My Dog is Crying and hiding her toys

Question
Hi,

I have heard that dogs can become very maternal after a cycle, but can they pick up on the cycle of another bitch in the house.  I have two staffies and the youngest one has just come into season and the other one has become very covetous with her toys and is holding them like they were her babies. Could this be because the other dog is having her cycle? If so, do you know how long she will act like this for?

Answer
I suspect that your older bitch was in season a few weeks ago, and she is now having a false pregnancy. Symptoms of a false pregnancy can be identical to those of a real pregnancy. Once the older bitch "whelps" her imaginary litter, her behavior should return to something more normal. This would be about nine weeks from when she was last in season.