Is My Shiba Inu Pregnant?

The Shiba Inu is the smallest of the Japanese native breed of dogs. It is an excellent watchdog and hunting dog by nature, friendly and energetic and a great all-round family companion. Your female Shiba Inu will go into heat approximately every six months; there are certain signs she will display if she is pregnant that you can look out for. If your Shiba Inu is indeed pregnant, expect her pregnancy to last approximately 58 to 63 days and for her to have a litter of three to four puppies.

  1. Pre-pregnancy Signs

    • To rule out whether or not your Shibu Inu is pregnant, first consider when she was last in heat, as it is only during this period that it is possible for her to have become pregnant. Secondly, consider whether your dog has come into contact with any male dogs that have not been neutered. If your Shiba Inu has been neutered, there is no chance that she is pregnant.

    Physical Signs

    • If you suspect that your dog has recently been in heat and had contact with a male dog then there are physical signs of pregnancy that you can look out for. However, these are unlikely to make an appearance until later on in the pregnancy, from around 25 days after mating, says Purina. Firstly, your dog's nipples will become fuller, pinker and more erect due to an increase in the blood supply to the area as they prepare for lactation. From around day 40 expect to see some leakage of fluid from the nipples too. Your dog's abdomen will begin to grow as her litter develops at around this time, but this might be less obvious if this is her first litter. Look out for a vulval discharge and an increase in weight from about a month after mating.

    Behavioral Signs

    • If your Shiba Inu is pregnant, her appetite is likely to decrease in the early stages of the pregnancy and then increase about halfway through to compensate for her growing litter. She might also become exhausted more easily, according to Dogs Symptoms Cure, and become mildly depressed. In the latter stages of the pregnancy, your dog will begin to display nesting instincts too by scratching her bed and becoming restless. You should take this as a sign that birth is nearing.

    Medical Signs

    • Your vet can carry out an ultrasound 20 days after mating, but no earlier, to determine whether or not your Shiba Inu is pregnant, says Purina. Your vet can also test your dog's blood for relaxin from about 25 days onward. This is a hormone which is produced exclusively by dogs that are pregnant. An X-ray from 45 days of gestation will also be able to reveal the size of your dog's litter.