Signs of Pregnancy

As we're ALL waiting to find out if Rowan is pregnant, I thought it might be good to share what it is we are looking for!

As of right now, she is between 7 and 10 days pregnant, if all is going as planned. Any fertilized ova are now between two and 32 cells and still in the oviducts (not yet in the uterus).

By 20-21 days (three weeks) into her pregnancy, the embryos will finally reach the uterus and begin to implant in its walls. Around this time, and during the week after, the first real signs of pregnancy will be notable.

The kinds of hormone tests that humans use to determined human pregnancies are not applicable to dogs. We cannot test for progesterone levels, as these remain high in dogs after a heat whether or not they are pregnant. Gonadotrophins, which humans can also measure to determined pregnancy, are not present in high enough levels to be measured. Dogs do produce a hormone called relaxin, which can be detected after about 21-28 days, but by this time, other signs can be used to determine pregnancy.

So? What ARE we looking for? What can we do to determined pregnancy for sure? There are a few ways.

One is palpation - the embryos can be felt using one's fingers VERY gently, if you know what you are looking for, around 21-28 days post-breeding. If you know what it is that you are looking for, the feel of grape to walnut sized around, firm, slighty springy round lumps that can be slipped, one by one, thru the fingers. The uterus is "Y" shaped, and there will normally be puppies in both "horns" of the "Y." So, usually one can only feel one side at a time. It is difficult to get any kind of accurate count using this method, particularly as it is always possible that not all the "lumps" will develop completely into pupies, but you can at least determine whether or not she IS, in fact, pregnant. After about 4 1/2 week post-breeding, the lumps are less defined and the uterus feels more like the rest of the abdomenal organs, so palpation is not possible.

Ultrasound can also be used at this time (3-4 weeks postbreeding), and any time thereafter, to view embryos and heartbeats can be seen at this time. I've also seen very late-stage ultrasounds and skeletons and movement can be seen later, which is pretty neat to watch. It is also difficult to count pups using ultrasound technology, as it is a 2 dimensionl picture of a 3 dimensional space.

Fetal movement can be seen and felt around the last 10-14 days of the pregnancy. If you haven't found out by then, you surely can feel it at that point! It feels as if the pups are moving under a pile of blankets - just nudging your hands as you lay them gently over the momdogs abdomen. Often the bitches can feel it far sooner - you can sometimes see them nibbling at their sides or turning in surprise to stare at their growing bellies as the pups turn and kick within them.

Fetal heartbeats can be detected using a stethoscope after about 6 weeks post-breeding. I have one and do use it, but it is for entertainment only, as by this time normally we know we are expecting puppies. It is fun to hear the little heartbeats when you can locate them. THey sound like the very fast ticking of a clock.

X-rays are another sure sign of pregnancy. X-rays can be taken anytime after 45 days post-breeding (7 weeks). Anytime before this you cannot see any skeletons as they have not been mineralized. They are not 100% reliable, but can give a good idea of how many pups you can be expecting. We normally do x-ray during the last week of pregnancy to be sure what to expect during delivery. This picture is a partial x-ray of Z pregnant with Duncan's litter. The whole x-ray would not fit on the screen. Many veterinarians now have access to digital x-ray machines, which make transportation of x-rays much easier! It is also possible to do more editing and make the images more clear.

There are some secondard signs to look for which are also found with false pregnancies. Alone they don't determine pregnancy, but they help confirm it.

Around 5 week post-breeding, the abdomen will begin to look more full and continue to enlarge, depending on the size of the litter, until the last week (not much increase in size is usually seen in the last week). As you saw in teh previous photos, often momdogs can look more like beach whales than anything else!

Often the coat and skin are far shinier and more luxiourious during pregnancy. This is of course far more obvious in a coated breed than in pointers.

Usually after a heat, the bitch's vulva will return to a slightly smaller size. During pregnancy, usually the vulva will remain somewhat larger, and more elastic. Nearly always, around 4-5 weeks post-breeding, a clear, odorless mucus discharge can be seen during pregnancy. This is not always seen as many bitches keep themselves scrupulously clean, but it is a pretty sure sign that something small and cute is cooking in the uterus... (if the discharge is creamy, green yellowish, pus-like and/or has a bad odor - there is likely an infection and the bitch should be seen immediately by a vet).

Often increased or severely decreased appetite can be present during pregnancy. Rowan is a great eater, so any increase probably will not be noticeable, howeve,r a decrease will be. Both her mother & grandmother had mild bouts of genuine nausea during early pregnancy (vomiting bile once or twice a day) that passed later in the pregnancy. This did not seem to affect their appetite. Any sign of nausea in Rowan would of course be taken as a good sign! :-)

There will also be mammary development and milk production as the pregnancy progresses, but as Rowan also always has a false pregnancy even if not bred, this will not be a sure sign, altho certainy it's good to know she will be able to produce milk!

So these are the signs we are looking for. Right now Rowan is behaving perfectly normally, naughty as ever, hogging all teh toys and playing ball at every opportunity. In another couple of weeks, I will be palpating her to see what I can find. Meanwhile, feel free to email with any questions that I can answer either privately or on this blog.

SIGNIFICANT DEVELOPMENTS:

7-10 days post-breeding Embryos are 2-32 cells in size, located in oviduct
19-21 days post-breeding Implantation begins. Embryos about 2 mm in diameter
23-25 days post-breeding Limb buds form - embryos are 5-10 mm in length
28 days post-breeding Facial features form. Embryos are 14-15 mm in length
30-32 days post-breeding Features definitely dog-like. Embryos 22 mm in length
35-40 days post-breeding Embryos are 45 mm in length


REFERENCE: Canine Reproduction by Phyllis Holst