What Are Some Symptoms of My Dog Having Puppies?

Having a female dog spayed ensures that a dog cannot become pregnant. However, If you are a dog owner that hasn't had your female dog spayed, your dog could be pregnant. Although no blood or urine pregnancy tests exist to officially determine whether your dog is pregnant, you can look for common symptoms.

  1. Changes to Nipples

    • First signs of pregnancy are often not outwardly visible until a month after inception. However, about 14 or 15 days post-inception, you may see changes in your dog's nipples. The first symptom to look for is your dogs nipples becoming larger. Secondly, the nipple may change color, becoming darker. After 20 days, your dog may lose fur around the nipples in order to allow the impending pups better access.

    Morning Sickness

    • Much like a human pregnancy, your dog may experience morning sickness. This typically occurs between three and four weeks after inception. Your dog may vomit, but the most obvious symptoms are a loss of appetite or complete refusal to eat. As the puppies grow in size inside of your dog, loss of appetite may become a much more prevalent symptom.

    Heatbeats

    • After at least 25 days, the most prevalent symptom to look for is heartbeats. If you have a stethoscope, place it on the dog's abdomen and listen for heartbeats. Be sure, however, to be gentle when doing this. If you able to hear heartbeats, you can be certain that your dog is indeed pregnant. After about 30 days, you should be able to actually feel the puppies moving through your dog's abdomen.

    Restlessness

    • General restlessness is a common symptom of pregnancy in dogs. For example, your dog may groom herself much more than usual, and she also may wander around sniffing various locations to find a good place to rest.