[The Old Bag]

Hi everyone!

We adopted a gorgeous 13mo black GSD on the weekend

She was booked in to be spayed first thing this morning but is already in heat and the vet wants to wait until it's over due to the increased risk of surgery in her condition. I've had a lot of dogs, but never an unspayed female so this is all new!

What do you recommend we do with her to keep her out of trouble? Our fencing is pretty good but I've heard horror stories about the lengths dogs will go to, to get some lovin'. She's still in her first phase so we have a few days at most to prepare. She has been an outside dog... not house trained, not crate trained, and she's not been properly introduced to our indoor cat yet either. I can't spend a fortune on stuff at the moment, really only have what was set aside for the spaying.

Also, any thoughts on keeping her exercised? She's such a calm dog for her age and breed but you can definitely tell when she needs a walk! She's not at all interested in playing with toys or balls in the yard, so we'd like to keep the walks up if there's a safe way.

TIA

[Greatmum]

I have never had any trouble with dogs trying to get into yard it is very secure. But I would not take her out for a walk. Surely she can chase ball etc for a few days.

This post has been edited by Greatmum: 03/12/2012, 12:22 PM

[lozoodle]

To be sure I'd be keeping her indoors while on heat.

I had the same issue with my dog, though I ended up finding a vet who would do it while on heat, but it cost a bit more to do (not hugely exensive though).

If you are in Sydney, I had her done at St George Animal Hospital (the one that is linked to Sydney Dogs & Cats Home)

[hiddensecrets]

My aunty used to breed staffys...when she didnt want her dogs to get freaky with each other she put the dog on heat in underwear with a hole cut in for the tail.

[FiveAus]

I don't walk my girls off our property when they are in season. We have an entire dog as well, so that makes it a bit more tricky but so far we've not ended up with any unwanted pregnancies. I'd start house training her. Today. Adult dogs learn very quickly. Make sure your fences are good, high and secure, and be aware that she is just as likely to try to get out as males are to try and get in. My girls stay indoors when they are in season, its safer for everyone. And dont rely in anything as insecure as pants with a hole cut in, or in 63 days time your dog ownership might very well go from one to about eleven or twelve.

[*Spikey*]

No walkies in public - you'll be leaving a trail for every male dog in the neighbourhood to follow back to your door.

Keep her indoors if you can - and there is no time like the present to begin toilet training. And crate training, most dogs don't mind crates even if they haven't met one before.

She'll also be bleeding a bit, so I'd use an old 'dog' towel for her to lie on while indoors, and keep her to easily cleaned surfaces.

If you're not sure about the cat, you could pop the cat into a bedroom while she's on the loose.

One of my clients mentioned that his dog's mum escaped her pen and 'visited' their male dog (they're breeders but had intended for her to have a break this cycle), with 12 puppies as a result. Don't assume that its always the boys coming to the girls - at some points during their cycle, the girls will seek out a mate, and climb over some fairly amazing obstacles to achieve it.

[The Old Bag]

Thanks everyone for your advice. We'll look at ways of keeping her indoors as much as we can, she is a quick learner and very eager to please. She's fast asleep in her crate now, and she hadn't seen one before yesterday!

Wish us luck

[*Spikey*]

Aaaw, that is lovely.

(Now where are our pics?!)