pregnant bassett?

Question
hi i have a basset hound who had her first heat cycle. she was about 10 months old. despite my best efforts to keep them seperated my male sheltie still bred her. this happened around the middle of nov. i have noticed some mammary swelling in her, and she is more picky about food. how big should her abdomen look by now if  she is pregnant? iam just wondering if maybe it is a false pregnancy.

Answer
Hi Jen,

Three weeks after mating a female dog may have an upset stomach and not want to eat for about a week to 10 days. One way to tell if your dog is pregnant is to check her vulva, the swelling would not have gone down after her heat and looks enlarged. A pregnant dogs nipples will develop around week 5 and she will begin to look broader.

Having your dog examined by your veterinarian will solve they mystery as to whether or not your dog is really pregnant.

During the first 30 days of pregnancy she can eat her normal diet, as long as it is a high quality food. During the last month of pregnancy start switching her over to a high quality puppy food, make the diet change over a weeks time. Do not give vitamin supplements, a high quality food has plenty of nutrients. Also, be aware that some vitamin supplements may cause birth defects so check with your veterinarian before choosing to supplement.

Best of luck,

Patti