Your dog’s first heat can occur from 5 months of age and involves a series of physical, hormonal and behavioral changes. We analyze how and when your puppy’s first heat will come and we give you advice to take care of her at that stage and live it normally and without surprises Service Dog Training.
If your puppy is approaching puberty and has not been spayed, she is about to undergo some physical, hormonal and behavioral changes.
Estrus is the period in which females begin to ovulate and allow a male to mount them in order to reproduce. Its appearance means that your puppy is already in puberty and it is very important that you know well the symptoms, duration and implications of heat to prepare well for the situation, since your puppy will need special attention and you will be able to prevent accidents such as her escaping. and lose or cause unwanted pregnancies.
With a little knowledge and planning, your puppy’s heat season shouldn’t cause you too much inconvenience.
When does a dog’s first heat occur?
The first heat appears, on average, around 7 to 9 months of age, with a range of 6 to 18 months depending on the breed. It is closely related to the body size of dogs so, in general terms, it usually appears later in large breeds, 10 to 12, and earlier in small breeds, 5 to 6 months of age.
It is important to be clear that the fact that the first heat appears indicates that your puppy is already in puberty, but it does not mean that she is sexually mature. Sexual maturity is acquired after the second or third heat, between 1.5 to 2 years, on average. That is, although they can have babies at the first heat, it is not recommended that they have them until after they have completely reached their physical development.
How will you know that she is coming into heat?
During this period you may notice some characteristic signs in your puppy and, in most cases, these begin to appear before she is ovulating, that is, before the fertile period. These are the signs you might see:
- A little before estrus, a phase known as proestrus, she begins to bleed, but as she enters her fertile phase, when she is receptive to the male, the bleeding can stop. or become more watery. Bleeding is relative, sometimes it will be abundant and other times all you will see are very small marks on the floor or on your puppy’s bed.
- Your vulva, the external part of the genitals, will be very swollen; it may be up to 3 or 4 times its normal size. It usually happens during the first 2 weeks and your puppy will tend to lick that area more frequently.
- Urinate more times in a row and it will be full of pheromones that will attract evils.
- Her temperament changes usually a little before the physical signs and could include, for example, becoming more affectionate, lazier, with less physical activity and more hours of sleep and moments of relaxation or, on the contrary, more restless.
- They could present different behaviors than usual, such as urinating while tilting one leg like a male, mounting other dogs, although it must be taken into account that they can also do this to play. .
- You may lose or increase your appetite.
- He will pay special attention to male dogs and will “flirt” with them, that is, he will begin to play with the males and sniff them more than normal.
It must be taken into account that these signs are not so marked in all cases, especially if it is the first heat where something can go unnoticed, so you should keep an eye on your puppy if you think she is approaching this moment.
How long does female dogs go into heat?
The symptoms just mentioned last between 15 and 21 days on average, but the fertile stage or estrus lasts only 5 to 9 days and usually occurs about a week after the first signs of heat appear.
Unlike what many think, the estrus phase or fertile phase does not begin when she bleeds but rather when your puppy allows herself to be ridden and ends when she no longer accepts it. It is very important that you observe it throughout the entire period because, although it generally lasts between 5 to 9 days, it is not a general rule, there are dogs with estrus of just 1 day and others with estrus of 15 days.
How often will it happen?
The female canine is the only domestic species that is seasonally monoestrous, that is, with a single estrous cycle per reproductive season and the entire cycle consists of 4 phases: Proestrus (bleeding), estrus (when receptive to the male), diestrus and anestrus ( ovarian inactivity).
On average, it usually occurs every 6 months, that is, 2 heats per year throughout her life unless she is sterilized. This is just a reference because depending on the dog and/or the breed it could be shorter or longer, with some dogs having even 1 heat per year and others with up to 4.
The space between seasons is usually quite regular for each dog. If the pattern suddenly changes or if you notice that they tend to be very different, we recommend visiting a veterinarian as a precaution.