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Ask the Veterinarian/Female Unspayed 7month old Dog Bleeding

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Expert: - 12/15/2010


Question
Hello Jana,


I have a 7 m.o. female dog who lost her appetite, playfulness and she's been bleeding last night. She feeds on fish and has been vaccinated for anti rabies and dewormed last October. How can we help her?

Answer
I'm sorry, she feeds on fish? Just fish?
That is a whole different subject so let's address the first one. A seven month old dog that is not spayed and is bleeding (from where?) is most likely in heat. She is having an estrus cycle which means that she can get pregnant so she needs to be locked up so that she doesn't get bred by the local mutts that can smell her 3 miles away.

She needs to be spayed as soon as her heat cycle is through in about 8 days or so. Do not let her get bred!!
Now if she is bleeding elsewhere then you need to get her into a vet right away. But you don't say where she is bleeding from. Could be her ear, mouth, vagina, rectum, etc. I have no way of knowing!!

The second problem is her eating fish. She needs a more balanced diet to be healthy and strong and fish is not going to give her that alone. She needs a diet made for dogs, such as Science Diet or Iams even. She needs the kind of nutrition that is made for dogs with the proper amount of proteins and carbohydrates. Fish is too much protein for a dog and ONLY protein with no balance. There are too many minerals with no balance for a dog.

A dog fed a diet of fish only will not live very long and if they do, they will not be healthy or have healthy bones, skin or hair.

So please get her to a vet soon to be spayed or is she is bleeding elsewhere right away. Please get her on a wholesome diet as well!!

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Jana Connell RVT, CVT

Expertise

PLEASE READ BEFORE SUBMITTING TO ME: I am NOT a vet and do NOT diagnose diseases. That is only for a licensed Veterinarian to do. I will give you suggestions and steer you toward calling your vet for help. You can call the vet's office and talk to the technician there or the vet at times. Don't be afraid to call them! If you have a serious issue with your pet please post it to one of the veterinarians in here- I will tell you the same thing in my answer. IF your pet is injured or in an emergency situation, CALL YOUR VET- Do not wait and post in here. Just call the vet's office and get them in to see the vet right away. Critical treatment time is lost if you seek answers here when you should have your precious pet at the vets!! Don't sit at home waiting for an answer when your pet is critically ill or injured!! I can answer most questions about small animal and wildlife care as well as small animal nutrition. I can also answer questions about all phases of dental care for small animals. I DO NOT answer questions about birds (unless it is wildlife or songbirds) or HAMSTERS/GERBILS/CHINS/GUINEA PIGS/REPTILES/FROGS/RABBITS/PET BIRDS OF ANY KIND so please submit these questions to the appropriate sections. I, as well as other experts in here, do NOT do homework questions- that is for YOU to do! Please respect these rules for all of us. Thanks!

Experience

I have over 35 years experience in the field of veterinary medicine. I specialized in small animals and did wildlife rehab for over 25 years, mostly raptors, squirrels and opossums. I am a Small Animal Nutritional Consultant with 6 certificates from Hills Pet Foods, CNM and Purina. I also specialized in Small Animal Dentistry which is a field I truly love.

Organizations
Audubon,World Wildlife Federation, American Society of Veterinary Dental Technicians.

Education/Credentials
Licensed with California and Oregon, RVT and CVT. Certified Veterinary Dental Technician Have over 500 logged hours of Continuing Education Credits(that means I keep up to date!).

Awards and Honors
Nominated for Expert of the Month for the last 5 years.

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