I am a responsible Golden...

Question
I am a responsible Golden Retriever Breeder on a very limited basis ( I have three golden females- 1 retired) I purchased a chocolate lab puppy a year ago. Two of my three goldens are pregnant. Within the last 2 or 3 weeks my lab pup has developed swollen breasts. I have never seen this before- I KNOW she is not pregnant, though she did have a heat at the beginning of the summer. The dogs run together freely on ten contained acres. My breeder (stud) told me this is a homonal thing because of the Goldens that does not warrant a vet visit. Because this has not subsided, I was wondering if you had ever seen this?  

Answer
I believe that your chocolate lab is experiencing false pregnancy.  Most dogs experiencing a false pregnancy will begin to show some swelling in the mammary glands about five weeks after their heat cycle has ended.  Frequently dogs will develop a false pregnancy, and look, act, and even think as if they are pregnant.  Some will carry small toys or pillows around and even start digging a nesting site wherever they please.  When the time draws near to when they would be delivering the pups, milk will drain on its own from the mammary glands.  Some dogs are really troubled that they cannot find the pups they psychologically feel they should be nursing. This false pregnancy could be the result of the close contact with the two bitches which have been bred.

The exact hormonal mechanisms that must occur to trigger false pregnancy are as yet unknown.  We do know that a combination of interacting hormones including estrogen, adrenal hormones, and prolactin from the pituitary gland influence milk production  in the mammary glands.  Prolactin levels seem to be the main culprit, but why this hormone does what it does when it shouldn't is a subject for future research.

I wish you luck.  Feel free to contact me with anything else I can help with-

Jim Evans