Expert: Jannie Balliett - 9/27/2011

Question
Hi Jannie! I have a 17 month old akc female boxer. Her first heat was recently on Sept 1...well that's when we noticed the blood and swelling from her vulva. Anyhow, we have a male boxer as well and we have kept them seperated during this cycle. We do NOT want any puppies at the moment because we are in the middle of moving, and will be living with relatives for a while. We have two kennels outside where I keep them while I'm at work. I went home for lunch one day about 2 weeks ago and noticed they had both dug dog holes and got out. When I seen them they were not "stuck" together, but they were probably loose at the most 4 hrs. Anyway, 2 days ago I noticed my female throwing up a bit of foamy liquid. She did again yesterday as well. Is this a sign of pregnancy in dogs? Or could this be something else? She is acting like her normal self, I did notice her nipples are slightly large or just more noticeable the pre-heat. Her vulva is slightly swollen as well. Any info is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Answer
Where there is a will-- there is a way.

You said 4 hours? Yes, it takes them 1 minute to get down to business.

She is probably pregnant.

If you do not want a litter of puppies, your only choice is to visit a vet that is willing to abort them. Either way, puppies v.s. aborting them, it will cost you money.

BTW, a male dog can smell a female in heat up to (if not more sometimes) 3 miles away and have been known to jump 6-7' high fences to get to her.

The kennels next to one another or in adjacent vicinity would never hold either since their whole instinct is to mate.