Today i took ellie to the vets for her jabs and was explaining to him about how her behaviour has changed in the last few weeks and she has started growling at people. The vet was kneeling down stroking her and checking her ears e.t.c. and she was being very good then suddenly she snapped at him, and she looked like she meant it! He jumped up so fast, but she didn't actually bite him. There was no growling, no warning signs and afterwards she just laid on the floor and sulked. (or at least that is how he described it.) He diagnosed a false pregnancy, as she had her season in may, and the growling started at the same time.

My question is, does the symptoms sound like a false pregnancy? She is very lethargic and clingy at times, her teats are bigger but she isn't producing milk, and she is more protective of herself around strangers. I am very wary of believing that the false pregnancy is the reason she is snapping and growling as it also could be pure behaviour problems that need addressing, although she was previously friendly pre-season, and was well socialised, although she is a little sensitive. Today at the vets she was quite happy, and did not appear uncomfortable or nervous at all apart from when she snapped.
My second question is is there anything i should do about it? The vet said to wait at least 6 weeks until symptoms have gone before i spay her, and said if she starts producing milk to bring her in and he will give her tablets, but i was wondering what i could do to help her in the meantime?

  poor you, i bet you got a fright.   [and the vet]   i had a bitch that phantomed a lot, and she used to get depressed and sulky, although she never snapped at anyone. - id let it run its course, and see if she returns to her normall self, if so then its likely that it was her phantom, spaying should hopefully sort it out for you,

Thanks. She is certainly not herself at the moment. Even my trainer commented on how lethargic and depressed she was. On Monday she at training she just lay down and went to sleep between exercises, although i could just about get her up again to do something with the promise of food. I am really hoping that this is all do do with hormones as she is such a lovely easy going dog normally. 

I have a little bitch who almost starved herself last year in the weeks following a season.  She was producing a bit of milk which didn't worry me because all my dogs do that after a season without any further symptoms or appearing to be worried in any way.  Already a very shy bitch she became totally withdrawn and stopped eating or drinking.  She was admitted for the day  for blood tests and xrays but nothing was found. 

I was keeping her going by syringing liquid life aid into her because she would not eat or drink at all and was quickly getting weaker.  We had got to the stage of the vet talking of admitting her to put her onto a drip to get some nourishment into her as both the vet and I were frightened that she was actually going to starve herself to death when one of the two vets suggested treating her with Galastop which is given during phantom pregnancies. Within a couple of doses of the Galastop she started to eat and drink and was shortly back to normal.   She was spayed about 6 weeks later and has had absolutely no trouble since.

Most phantom pregnancies cause no trouble at all and pass off without any interference but some can be extremely nasty and cause great hormone imbalance.  If this is what is affecting your bitch this could have caused the dramatic change in her behaviour. 

Joan
Take the rough with the smooth

Hi

My girl Luna is also having a phantom right now - or I think we are just about passed now. She's only had 1 season!

Luna stopped eating regularly 3 weeks ago today. She ate about ½ a meal during a day, some days she didn't eat at all. I wen to my vet monday (after the saturday she stopped eating) as I have a lab, and a lab doesn't stop eating unless something's wrong. The vet prescribed the Galastop, but Luna's only signs were off her food, swollen teats and a bit lazy, so I didn't wanna start giving her meds.

Luna didn't go off her water thankfully. She's started eating again - well almost, not every meal is completed.

Luna's phantom was combined with me moving house, so we are having a littel seperation anxiety going on at the moment. If she gets a phantom after her next season, and its worse I might consider having her spayed. If its the same as this time, I think I will let it take its course.

I'm no expert and have gotten a lot of advice myself.

Good luck

Jeanette

my bitch is having a phantom she has had milk for over 2 weeks she also stopped eating we are now on our second bottle of galastop as the first course did'nt dry the milk up, she has had no agressive behaviour problems throughout the whole time like you are experiencing but my mums dog did bite someone while in a phantom pregnancy so i would think that its not a behaviour problem with your bitch but totally connected to the false pregnancy i would get her on the galastop if she were mine to get her hormones in order then get her spayed my vet has told me two weeks after the milk dries up she can be spayed, since being on the second lot of galsatop shes eating and the milk is drying up but i have to warn you it doe'nt come cheap at £45 a bottle!! plus consultation a grand total of £63!!!

j

Cor blimey thats a bit pricey! But if it helped her i don't mind. I think it would take an awful lot more to put ellie off her food, she is the world's greediest dog after all! It sounds like i have been lucky after all really. Does it generally last as long as a normal canine pregnancy if left to run it's course?
Jeanette, ellie's phantom has also coincided with moving house, which probably hasn't helped! Not an experience i would like to repeat again! This has probably left her a little unsettled too.

i'm not entirely sure how long it would last if left untreated but he advice from the vet was to give lots of exercise and to stop feeding carbohydrates if she were not going to have the galastop, i decided to have the medicine as i want to get her spayed as close to 3 months after her season as poss as this is the recomended time plus its not a very nice experience for the dog so if i can give her a helping hand to get rid of the phantom then thats probably what she would want.

j

Hi

Yeah that could very well be. I was considering bying the galastop, but Luna's not that bad, and I don't really wanna stuff her with anything unless necessary:-) and I have since then been told, that the Galastop only would work if given in the early start of the phantom, but don't know as I haven't bought it.

I never thought Luna would not eat her food, so that really got me worried. Luna will still not eat unless I'm standing nearby, she has to be able to see me. I'm going to start some exercises with her, when I have my holiday as to teach her (again) to be alone home, simply start from scratch.

I have an article from the danish animal protection about this, so I'm looking forward to this. I would have liked to start now, but according to the article, the dog must not be alone at home at all in the period of time outside the exercises, so have to wait. And I have some reading to do aboout it in a book by a Peter neville I think his name is.

Well the best of luck and hope Ellies starts feeling better soon.

Jeanette and Luna