Good Grief - Belle's in heat
So now . . . what do I do? I read an earlier post that said Annabelle's lasted about three weeks and I know there are different stages to the process. The discharge is fairly light right now. Belle's original medical records from 07.14 said she was apparently in heat then; that was only 3 months ago. Is this "normal"? On another note, Belle's put on 15 pounds now (up to 72.2 pounds today) and I think she looks hefty! Just kidding of course, but she's definitely heavier than she was. I wonder how the extra weight is affecting her. She's been somewhat lethargic the past few days, which has worried me, but maybe that has to do with her heat cycle and/or she's using her energy to heal her damaged muscles. She had a great walk yesterday - Indy 500 pace for 1/4 of a mile. I think Kayli had to keep up with her, so you can just picture me practically jogging after them. It was all I could do not to tell everyone we passed how amazing this was! Jil |
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| If she has been lethargic, and was thought to be in heat only 3 months ago I would get her to the vet. There may be a uterine infection called pyometra, or there may be a problem with anemia.
Isn't this dog an older dog and a rescue? Why wasn't she fixed? |
| Belle wasn't fixed because of her failing heart and the anesthesia; it's not an option right now. She is not an active dog because of this and the arthritis in her hips.
I just read enough about pyometra to scare the bejezus out of me and I'll call the vet first thing in the morning. Will this poor sheepie girl ever catch a break? Jil |
| Should I take her to the emergency vet? I hate to sound cheap, but if I had the choice, I'd prefer to save my money for her daily meds, but I don't want to jeapordize her health, either.
J |
| Only you can make that decision, I sooo understand what you are going through.
Does the discharge seem like only blood, or do you think it may be infected? Sometimes taking their temp doesn't even give you the answer, as sometimes even with infection there is no fever, or even a lower temp. If you think she is lethargic, she may be low on iron simply because her health is not good enough to handle going through a heat cycle. |
Emergency vet it is; the discharge does not seem like just blood. Aarrgghh. 
Thanks for the help, although you do realize that this was not the answer I was looking for. 
J |
| Please let me know how things go! I hope everything is ok and that they can help her feel better quickly! Good luck! |
| Thanks Willow. This poor girl deserves all the good luck she can get. Me too, for that matter. The stress of worrying about her is starting to get to me, lol. |
| Any news yet? |
| Just got back. No pyrometra, thank god. It's a UTI, with the added bonus of struvite crystals, which are the beginnings of bladder stones. Ouch! Dr. Matt Januszowski (a WONDERFUL guy!) put her on amoxycilin and I'm to change her diet to help lower the pH in her urine, which is currently 8. This means a trip to my vet tomorrow to discuss. Hopefully it won't have to be prescription food.
He does think she's in heat and wondered if the original vet was correct in saying she was in heat in July. He also said that stranger things have happened than going into heat again after only 3 months. I added that stress can do a lot for any body and he agreed. So I'm back to that question - what do I do for a dog that's in heat. Oh, and the x-rays showed that she also has arthritis in her spine. With all this arthritis, I'm amazed that she's moving at all sometimes. She's very happy to be home and we're heading out the door for walkies. The x-ray shows that she really needs to poop. We only did one walkie yesterday . . . I wonder if she's saving it for the next walk. Silly girl! Thanks Willowsprite - even though I'm $305 poorer I feel much better and Belle will too after the antibiotic kicks in. Jil |
| Sounds like the poor girl has a lot to get through... but at least she has you to help her through it.
I'm glad it wasn't pyometra... it's too bad she can't be spayed. I hope she feels better soon, and don't forget to take care of yourself! |
| I need a beer. Or twelve, lol, and I don't really drink!
We just got back from walkies and the first 2-1/2 blocks were at power speed again. She only slowed down when her boyfriend wasn't out in his yard. Unfortunately, she scared him a few days ago by barking at him twice; he was a scary, barking bundle of energy until that and then he put his tail between his legs and slunk away! After that, I've only seen him hiding in the house. I think she's happy to be home. I wonder what's going through her mind sometimes. Well, most of the time, actually! It's already 3:00 and I haven't gotten anything done today. I'm home tomorrow because the furnace is being replaced, so I think I'll do the housework then. I wonder if I have any bon bons . . . |
| To answer your question about the heat cycle:
Proestrus is the first part where the dog is just coming into heat. It last 2-15 days. During this time the female may spot brownish or bloddy fluid and the vulva begins to swell. The bitch will act nervous and "not be herself" (having a UTI sure doesn't help). She will be inclined to those Indy 500 walks as this is the time the girls want to climb the fence and find the boys. She may be more snappy than usual, especially with other dogs. Estrus is the part where she will accept a mate. This will last 3 days to sometimes several weeks. The discharge changes to clear or sraw colored..or can remain bloddy......it varies. Obviously this is the danger time for Belle. She will be in a very playful mood with male dogs
Diestrus or Metestrus is the 60 days after estrus. When the female goes out of heat, the discharge will change to a whitish color, lasting about a week. The vulva slowly returns to normal size. Now, as for the kidney stones, my Glacier had early symptoms so I put her on Solid Gold's Berry Balance. It's a natural cranberry and blueberry extract for dogs prone to struvite crystals and bladder infections. It helps dissolve struvite crystals. Combined with Amoxy for the UTI, she's now a happy peer. And for the constipation, try Metamucial....I posted in another site here about it. 1 tsp per 10 lbs weight up to 6 tsp maximum. Also encourage water drinking by adding a wee bit of milk or other favorite flavor.......chicken stock is big here too. |
| Sweet! This information explains a lot! I'm especially happy to hear about the Solid Gold's Berry Balance. Belle's on Prairie now and the vet swears that only Science Diet CD will help with the crystals. He's a SD fanatic. I haven't had a chance to research any natural foods and I knew there had to be something out there. I'm not fond of the idea of having her on prescription food for the rest of her life. I'll go pick some Berry Balance up tonight.
I think the constipation problem is solved, considering what I just picked up from the lawn, but I'll get some Metamucil for future episodes. Thanks for the heat cycle info - I knew nothing about this and wasn't sure what to expect. You guys are great!! Now, can you get Kayli to stop barking at the guys who are replacing my furnace?  Actually, I just did. I put the fear of Jilly into her like I haven't done in a long time. The furnace guys are probably chuckling in the basement right now. I am Jilly, hear me discipline. Ha!
Jil |
| Research tells me that Berry Balance is not a food, but a supplement. My pet food store does stock it so we're good to go.
Oh - and Belle just came and told me she needed to go out!!! A breakthrough of sorts here! J |
| I am so glad that Belle's issues are being solved! Aren't people on this forum great!!!! I absolutley love "coming" here and reading the stories and helping when I can. This is a fabulous site! Give Belle a big smooch for me! She is precious! |
| Jil,
You deserve a Beer or twelve.... I hope Belle is feeling better! My thoughts and prayers continue to be with her! Kristen |
| Beer? Did I hear someone offer free beer? |
| Beer at Jil's house!!
Belle IS doing well. No new problems, but the week isn't over!  At least this issue is rather humorous . . . I never thought I'd be standing in the feminine products aisle of the CVS trying to pick out something for my dog!
J |
| lol....
Actually diapers for human infants work best. I got size four for Dancer, but she's rather small, size five might be better for Belle. |
| If it makes you feel any better, purchase the male pads.
I tried the diapers on Splash, I hated the noise. Never did try the plain cloth. The female doggie pads at PetsMart weren't big enough for my heft girl. |
| Regarding the struvite crystals - one of our cats had developed crystals which caused a blockage. Once we got that fixed (many many dollars later), the conventional doctor wanted to put him on Science Diet. Of course, the cat didn't want to touch the stuff. So, I checked with our holistic veterinarian, and she recommended that we use DL Methionine which would make the urine acidic and help prevent growth of crystals. It worked fabulously. Our cat feels great and the medication didn't have any side effects. |
| Yay! Tonight Belle's flowered "undies" came off for good, or at least for 6 months, I hope.
An added bonus is that we haven't been to a vet in 16 days! Belle's showing more animation in her face and answered me when I asked if she wanted to go outside yesterday. It's the little things that make my day. All is well in Jil's House of Fur. J |
| Jil, so happy to hear how well Belle is doing! And you're right - those animated faces are what we live for! Sounds like she's settling in great and is accepting you as her mommy! What could be better?? So now you can have that beer to relax!
Chris |
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