Our girl has been unsettled lately for about 7 days and for the life of me I could not understand what was happening with her. I called our vet to rule out some of what I thought and the results were confirmed. She is going through a false pregnancy.
False pregnancy, phantom pregnancy, pseudo-pregnancy or pseudocyesis are all terms that refer to a display of maternal (mothering) behavior combined with the physical signs of pregnancy following estrus ("heat") in an unspayed female dog that is not actually pregnant.
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False Pregnancy or Pseudopregnancy in Canines.
Side effects
What are the symptoms of a phantom pregnancy?
Lethargy.
Depression and/or other behavioural changes.
Loss of appetitive.
Nesting – this can involve moving around and digging bedding.
Nursing – your dog may become particularly attached to a toy.
Secretion from mammary glands.
Swollen belly.
Length
Mild cases of false pregnancy do not require treatment and will resolve in about 2-3 weeks. If the dog appears physically ill, symptomatic treatment can be started by your vet
I went through our youngest daughter’s old collection of stuffed animals to try and make things more comfortable for her and here we are. Our girl has been searching day and night for her absent puppies and this has satisfied her search and mental state. This just goes to show you how great a mother she is to her past and present puppies.
I felt the need to share just in case anyone else might have to go through this with their own female dog in the future.
The more you know!
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