hi guys,

first of all hello (wave), im rachael, live in bradford with my family and have aquired a 5yr old choc lab, she is such a good girl, she is an ex breeding and gundog.

we have had her for 5 and a half months and i dont know when she is due in season as i need to make an appointment for her to be spade as there are a lot of male dogs where i live, i have tried contacting the breeder who owned her but he has recently passed away bless him, anyway my husband seems to remember him saying that she is due end of jan begining feb, im so scared as we have only ever owned males before this is the first bitch weve had (we dont own any males anymore) and i need to make sure i lock all doors and windows and not let her see the light of day for a month lol,

sorry ill get on with the question,

she is usually very patient with my 18month old daughter but for the last 2 days shes growled at her twice, shes very very clingy i mean i cant even go to the toilet without her having to come in with me lol, shes been sleeping most of the day, i have been checking her vulva but no discharge blood or swelling, she seems very down in the dumps shes not eating as much as she usually does and im panicking as i think shes lost a little bit of weight. so i was thinking is there any signs of a bitch coming in season and are they the same as this, i need to get this right so she never has anymore puppies ever again.

anyway there you have it, im probably worrying for nothing but just in case i have made an appointment with my vet just to check her over.

i have a choc lab bitch too and before i had her spayed (due to VERY heavy seasons) thats is exactly how she went before her season EXCEPT the food bit so i'm glad you've booked her in at the vets to get her checked. i always say that the moment my lab refuses her dinner or food in general i will be on my way to the vets and phoneing them on the way to tell them i'm coming - i wont be waiting for an appointment lol - i know this sounds a bit drastic but she virtually inhales her food so i know something would be seriously wrong with her.

thanks claire, ive just been on the phone with the vet and he said she must be close to her season and that i dont need to keep the app but ive told him im still going just to put my mind at rest more than anything else lol, thats it then no more walkies just back garden with armed guard lol, i cant wait till shes been spade as i have a salon and she comes to work with me everyday and my regular clients have been asking for her.

god i hope she hurries up then she can enjoy the rest of her life x

for what its worth i booked my girl in Approximately 2 weeks before she was due in season to be spayed and have had no problems what so ever with her since and her recovery from the op was really fast.

It does sound possible that she's coming in season, don't panic, just play with her in your garden to keep her exercised and happy, then wait a couple of months after the season to have her spayed if that's your choice.

(ps I've always said with my American cocker that if he ever misses a meal we'll just bury him straight away, I can't imagine anything else putting him off eating! :-D )

i booked my girl in Approximately 2 weeks before she was due in season to be spayed

The normal vet advice is to spay mid way between seasons so 3 months before/after one. This is amongst other things due to doing it when there is the least blood flow to the uterus so least dangerous. Close to or after a season there is an increased risk of the bitch bleeding to death during the surgery so this is not to be recommended.

> The normal vet advice is to spay mid way between seasons so 3 months before/after one. This is amongst other things due to doing it when there is the least blood flow to the uterus so least dangerous. Close to or after a season there is an increased risk of the bitch bleeding to death during the surgery so this is not to be recommended.

thanks marianne, i tried to look for info before i posted but could only find info for spaying during or after season.

yes thats what my vet says as we didnt know when she was due in season he said to let her have one then we can work from that, if only i knew when it would be as we would have had her spayed when we got her.

thanks guys for all your posts, will keep you informed

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essenceofbeauty, I had to have one of my girls spayed quite close to her season due to another problem, I was absolutely petrified as I worried about her bleeding excessively during the op if she had been too close to the season but then I thought about it and realised that dogs who are taken into rescue don't normally carry a card saying when they last had a season and they get by ok :)

My girls were bad hormonally and the behaviour you describes sounds like it may be imminent.

> dogs who are taken into rescue don't normally carry a card saying when they last had a season and they get by ok :-)
>
>

Which is why many wait until they have had the season before neutering them.

Essence of beauty just to reassure you it really isnt that bad for most bitches and their owners when they are in season. She may not bleed too much and as I thought the first time I owned a bitch who had a season and neither since I have not had dogs queueing up outside.
I also walked them on lead away from where the majority of people went and at more unusual times. 

When my girl is in season, she still goes for her daily walk tho on a lead and I tend to walk her round the streets rather than taking her to the fields where she usually runs as there aren't as many other dogs.

Kaz

Unless your unlucky and there are a lot of latchkey dogs or you have an entire male living next door/adjacent then you are unlikely to have many problems, just be vigilant.

I too can walk my dogs on lead around the streets where I live as due to a good dog warden service there are no loose dogs to be encountered.

of course I don't take them anywhere dogs are likely to be off lead (common or park land or fields).

I have lived with (at  least one and up to three) and walked entire bitches for the last 20 years without issues.

thanks everyone, i rang the vets again lol and they said to wait so ill wait, my husband is going to walk her on a nightime when no-one else is about, theres many dogs that live round here and they are all responsible apart from 1 who lives 3 doors away she lets it out on its own, ive seen it many times on the street (she has been done for not being a responsible owner) thats a jack russell type dog, im taking a big stick with me when i go out with her lol.

we used to have 3 entire dogs a few years ago but she is the only dog, i do hope to get a puppy this year but she will be spade way before that.

once again thanks so much xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

well today her vulva is very slightly swollen not much at all but can tell a difference and she has some discharge only small again its brownyredy colour but it doesnt smell is this normal, im going to ring the vets but hes already sick of me ringing lol.

If you get a damp (not wringing wet) piece of kitchen towel and just gently dab on her vulva, that will show you whether she's bleeding or not. Browny red sounds ok to me though. As some others have said, wait 3 months following season for spaying as this allows all of her hormone levels to have settled and drop back to as 'they are normally' :-)

thanks trialist just done that now and its browny red, she has a few drops on her vulva every hour or so and once ive wiped shes clean till a bit more gathers, is she in season then or a sign that shes close as if she is in season i can cope with this lol its not that bad.

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it sounds like the start of her season to me x

thanks white lilly, so basically i was panicking over nothing, she looks at me as if its a big deal bless her xxx

thats prob because you keep geting the loo roll out LOL xx

Yep start of season so now count 3 months and book the spay :)

haha i know lol xxx

already done booked so just waiting, the vet is so sick of me ringing and he wanted me to ring nearer the time but no way i want it sorted for her if anything else, i think shes had a fair few pups now its her time to enjoy the rest of her days xxxxxx

edited cos i cant spell lol x

> edited cos i cant spell lol x

my excuse is dyslexic typing.  there is a very useful little free program called ieSpell.  it is great for checking your spelling when filling in forms or posting to forums etc.

i'll have to have a look at that brainless thanks

this season thing isnt as bad as i thought, no males knocking on the door lol the only thing at the moment is she wont leave me alone bless her, if i go to the toilet she comes in and sleeps on the floor infact shes constantly sleeping and she looks fed up my poor little girl.

yes like us hormones, seasons make them tired sometimes plus its worse when they ovulate xxx

oh god so the worst is yet to come, ive had to close the shop as she was fretting when i went to work so it gives me chance to get my washing and ironing sorted lol

Do you have a crate, if so take her to work with you.  I doubt she is likely to bump into may dogs at the salon, and if anyone does bring one you can safely put her in her crate and tell them you have an in season bitch.

lol we have many dogs in the salon me being one of them, too busy making everyone else look beautiful and i end up looking like a crossbreed hehehe, she wont go in a crate we tried that she screams and tries to chew the wire, im not bothered really about closing the salon as its everyones quiet time and it gives me a break as i havent even had a holiday in 3 yrs :( xxxxxxx