Surviving Your Female Dog's First Season

Living with multiple dogs can be an amazing experience. Seeing your dogs (hopefully) welcome a new friend and watching their relationship grow is very rewarding. It also brings up a new set of questions to ask yourself. From walks to where they should be fed. An important question to consider is whether one or more of the dogs should be neutered. This can be vital to think about if one of your dogs is a female. Especially if she is approaching her first season or the first around another dog. Most of the tips will be intended for those with dogs of both sexes.

First of all, prepare your dogs. During the season, it may be necessary to separate your dogs...especially if they are going to be left alone. Even if your male is neutered, his instincts might kick in! And your female may not like the attention initially. Get them used to being separated as early as possible. Using pens, crates, or even letting them sleep in different rooms. You may also need to walk them individually (concerned about separation distress? Check out our course here). Letting them know it's okay to be apart will help.

Just over a week into her season, your girl will be at her most fertile. This tends to be the time when she gets a bit more receptive to any male advances. She may get a bit flirty, even pushy, with males. It is best to avoid letting her off lead around boy dogs at this stage. Neutered males can still tie with females. While there is no risk of pregnancy, it can cause distress to the female. This is more likely if she is young and hasn't experienced it before. She may injure herself or the male. Best to keep them separate. You can hire a local dog field for some off-lead exercise or go to a super quiet park. Use a long line for extra security if you need it. If you do keep her on lead, practice your loose lead walking. You also want to work on some tricks or scent work at home. Training gives your dog a way to tire out their brain instead of their legs.

While your dogs are together, supervise them. Be there to prevent one from pestering the other too much. Girls in season can get quite clingy due to their hormones. Your other dog may not appreciate this! Likewise, your other dog is extremely interested in her. Supervision keeps them both safe and happy. Be ready to intervene if necessary. You may find it useful to prepare some food toys in advance...just in case the attention gets to be too much.

Now, one thing to watch out for is the discharge from your girl. Some females like to keep themselves very clean. Other, not so much. Any males or other females may be quick to remove this fluid from the floor. If you would rather not have to clean this up, you can buy sanitary pants. Introduce them the way you would a harness. Wearing them is probably a sensation your female hasn't experienced. Plus, she will be extra sensitive during her season. So let her get used to them before she starts bleeding. Otherwise, you may be impressed by her ability to remove them!

It is possible to live with entire dogs together. It may take some changes to your routine and maybe your home. Most seasons last around 3 weeks. You can help your dogs cope during this time, just need a little advanced preparation.