Any opinions please! One of my Labs (bitch, 7 months old) had a small area of redness around her vulva yesterday morning and then in the afternoon she started getting a dark brown discharge which has been on and off since. She is very lively and fine in every other respect. I'm tempted to think that she has come into season, but she has shown no hint of other signs prior to this (like running after the boys at the park or swelling up) and the discharge is much darker than I've seen before with a season ( had experience of 4 other bitches). I'm worried that on the other hand she has some sort of infection, but I've been through all my books a hundred times and can't find anything that it could possibly be. The vets is shut until Tuesday and I'm now considering whether to phone the emergency vet. Is it only in our house that things like this happen on Bank Holiday weekends?

It sounds to me like she has started her first season.
MY girls first season was a dark discharge to begin with and not much text book stuff until her second season.
If she is well in herself I would treat it as a season and not worry too much.
If you are really concerned the emergency vet should give advice over the phone.
It always happens on bank holidays!!!!

Hi, thanks for the post.  If your bitch had a dark discharge to begin with too then this makes me happier with the "season" theory, just never seen one start like this before!  Guess they can all be different and it is her first season so as you say likely to not be too text book.  As she is well otherwise and quite happily beating up my other two Labs as I type I've decided to hold off with phoning the vet for now.  She's really thrown me with this that's for sure!

I take it your other two labs are female??

Yep (thank goodness!), one is almost two the other is almost one, she had her first season Jan/Feb this year at just over 9 months and there was no doubt in my mind then as she'd been swollen for two days before and she'd been running off after dogs at the woods for a good month before that! The older one was almost a year before her first season.  I wonder if having one in season in Jan/Feb has prompted the 7 month old to come into season earlier than perhaps she might, I've heard theories that this can happen, who knows?! 

My Safi has just come into her 2nd season and she just started with a biggish amount of bloody discharge. (Sorry for being so explicit)
I don't think you have anything to worry about :)
Anne