Pregnant Question

Question
Okay I have a dashhound got her back on August 28th after she had been stolen for over a yr they told us then she maybe pregnant cause she had went into heat with another dashhound.  Well today 10-28 her boobs are leaking and they have been hanging (dragging the ground and swelled) for weeks now but she does not look pregnant and we cant feel any movements,  her crotch looks as usuall. Today shes 9wks along.  She been staying out so we hope she hasnt had any outside.  If she has wouldnt her crotch look different?  Shes had one litter in the past and she only had two pups and one died.  Any help or your opinion would be greatly appreciated.  Thank You

Answer
Hi Tanya,  There is a possibility that she is going through a false pregnancy (where the body thinks that it is pregnant).  They will go through all the symptoms, including sometimes producing milk.  If you can not feel any lumps in her, and it has been past the 63 day gestation period, then I would bind her (not too tight) with an ace bandage to get the mammary glands to go back up.  If they are hard, then you will need to hot pack them to break it up as that means she has mastitis (an infection in the mammary gland) and will require antibiotics from the vet.  They eventually go back to normal as the body realizes that it is not pregnant.  Hope this helps,

Dawn