, if she's still like that in a few weeks, I'd investigate it. It's not all that strange to think her heat could be causing her some issues, but I'd think it would only happen while she is actually in heat. If it's related, it should settle when it's over.

[greekblue]

British Bandit,
Unfortunately, the people I know who would be willing to do this for me are all the people who do not have a yard, so for now I will take your advice and walk her a few days a week briefly and her second week we will stay inside. We live in a small community of condos and we are almost surrounded by grass. I figured I can walk her around our house and around our community without going too far, but she still get some work. It will not be easy, but like you said better than nothing.

This is my first dog after many years without one, and it is certainly the first dog I ever had in heat; I assure you that would be the last time also. I cannot stand having a dog in heat, so I know I will never do that again! She does not bleed much, but she licks herself A LOT, and she has gone from the cleanest dog around to been the most stingy dog. She smells and it is plain GROSS! Nothing ever grossed me out before in a dog, but this I hate it plus, we cannot have fun because of it. I am going today to buy her something to put on her. She will look soo funny! Can I wash her with plain water, like just give her a shower without a shampoo? I need to brush her and she STINGS big time! I brush her teeth almost every day, but I think I am going to have to brush her tongue too lol.