Hi folks As yous all know Penny has been particularly unsettled and constantly seeking my attention..i had posted a thread about this a couple of times recently and as always yous came back with some posts advising me that at her age (10 months) they can start acting up like adolescents and juveniles and going back the way ..kinda like testing water to see what they can get away with. I was getting a bit stressed and irritated thinking that we had came through the croco pup stage and she was calming down enough to at least see a change but now is basically not giving me a minute. Any way the point is I noticed last night a large swelling around the left side near her vagina and it felt soft and kinda free floating when she stood up..took her to vet and its a phantom prenancy. I was shocked as she had a season in middle december so i would never have guessed this late on that could happen. This swelling has definately just came up as i would have noticed it. Penny has a temperature too so she is now on 3 lots of meds (anti biotics and anti inflammatories and anti lactating). I feel terrible as if i should have known.. apart from all this she was her usual energetic self..another trip next tuesday for check up. I think i will be asking about speying as i dont want her to go through this again
Oh poor Penny, she must be so miserable. Several members have had bitches have a phantom pregnancy, I'm sure they'll be along with good advice later
Oh my goodness you have my absolute and whole hearted sympathy , you really do. Cassie had a nasty one after her first season, with every symptom in the book, and I was slow catching on because I didn't know it could be so bad and last so long. She was a completely changed dog , was utterly miserable and it was like living with a werewolf with PMT. She didn't have one after her second, I took some steps to try to prevent it, whether it worked I'll never know. I treated the first one homeopathically. I would never wish to see her go through that again, it was real misery and torment for her, she really believed she had babies on the sofa and it was so very upsetting. I wasn't in a rush to get her spayed but she is now, the best thing about it is that she will never have another phantom pregnancy. Try not to beat yourself up, so difficult to pick apart the symptoms from "adolescence". Penny has treatment now and will get through this like most other things
Thanks guys. I am sure Penny will get through this i was just shocked to find out that this can go on for so long after her season finished and i didnt pick up on it.
I advocate spaying for many reasons and this is one of them. Don't blame yourself, how could you have known until the obvious symptoms presented themselves and then you acted quickly and took her to the vet.
Poor Penny, I did not realise that phantom pregnancies were so traumatic - for both Penny and yourself. In your situation I don't think I would have caught on and would have gone to the vet too. Us girls sure have a lot to put up with, hope she is back to her usual self soon.
Update Vet check today and meds are working. Penny still has some fluid to get rid of and the vet said even she was surprised at how swollen she was with milk and that it could have started after her season and it can last about 9 wks. I am sure Penny is better but she is still in energetic pup mode. More antibiotics and another check next week. I know its about getting her better its £160 for 2 vets visits so i think i will get her spayed asap when she has recovered for her and my sake
I didn't realise it could last so long. Tuppence had what seemed to be a slight phantom pregnancy after her first (fairly early) season and was very clingy, as well as being a bit swollen. She's still a bit flabby, despite having been spayed three months after that season, whereas Wispa (whose first season was later, with no ill-effects) has a completely flat tummy. I hope Penny is over it soon.
