Is she possibly pregnant??

Question
QUESTION: Around the first week of june, I noticed that my female boxer was in heat (slight bloody discharge) and we do have a male on premises. Now on July third she is thick in the middle and her nipples are dark and enlarged. Is she pregnant or is it false pregnancy? I tried feeling for puppies but I still can't tell. Can you help?

ANSWER: Hi Tammy. It sounds like she very well could be pregnant. I would suggest having an x-ray done after day 50 of the pregnancy just to make sure, as a false pregnancy can mimic a real one. That's what makes it so hard to say for sure. Unless you know what you're feeling for, it's too early to really feel them yet. Towards the end of this month, you can have that x-ray done. But by then, you should know for sure. Did her vulva stay a little bit bigger after her heat cycle? If so, then most breeders use that as a sign of pregnancy. If I can help with anything else, let me know!

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QUESTION: Hi Renee, Yeah her vulva is still bigger as of today the 5th. Because before it was fairly small but now it is really noticable. and if Corporal (my male) goes anywhere by her rear she gets really nippy with him. Before she would just sit down or walk away from him. Also what can I do about the flies that seem to want to bite their ears when their outside. Any suggestions? I'm going to school to become a vet assistant and was looking for help there but couldn't really find anything to help me.
 Thank you for all your help and information. and one last question if she is pregnant can she have a natural birth because I was reading some of these questions on your site and and their talking about c-section.

Answer
Hi again.:-) I'm going to let you in on a little secret, they don't teach much at all to do with breeding/whelping in vet school, even vet tech school. If you're going to become a breeder, my best advice would be to find someone who's been doing it for a while, someone who's practices you respect, and ask them to be your mentor.

As for their ears, you can put vasiline on them to help protect against flies, or you can buy some stuff from the vets. I like the stuff from the vets myself, it only costs $12, and it lasts for a long while. When it dries, it becomes clear, and doesn't feel gunky.

Boxers are known for c-sections. Not as bad as some other breeds, but it can be common in certain lines. I really suggest you having those x-rays done. It will tell you about how many to expect so that during labor, you'll know if she's done or if she still has more in there. And you'll also know if there's a really big one that may cause trouble. Don't let her get fat, make sure she gets plenty of exercise. This will help. Do you know if her mom delivered naturally? If she had any problems? Good luck, and if I can help with anything else, let me know.