In my last post, I did say that our bitch that we were looking to mate can have 'funny' seasons. Well, it looks like she's either having a silent season again, or perhaps it's a split season. I have been tissue testing her lady bits regularly for a few weeks now, and Thursday/Friday last week, I got a couple of spots on a tissue. So thinking that she was coming into season, have started planning the next few months. However, the little madam seems to know what we're planning :-o LOL, and since Saturday no show at all on the tissue test, no swelling, nothing! (Although she is washing herself a lot) I suspect she's having a silent season, as my old boy keeps having a good sniff, and generally following her around (he's never like this normally round her)

So I'm wondering, is it worth it to have her Idexx tested to keep a check on her levels? would it still be possible to mate her if she is having a silent season, or should I just forget it this time, and wait till she has a 'proper' season?

Nothing to stop her having a season with very little/no blood which is what a silent (sometimes called colourless) season is as opposed to a split season, or what I have had with several bitches a false start to a season which gives a couple of days of spotting and then about one to three weeks later the season starts from scratch.

They have been mated about the usual number of days after the second lot of bleeding.

I would certainly test her to know what she is doing if the stud is not close by or she cannot stay with him for a prolonged period.

Thx Brainless, now you mention it, on her last season, she had a 'false start', so it may be the same thing this time.. I think I'll get her tested anyway. Would you have her tested asap, or should I wait a few days do you think?

Are bitches usually mated quite early on in your breed or more like around day 15 as with mine.

With the latter I would get a baseline done 8 - 10 days from when you found the first blood, unless she obviously starts a season from scratch before then.

My last bitch to have a false start like this I sent to the breeder of the stud (stud dog belongs to my lovely friend, their daughter) two weeks after she started, he told them clearly she was not ready/in season, and she came in properly two weeks after arriving there, and stayed there until after she was mated (two weeks after the second show), which meant they had her for a month. 

It means she absolutely adores them, and they have handled her to a RC and a CC for me when I needed a handler in the challenge.

Normally our breed are mated around day 11 - 16, so I think getting her tested in a few days is a good idea and keeping an eye on her is the way forward this time

My bitch whom I am going to mate has just done exactly the same thing!!  16 days ago I noticed her cleaning herself alot and tissue tested to get a few dots of blood. This went on for 3 days, I alerted the stud dog owner in Sweden only for her to stop the next day!
She took about 8-9 day and then came back in properly (no colour at all in between). In between this time she has still been acting as if she was in season and dogs have still been interested so when she came back in on Wednesday we let the vet know and she suggested blood testing yesterday but the results were very low so taking today as day 3.  I think they just like to give us extra stress :)
With her first litter she did the same thing but only stopped for 3 days in between and went onto produce an average size litter so fingers crossed it doesnt have a detrimental effect this time.