Shih Tzu Pregnant ?

Question
Hello Renee,

I have a 3 year old Shih Tzu that I had mated for the first time on the 7/7/09 and I am trying to determine whether or not she is pregnant. This is the first time I have ever mated a dog. She is a slim dog, and if she is pregnant now she will be 6 weeks and 2 days and will be due on the 9/9/09.

A few days after the mating her temperment began to change dramatically, for example before she would get very excited before walkies and want to walk for miles and run around the park however now she still gets very excited but as soon as we get out of the front door she'll walk a few yards, put her brakes on and pull me back home, she hasn't wanted to go for one proper walk since she has been mated. She has also stopped eating her normal meals of chicken and kibble and chooses to eat nutritious dog food pouch meals wheareas before she would rather not eat than eat the dog food. She has also began to be more concious of jumping onto the sofa and seems to be protecting of herself.

Since she was one she has maintained a healthy weight of 5.5 - 6.4kg (never anymore) but since she has been mated she now weighs 8.7kg! As mentioned earlier she is a very slim dog but has become very thick and rounded around her midrift (the bottom of her ribcage and stomach) but her belly hasnt dropped alot if anything. Her nipples are very pink and enlarged and the area surrounding each nipple has also became slightly swollen.

On the 4/8/09 I took her to be groomed whilst she was being groomed the groomer commented on how different she felt and that she is pretty certain she is pregnant at this point Mollie would have been exactly 3 weeks pregnant. So on the 5/8/09 I decided to take her to see the Vet so this could be confirmed. The Vet said that she was pretty certain she wasnt pregnant but if we still predicted she was, to bring her back in a couple of weeks for an ultra sound (however the vet had to ask the receptionist how long the gestation of a bitch was and didnt seem to know what she was doing so we lost confidence in her)

This is the first time we have mated a dog and dont really know how to feel for the pups (or want to incase we damage them in doing so) I have done ALOT of research on this topic and have read that Shih Tzu's can carry them in their ribcage which leads me to believe that is why her belly isnt growing much but her ribcage and middle is.

When Mollie was one she had a phantom pregnancy but did not show ANY of these signs apart from her nipples becoming a fraction of the size hers are now.

If you could offer your opinion or advice I would be very grateful

Many Thanks
April

Answer
Hi. It sounds like she is, although it is hard to say for certain as dogs do experience false pregnancies, as you already know.:-) After day 50, you can have x-rays done to know for certain. What you can do for now though, is to lay her on her side. Put one hand under her above her rib cage, the other hand on the other side, same spot. Gently, move both hands down towards her hips. You may be able to feel small balls, these would be puppies. If she is carrying them up high, it may be hard to feel. Did her vuvla stay slightly swollen, and did she come straight out of heat shorly after being bred? A lot of breeders take this as a positive pregnancy sign. If the vet didn't know how long a dog pregnancy lasts, then I wouldn't take her owrd on if the dog is pregnant or not, just my opinion. With all of the changes you described, it does sound like she is pregnant. I would get an x-ray done to know for sure though. Good luck, let me know if I can help with anything else.