My dog's heat discharge is brown and stinky. Is this normal?

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Angel. The color and amount of discharge can vary throughout a dog's heat cycle. It can vary from pink to red to brown. Creamy discharge that appears like pus would be worrisome as it can represent a uterine infection. In this case, she would need to see her veterinarian right away. I hope this information helps!

It's not normal for a dog to have a black bloody discharge with a bad smell during her heat, and I would have Pip seen by a vet right away. I would be very concerned that this dark blood and bad smell could be indicative of an infection of the uterus. Have her seen by a vet ASAP for a health check.

That is very concerning. It is very likely that your female has a uterine infection. Unfortunately, if this is treated just with antibiotics, it will come back with the next heat. The treatment of choice is removing the pus-filled uterus. A uterine infection can cause kidney failure and sepsis, so this is a serious condition. Please take your dog to a vet today, if possible.

If your dog isn't [spayed](https://www.petcoach.co/article/spaying-ovariohysterectomy-the-benefits-in-dogs/), this could be a heat cycle. Or it could be a very serious condition known as [pyometra](https://www.petcoach.co/dog/condition/pyometra/), which means infected uterus. Especially if she had her heat cycle a couple of months ago, and if she's lethargic or has a fever you need to take her in to a veterinarian to be examined tonight. If she is spayed, this could be several things. She could have a [urinary tract infection](https://www.petcoach.co/article/5-signs-of-urinary-tract-disease-in-dogs) and you're seeing her leak blood-tinged urine. I hope not, but depending on her age there could be cancer in the urinary tract that's causing bleeding (blood doesn't always look bright red). Very occasionally spayed dogs will continue to bleed if a piece of an ovary was left behind. Get her checked out by your veterinarian as soon as possible to figure out what's going on.

No, this is not normal and can be a sign there is a problem. A 12 week old puppy should not be going into heat at this age. Yes, I would take her into the vet first thing in the morning to get this checked out. Best of luck.

The discharge pictured is a greenish-yellow, so I'm concerned that Athena may have [pyometra](https://www.petcoach.co/dog/condition/pyometra/), which is a potentially deadly infection of the uterus that can happen in dogs. A tiny bit of white vulvar discharge can be within normal variations for puppies (called a "puppy vaginitis"), but a greenish-yellow discharge is never normal. I recommend having Athena evaluated by her vet or an emergency vet right away. Your vet will likely [recommend spaying](https://www.petcoach.co/article/spay-and-neuter-basics-for-dogs-and-cats/) Athena right away if they [diagnose a pyometra](https://www.petcoach.co/article/pyometra-infections-of-the-uterus-in-dogs/), as this removes the pus-filled uterus and ovaries. Spaying stops the heat cycle, eliminates the risk and cost of unwanted breeding, reduces the risk of breast cancer, and prevents the a pyometra from developing.

I would take Gabriella into a vet immediately, this sounds like a medical emergency. If you have to pull one puppy out, it could be that there is another one stuck in the birth canal causing this smelly discharge. It certainly isn't normal to have a discharge that smell very bad, so she needs veterinary attention now. Please bring her and her puppies into an ER vet clinic; if there isn't one in your area, there will be a vet on call for emergencies. The information to reach that vet is found on a clinic's answering machine or website.