A pregnant pooch can be an exciting adventure or a source of significant worry, depending on whether it was a planned event or if your sweet little Precious took herself out for a night on the town without your consent. A pregnant dog offers a lot worry to a family who loves her, since there can be complications that arise. A pregnant dog also brings a lot of sweet surprises, and introduces many to the miracle of birth in a way that they’ve never before witnessed. One of the most common questions when Precious reports for her morning meal having had absconded with Jo-Jo from down the street the night before, is how long is a dog pregnant?
There is a short answer to this and a long answer to this. Generally speaking, a dog is pregnant in the vicinity of 62 days. Dogs who are blessed with smaller litters can outlive that deadline by about a week and dogs with a large litter may deliver their pups about a week short of that. This is because with larger litters the pups run out of room and signal the beginning of the birth process. Of course, smaller litters have the luxury of a few extra days of development before being thrust out into the chilly world.
A Dog is Pregnant for 62 Days
Since most people who experience an unplanned pregnancy with their dog are not completely aware that she is pregnant until after she starts showing signs, it can be difficult to determine exactly when those 62 days started. Those who are considering breeding and enter an intentional pregnancy will know exactly when the pregnancy began and are likely to have her delivery date on a calendar already.
How long is a dog pregnant often turns into how long has my dog been pregnant when the pregnancy wasn’t planned. For those with a regular escape artist on their hands, there may be more than just one night of bliss to be concerned about. Start by understanding when your pup went into heat. We call it “heat” but it really means, “preparing to ovulate.” A dog in heat has not necessarily ovulated yet, but she is getting ready to be able to accept a gift from Jo-Jo down the street. The common misconception is that a dog in heat is ready for copulation and ready to conceive. This is not entirely true, as there are stages.
During the first stage, which becomes obvious to human due to the vulva’s enlargement and the associating bleeding, your dog is not ready to copulate. This is a preparation stage, not an active stage. Unfortunately, many dog owners think that the end of the bleeding means the end of her fertile cycle. Most dogs are in stage one for about nine days, but it can last as long as eleven to fourteen, depending on your dog.
When the bleeding subsides and a new discharge is released, it should look like a straw colored mucous. Stage two with the straw colored mucous is the stage that allows your dog to copulate and conceive. Because this stage is often misinterpreted by many to be the final “end” of heat, many dog owners no longer restrict their dog’s movement and end up a little confused when their dog begins to show signs of being “with pup.”
During the second—fertile—stage, there is a wide window of variances that keep a dog receptive to conception. In other words, your dog may be able to get pregnant for about nine days, or for as long as twenty. Either time frame is considered normal. This can become frustrating for someone who is trying to prevent a dog that is getting spayed too late from getting out and getting pregnant. Many humans aren’t aware that their dog is still in a conception phase and may accidentally let her out into the world, only to look out their window to find her busy with Jo-Jo from down the street.
Most dogs require a trip to the vet to determine whether there are little Preciouses on the way. Somewhere around day 25 of the pregnancy, fetal heartbeats make themselves known. It’s an amazing experience to listen to the numerous little hearts drumming away inside your dog. For those who have ever experienced it, it’s the miracle of life over and over and over again, and it’s not something you’ll soon forget.
X-rays can determine the number of little ones you dog is carrying, but not until somewhere around day 45. In this case, you probably won’t need this information to determine whether or not she’s pregnant, just how many applicants for homes you’ll be accepting in the very near future.
Pregnant dogs, and especially first time humans, require veterinarian advice throughout pregnancy and the whelping process. Unfortunately, dogs tend to struggle sometimes, and experience, a few good books, and the advice of your vet will be just about everything you have to go on. If you’re highly unsettled about the experience, your vet may be able to recommend various options.
When you’re the one waiting for your dog to give birth, whether it was an intentional coupling or an accidental foray, there is a lot of excitement regarding the impending birth of puppies. In your reality, how long is a dog pregnant? By the time you finally reach day 62, the only answer you’ll have it “too long.”
