Is she in heat?...or blood from somewhere else? - Doberman Forum : Doberman Breed Dog Forums

BrinksBlue · 01-23-2013, 01:00 PM

Brinks will be 8 months on Feb 6 so I've known for awhile that she could come into heat at any time. Months ago, we weighed the pros and cons and along with help from our vet, decided to wait to spay Brinks until after her first or second heat, to try to decrease her future UTIs, along with other reasons. Along with that decision, we did lots of research on what to look for and what to expect and I felt ready....as ready as I could be. But now, of course, she has me all confused!

In the last week or so I have noticed that occasionally she will have a tiny drop of discharge hanging from her. I always notice it after she pees though because I've become so paranoid about her getting another UTI that I always check her. This tiny little drop of discharge after peeing is not an unusual thing for her and sometimes means we are heading for another UTI. So I kept a close eye on her but nothing progressed from there and it was never more than one tiny drop.

Then for the last three nights, there have been drops of blood on the kitchen floor. They are tiny, so it is possible that they are on the carpet too but since our carpet is a mix of tans and browns, it would easily hide these tiny drops. I have wiped her a few times and get absolutely nothing. I have gone over every inch of her trying to find the source of this blood and I can't find anything but obviously, its coming from somewhere on her. I have been unable to find any blood whatsoever on any of her beds or blankets. She also does not appear to be swollen at all.

Besides the above, for the last few days I've noticed that she has been slightly, slightly, slightly more sleepy and whinier and more clingy when she's awake. She's also asking to go out more but it may just be because its been so cold here that I make her come in much sooner than usual and she loves being outside!

Last Tuesday (1/15) we had an UA done on her which was clean, complete blood work (for unrelated things), including a CBC, CMP and thyriod panel (which went to U of Mich). We are still awaiting the thyroid results but everything else was ok.

Could this be her in heat or do I need to get out a magnifying glass and figure out where the heck this blood is coming from?!? I'm nervous because while she is always supervised while outside, I haven't been glued to her side the way I planned to be when she went into heat. I've left her out for a few minutes to run in the house and do something. I haven't noticed any other dogs around at all, though. Leave it to Brinks to throw a wrench in our plan!

Rosemary · 01-23-2013, 01:03 PM

Is her vulva swollen? That was the first sign in Leo. The discharge showed up about a week after I noticed that her vulva was swollen.

Sam1491 · 01-23-2013, 01:04 PM

It sounds like she may be, some bitches bleed more and get a puffier vulva than others which may be why you aren't seeing much definitive evidence, especially if she is in a "silent" heat, but she also may be just starting hence the minimalness.

Keep an eye on her and don't leave her unattended outside!

BrinksBlue · 01-23-2013, 01:07 PM

Nope no swelling at all. Looks exactly like it always has. Her vulva is kind of small and tucked in, which is one of the reasons the vet advocated waiting until after a heat to spay. The hope was it would get maybe even slightly bigger and hopefully cut down on future UTIs.

BrinksBlue · 01-23-2013, 01:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sam1491

It sounds like she may be, some bitches bleed more and get a puffier vulva than others which may be why you aren't seeing much definitive evidence, especially if she is in a "silent" heat, but she also may be just starting hence the minimalness.

Keep an eye on her and don't leave her unattended outside!

I haven't let her more than 3 feet from me outside since we first saw the blood a few nights ago!

In all the prep I did for this, I came across lots of pictures of swollen vulvas and bloody messes that looked like crime scene photos, so that's what I was looking for! Maybe she is just starting or is in a silent heat. Maybe she is finally going to go easy on her Mama after all the other things we've been through with her!

Doubt it, though!

Sam1491 · 01-23-2013, 01:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BrinksBlue

Nope no swelling at all. Looks exactly like it always has. Her vulva is kind of small and tucked in, which is one of the reasons the vet advocated waiting until after a heat to spay. The hope was it would get maybe even slightly bigger and hopefully cut down on future UTIs.

I'd treat it as a heat just to be safe. She may be in a silent or she may be just starting and progress in the next few days.

Sam1491 · 01-23-2013, 01:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BrinksBlue

I haven't let her more than 3 feet from me outside since we first saw the blood a few nights ago!

In all the prep I did for this, I came across lots of pictures of swollen vulvas and bloody messes that looked like crime scene photos, so that's what I was looking for! Maybe she is just starting or is in a silent heat. Maybe she is finally going to go easy on her Mama after all the other things we've been through with her!

Doubt it, though!

Haha oh gosh you may have overprepared

Mabel got massive with her first one! like beyond normal bitches, but I've also seen bitches in silent heat be just as tight as always and in heat....

Here's some info on non regular heat cycleing

Abnormal Heat Cycles in Female Dogs

How it normally goes:
The 4 Stages of the Dog Heat Cycle (Signs Your Dog Is In Heat) | Ask a Dog Breeder: Dog Breeding Information, Storefront, Questions, Tips, Advice & Forums - Dog Mating

eventermal · 01-23-2013, 01:24 PM

You can take a little bit of toilet paper and dab her hooha to see if that's where the blood is coming from. Guilty is really clean, and rarely drips, but I can get a visual confirmation when I do this. Helps for my records so I know when the "official" start of her season is.

Sent from my iPhone using Petguide.com Free App

BrinksBlue · 01-23-2013, 01:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sam1491

Haha oh gosh you may have overprepared

Mabel got massive with her first one! like beyond normal bitches, but I've also seen bitches in silent heat be just as tight as always and in heat....

Here's some info on non regular heat cycleing

Abnormal Heat Cycles in Female Dogs

How it normally goes:
The 4 Stages of the Dog Heat Cycle (Signs Your Dog Is In Heat) | Ask a Dog Breeder: Dog Breeding Information, Storefront, Questions, Tips, Advice & Forums - Dog Mating

Thank you! I've read the second article before. It came up in my prep for all this, but I haven't seen the first article so I definitely have some reading to do! Silly me, thinking Brinks would do anything normal! I should have just started my research to prepare for her in heat by googling "dogs with crazy heat cycles!"

BrinksBlue · 01-23-2013, 03:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eventermal

You can take a little bit of toilet paper and dab her hooha to see if that's where the blood is coming from. Guilty is really clean, and rarely drips, but I can get a visual confirmation when I do this. Helps for my records so I know when the "official" start of her season is.

Sent from my iPhone using Petguide.com Free App

I've tried that a few times and get nothing! My husband also suggested the same thing, but do you think he tried it? Of course not! haha The problem is I don't see the blood right away, its always dry when I find it, so she might have already gotten herself cleaned up by the time I see the kitchen floor. I wash the floor every night so that's usually when I see the drops. That's also how I know that this is new blood every night for the last 3 days. If she is in heat, she definitely doesn't have a consistent flow. I let her sleep on a white blanket last night (yes I'm crazy) to try to find blood and nothing all night!

Sam1491 · 01-23-2013, 03:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BrinksBlue

I've tried that a few times and get nothing! My husband also suggested the same thing, but do you think he tried it? Of course not! haha The problem is I don't see the blood right away, its always dry when I find it, so she might have already gotten herself cleaned up by the time I see the kitchen floor. I wash the floor every night so that's usually when I see the drops. That's also how I know that this is new blood every night for the last 3 days. If she is in heat, she definitely doesn't have a consistent flow. I let her sleep on a white blanket last night (yes I'm crazy) to try to find blood and nothing all night!

That's the big difference in dogs though and also a variable in bitches, they don't have as much of a flow as your average human girl and it can be very minimal even for a dog in some, and they also can be very! clean.
I had an older bitch with me for awhile who was so clean she didn't need any undies and I still let her on the furniture

Woman like to be difficult in any species

BrinksBlue · 01-23-2013, 04:01 PM

Thank you for all the help! Its possible that she's been licking herself more, which would account for the cleanliness if she is in fact in heat. Its also possible that I have been watching her so closely for the last few days that I am just noticing more than I ever did before. Either way, we'll see how the next few days/weeks go! I should be grateful that she's not leaving blood everywhere! Her favorite thing to do lately is back her butt up onto our legs when we're standing up and let us support her weight! What a mess that could be!

**Patches Mom** · 01-24-2013, 12:41 AM

Chastity belt house arrest for a month rather be safe than sorry,remember sometimes girls will go looking for boys too.