What to do with a pregnant dog?

Question

I bought my purebread dog from a friend who breeds them. I have been taking her over there the last few months for them to dog sit for me. This morning I went over to pick her up and she is pregnant. I have been on vacation for the last two weeks and coming back it's pretty obvious, she looks huge. I am furious because this means that my dog is pregnant by the male that is also her father! I cannot believe this happened. My friend says this was an accident, but she was supposed to be watching my dog and keeping her separate, that's the entire reason I trusted them instead of using a dog kennel while I am away. What am I supposed to do? Are these pups gonna be weird inbreeds? Should I just take her to the vet, is there even such a thing as dog abortions? I don't know if I have the heart, they still are living beings. What now about our friendship. I feel so frustrated at the same time I understand accidents happen. Please give me some suggestions. Thanks

let me clarify, I just went away for 2 weeks and came home today. She has been watching my dog almost on a weekly basis for the last 4 months. ( i work 24 hr shifts and I hate leaving her home alone. plus other than this incident here, my friend has taken good care of her, my pup just loves her too.)

Answer 1

Wow. What an icky situation. I'm really sorry.

The puppies will be inbred, but that might not be too bad according to how the genes mixed. The pups might be pretty okay...just a little dumb or something that won't show up until later. Not sellable as purebreeds, but okay as puppies to give away in the paper.

There is such a thing as dog abortions. I know what you mean about not having the heart to kill the puppies. I'd definitely get your vet's ideas on it.

Don't give your friend the vet bill or anything like that. But if she was charging you to keep your dog, then those fees should DEFINITELY be dropped. Let her know that you won't have her pay the bill, but don't plan to pay her for keeping your dog. Money and friendship don't mix...I know it's tempting to say, here's what you owe me, but that will only be if you don't plan to be friends with this person. Friends don't hold each other liable for mistakes.

As far as the friendship goes, I'd give it a month or two to cool off and then invite her for dinner or something. Let her know that you forgive her and know that it wasn't a purposeful thing and then try to talk about nearly anything but dogs.

I'm really sorry for your situation. Tell how it turns out.

Answer 2

You can have her spayed if it's still very early on.

You should have had her spayed before her first heat or stayed home to take charge of her. You know where you left her there was an intact male. No kennel will take a dog in heat anyway.

I know you are upset about the breeding, but really it was your fault as much as her's. It's almost impossible to keep an intact male away from a female in heat. She's going to seek out that male too.

As you said accidents happen. If she is a real friend you will value the friendship enough to realize it was not all her fault. At very most she is 50% to blame.

If she's showing already though it probably happened before she even went to your friend and you have no idea who the father is in that case.

Here is a link in inbreeding/line breeding: http://showcase.netins.net/web/royalair/libreeding.htm

Answer 3

First of all, why didn't you have your dog spayed?
Second of all, don't be concerned about inbreeding. Although it can cause problems if done too frequently, a one-time inbreeding won't hurt the puppies. A lot of breeders actually do it on purpose.
Since your friend is a breeder, I would recommend you leave the dog with your friend until the puppies are born and weaned, then have her spayed as soon as you get her back.
I don't think there are "dog abortions" but you can do an abortive spay, which means the vet spays the dog, taking out the uterus, puppies and all. That call is up to you and your vet and how you feel ethically.

Answer 4

1. The pups will be inbred, but not necessarily deformed. They will be at risk for genetic diseases and recessive gene flaws that normal pups are not prone to. It's possible they will all be perfectly healthy, it's possible they will all need serious medical care.

2. There are such things as dog 'abortions', however, it involves spaying the dog entirely while she is pregnant. She will never be able to breed again. There is no other way to abort the litter.

3. I suggest you find a private pet sitter who will come to your home and take care of your dog for you in the future. Friendship or no, if she's not taking good care of your dog, you have no obligation to allow her to continue watching her for you. In-home sitting is much safer than sending her anywhere else, because she will have zero exposure to other dogs.

It's an unfortunate situation, but just keep your cool and think things trhough. It'll work out in the end.

Answer 5

Are you sure that she wasn't just over fed? It usually takes longer then 2 weeks for them to show, and especially get that big. Take her to the vet. If she is showing that much they should be able to palpate the pups. Is there any way that she could have gotten pregnant at your house before you droped her off at the sitters? Have her spayed, even if she is pregnant, this way don't have to worry about the pups being inbred and you wont have to worry about her being pregnant ever again. Having her spayed is also healthier for her. Good luck.

Answer 6

Take the dog in to the vet and see if it is actually pregnant. If it is, depending on how far along she is, the vet can offer you different solutions.

At the end of the day, it's not your friends fault if the dog got pregnant. If you did not intend to breed her, then she should have been spayed. Males will go to extreme lengths to get to a ***** in heat. You'd be amazed at the fences they can climb, and the walls they can dig under.

Answer 7

Dogs can have abortions but they are not very common. I suggest taking her to a vet and explore your options. If Dogs are anything like cats the only inbred things that will happen is they'll have an extra toe or two. In a worst case scenario some could come out still born(which sometimes happens anyway) or be blind or deaf. You should definitely take her to a vet before it is too late to have a doggie abortion just in case they say she could die of complications from giving birth though.

Answer 8

Your friend's irresponsibility has really brought you some misery. You found out the hard way how capable of following you directives your friend is (isn't). Of course you can't trust that this person will do what she says she will...you can keep the friendship, but never put her in a position of trust again.

Delighted she wasn't watching over your teenage daughter!

Answer 9

Bring her to vet and get some advise. It's true that the puppies could have some mental or physical abnormalities. You should let her have the puppies and then give them away for the price of vaccinations and neuter or spay with a disclaimer about the breeding. Or just give them away with a disclaimer. The dogs may be just fine, but they cannot be breed, just in case.

Answer 10

Well you could request that your friend pay for everything since this did happen under her care. Or you could just let nature run her course and have your friend help you find loving homes for the up coming puppies...

Take her to the vet to verify....