Dogs mating

Question
QUESTION: My two year old English shepherd was in heat for the past 3 weeks. My male was constantly trying to mount her during the last week. I never saw her allow him to mount, she was always snapping at him. Is it possible she that she never allowed him to mount, or did he breed her at night when I was not around? He was hot after her one day and the next morning was totally ignoring her.

ANSWER: Hi Claudie

I can't say for certain if they mated.  Anything's possible.  The problem with having 2 mating animals together 24/7 is that they can lose interest in each other.  It's best to keep them separated during a heat and bring them together for mating.

If he was ignoring, her cycle must have come to an end.

Good luck

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: I realize you can't say for certain if they mated. I was really interested to know if you think the female could have gone thru the heat without ever reaching a point that she would accept the male. Have you ever experienced females that would not accept a male at any stage of heat?  Thanks for your assistance.

Answer
Some dominant female will not allow males to mount them regardless if they are in heat or not. It's not common but it does happen, but typically in more of the working style breeds like Malois, Shepherds and Corso.   English Shepherd doesn't usually fall in that category.