Hello to all,
I am an experienced breeder (25 years).  My female was mated on February 8 for the first time (of three matings).  So today is day 18.  She is having a small amount of discharge with tinges of dark red blood in it.  Has anyone experienced this in a mated female?  Many years ago I DID experience this, and it was on day 18! The pregnancy was not affected.  I was told at the time by an experienced breeder that if there are "too many" fertilised ova at the time of their attachment to the uterine wall (which is said to take place around or on day 18!), the body may shed some of them.  I'd be interested in your comments.  Thanks.

Sounds likely, and of course could easily be missed when a bitch cleans herself.

A clear discharge at around this time, is a good sign of pregnancy.  I'm not sure about a red-tinged discharge at all.  I'd keep a close eye on her, since pyo is always a possibility.

She will, of course, be in season to the normal end date of her season.   I had just one of my bitches who, unlike any of the others, after 2 successful matings on days 11 and 3, went to a normal for a season, blood discharge.   It wasn't copious but at the same time, wasn't what any of my other bitches did, mated or not.  The third week usually means a slight lightish coloured discharge which by day 21, had stopped.    I didn't panic as she was fine otherwise and as it happened, she had an uneventful pregnancy and 9 of probably the best puppies we'd bred up to then.   So good that we kept 3 and bought them back to the UK with us, one taking a UK title and the other sister, her perm. Crufts Qual. (Stud Book entry).  The male's bite went, sadly but I let him be used by another experienced breeder and he is now back of many hounds in the UK, including the one I have here now.

If this discharge has an offensive smell, becomes copious, and she's clearly unwell, pregnancy apart, see your vet.   There's always the possibility of a Pyometra (as said!).

Oh wait, are we talking Day 18 of her season/heat?  Or Day 18 of pregnancy??  By Day 18 of pregnancy (ie from mating), you wouldn't really expect any bloody discharge at all and that's what I thought you meant in your post, OP.  Whereas in Day 18 from start of heat, of course like MamaBas says you might still have some bloody discharge happening - right through until when a season would usually end...

My girl had a slight bloody discharge for about a month after mating, almost as if she was still in season. I'd not come across this before and was worried, but a scan at 6 weeks showed lively whelps. They're now 2 weeks old and seem totally strong and healthy.

Many thanks, everyone, for your comments!  I just want to tell you that this afternoon (Sunday!) I DID go to my vet.  He made a scan and told me that there is absolutely no sign whatsoever of pyometra.  Whether there is an abort going on or not, he couldn't say.  My female acts completely normal in every way.  Oh, I did want to say that I am talking about 18 days after the first mating, not the 18th day of her season.  And there was no discharge between the end of her season and now, until it reappeared, dark in color, and minimal in quantity.  I have an appointment on March 12th for a scan (the usual one to determine if the female is pregnant), and that will, of course, be very interesting.   I do hope she hasn't aborted them all.  I am relieved, of course, to know that there is no pyometra involved.

I've come back just to mention a few facts.  The male is my own male, tried and trusted, sire of many successful litters, including with this particular female.  So they mated at home, meaning there is no involvement with anyone else's homes or germs or whatever.

Fingers crossed for you.  I bet the scan will show that you still have some pups in there :)

Thank you!  That helps!  :-)

>The male's bite went, sadly

Sorry to move off topic, but can you explain what this means?

Usually means that the teeth do not meet correctly as an adult even when they were OK as a puppy

> The male's bite went, sadly

Sorry.   Instead of a scissor bite, as called for in the Breed Standard (for his breed), although as a young puppy he was 'tight' (more edge to edge really - which is accepted in Canada) by the time he came out of quarantine (6 months - before Pet Passport) his lower teeth  were slightly out of line making a scissor bite impossible.   It may have been going to happen in any case, but whilst in quarantine I caught them serving their food too moist and as the bowls were 'stacked' as they took them round the kennels, this meant the food was pushed down making it difficult for it to be eaten without 'graunching' it to get it out of the bowl.   I'm pretty sure having to do this over a long period (those 3 were 15 months when they went into kennels) meant overuse of the lower row of teeth.   Fact is his jaw was still correct, top and bottom.  I did show him a couple of times, at Open show level to see what would happen .  One judge gave him 1st in his class and asked me how much winning he'd already done .... which she shouldn't have! .... I said he'd have done more had his bite been 'better' (idiot me).  She blanched and come the final line up for BOB, ignored him!   Her husband was doing the Group so obviously she didn't want to send through her BOB Basset with an incorrect bite. The judge at the previous show clearly noted his bite.   That was the last time I bothered showing him.   Tragic as he was otherwise a quality animal.

His sire was edge to edge but I risked using him for his other attributes and because I'd never had a bad bite in my line.   He was, as far as I heard, the only one who didn't have a scissor bite out of the 9 in that litter.

My bitches have always bled during and after mating, until the end of her normal season.

Nimue has said she is bleeding 18 days after mating - not from the start of her heat.  And that her heat started and finished at the usual time, before this bleeding started up...