hi there im new to this just brought a cavalier king charles age 19 mths old. bitch unshore when and what signs to look for when she comes into season and what to do. i dont want to breed her just yet! tess

Hi tessalou

first port of call is your girl's breeder - she will know what the likely time line between seasons is and, if that's where you got her directly from, when her last season was.

Arm yourself with The Book of the Bitch - IMO must have reading for anyone inexperienced in entire bitches, whether intending breeding them or not.

Also, have a look at this Forum Thread which has a lot of useful information for novices thinking on embarking on breeding.

In the meantime signs to look out for are swelling of the vulva and blood.  Check her regularly for signs of swelling, she may lick herself a lot in the days preceding season showing, and dab her with a piece of white tissue for signs of blood - especially immediately after periods of lying at rest for a while.

I hope you have a mentor and/or contact with the Breed Club - there are many considerations to be taken into account when breeding any dog but especially those which require health testing (most) and an in depth knowledge of lines (all)

HTH, regards
Teri

For future reference, here are details of the health screenings Cavaliers should have done before bred from, see links below from the breed club for MVD and Syringomyelia. In addition they should be eye tested and have their patellas checked.
http://www.thecavalierclub.co.uk/health/hearts/mvd.html
http://www.thecavalierclub.co.uk/health/syringo/guide.html

hi thanks for the reply bk. i brought her from a family whom brought her from an owner. she wasnt getting on with german shepherd they had so they choose to re home her. she is constantly liking her self . the people we got her from has not had her more than 3 months and hasnt a clue wether she has had a season or last when, so im having to judge myself. as the previous owners are not trackable any longer.

So you don't know if her parents were health checked?  It's important not only to test the dog and bitch to be mated but to know that their parents at least have been health tested too particularly with the breed that you have.  That doesn't mean just going to your Vet but the extensive tests in the links already given.

im afraid i dont know as the owner i got her from only had her 3 months. and she didnt no. i have a feeling she has had puppies. but a question maybe some one on here can help me put part of this puzzle together for me. when a female is in season do the rear end swell up and also the teats. ? or when had puppies that are possible 8 wks old have the same symprons? any help on trying to mend this puzzle. tess

just a thought but if she was Kennel club registered the previous owners would have had her papers which, one would expect, they passed to you with the dog. You can check with these to see what tests were done on parents. If she is not KC registered or is reg somewhere else then don't even think of breeding.

once a bitch has had a season her nipples do change but not alot ,she will start to swell as she comes into season and her nipples swell alittle too ,but if shes had a litter before her nipples tend to stay bigger then a bitch that hasnt had any .x

her rear end has been swollen large since sunday and no signs of bleeding at all as yet! her teats are large extremely. she cleaning herself. today she is solidly barking. for no reason we can see. im confused wether she in season or puppies been had and we are not being told the truth. but owner keeps blanking me. she aint kc reg. pedigree certificate has a load of numbers and letters under the mum and dad. but unshore if i can track this down. or wether it kc reg. mum and dad.

do you think she could be having pups ???? with you saying her teats are extremely large or were they like that before you got her and it could be due to having pups in the past !!! if she isnt pregnent then she could be due for season anytime soon if shes swollen and keeps cleaning herself . x

My advise would be to go to your vet, have her scanned then you would be more certain(although scanning is not always 100%)
All the licking can't be right, she could have pyometra??

i was just thinking that too lexy :) !! x

the vets dont seem concerned all i got was that maybe she is either just had puppies or she coming into season. well still no bleeding and she was like it on sunday, when got her  home. i wondering wether she just had a season maybe before i got her, they are strange people. and wouldnt tell us much they actually called and my vets liers as she had ear infections both ears when took her to vets on tuesday. im glad i got her away from there, but i am stuck with a dog that has all these issues that im slowly coming across since had her, costing me a fortune already which should nt be.  what is that then u think she may have vets would of said something. tess

I don't want to "paint the devil on the wall" as we say at home in Sweden (meaning painting the worst possible picture) but if vet costs are an issue for you at all maybe you need to rethink if you should keep this girl. A Cavalier from untested parents, she has almost 100 % chance of developing MVD (heart problem) before the age of 5 years and will then likely need medication for life. Even wellbred cavaliers from heath tested parents usually develop a murmur sooner or later, it's rare to entirely escape it. My own Cavalier is from a good breeder and he was 7 when his heart got bad, so he's now been on daily medication for over 7 years and it isn't cheap. Some badly bred Cavaliers only live for 6 years due to the hearts, and people breeding them without doing all necessary health checks. :(

i understand where u coming from. but no one buys to start paying out huge amounts after day 3. yes  they do cost adventurely but never this soon. she has today refusing to eat her food. and barking solidly still. stools are normal. drinking huge amounts constantly today. im so confused whats wrong with her. tess

Drinking huge amounts is a cause for concern - given her other symptoms I'd suspect either a urinary infection or a pyo. Have you taken her temperature?

i wouls just book her in to the vets regardless of what a vet says over the phone as he/she cant see her so i would go for my own peace of mind at best it will cost a consultaion fee i wouldnt be happy asking these questions on a forum as it could be something serious. good luck what ever you choose

hi tessalou ,i know how it feel to pay out at the vets when you only just get a dog .....when i got 1 of mine yes he was a pup but after having him only 3days he became very ill ,cost me £370 at the vets but its just 1 of them thing !!! you have to just do it ( im not getting at you x)
if your not happy with your vet then id see another ,may she was taken awy from her litter and sold to you ? and thats why shes feeling down 
( all the barking) or could be she just hasnt had time to settle ,cavs are very ppl dogs ,she might just be missing her last owners ,but drinking alot isnt a good sign ,my mums cav was like this and hes now on inserlin for life so i would get her back and have a blood test done ,can only go on what your saying ,the vets need to give her a full health check .....good luck with her xx

thanks for all ur replies and concerns. i actually took her for a health check on tuesday. but thats all they told  me. i dont drive and thats my nearest one. and they have company vets all over the place drove vets, yes i agree something not right but the vets think im just finding things. as they cant see anything wrong. and just say settling in. thats all.

you didnt say if any bloods were taken ? maybe she needs it to see if anything shows from blood test . x

hi none taken as vets wont do them as feels that she is just settling in. thats her problem. so i cant make a vet do something they wont, can i.

well yes you can :) its you paying the vet and if having your dog blood tested to make sure every thing is ok then i know my vet would !!
i dont see drinking alot of water is down to her settling in :( ...please dont think im getting at you as its hard to write stuff that can be taken the wrong way x

If she is drinking alot of water, licking alot then there is something wrong, this is not normal. If the vet you have now won't do anything, change vets.
Many years ago my nans spaniel was licking constantly & she was extreamly close to pyo.

Like Lilly said you are the customer/one paying & if you think there is someting wrong & want a blood test then they should do it.

Drinking excessively, sometimes with discharge, sometimes not can be a sign of Pyometra a build up of puss/infection in the womb which can quickly lead to septicaemia and death.  the open kind where there is discharge draining (hence licking) is a little less dangerous as some of the poison is draining, but can still kill.

If you tell the Vet you suspect Pyometra they should check for this as a matter or urgency, temperature, blood etc.

A friends bitch has recently spent a week in the vets after emergency surgery for a Pyometra that showed very few sings, the owners just knew she wasn't quite right and it came on within hours.