My dog had puppies but now can't get pregnant. Should I spay her?

There are many things that could cause infertility. You would need to get her to a veterinary reproductive specialist to get a diagnosis; they will let you know if it can be corrected. ( https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/infertility-in-female-dogs ) If she cannot conceive you should have her sterilized to prevent further problems like pyometra and mammary (breast) cancer.

IF you really want her to be pregnant I would recommend taking her to a reproductive veterinary specialist. It is important to make sure she is ovulating and her uterus is healthy and can carry puppies. Some dogs like people cannot get pregnant. Also, you want to make sure your timing is correct on trying to breed her. As soon as you see signs of heat make sure she is able to be placed with a male.

At her age, she should no longer be having puppies. It is to much of a strain on an older dog. That does not mean, however, that she couldn't get bred by a male! I would consider having her spayed for safety as well as her general health.

In the pet's information, you have it listed that Cookie is spayed. If Cookie is spayed, she is unable to become pregnant. However, if that is incorrect, I am not sure if Cookie has had a litter of puppies before. A dog that has never been bred before who is an older dog such as yours might have problems whelping due to the pelvic bones losing their elasticity making for a very hard labor. Your dog may need a c-section to deliver. I would be prepared for this in advance. In addition, I would consider having her spayed at the time of c section (if she has a c section) because pregnancy is hard on older dogs, and I would not recommend her having another litter after this one. There is a higher chance than normal for a difficult delivery due to her age, and there some signs to look out for, such as a foul smelling discharge during labor, strong steady contractions for over an hour without any puppies being produced, the mother is very tired and/or vomiting during labor. I would suggest speaking to your vet about additional signs to look out for labor, and having your vet examine Cookie to make sure she is healthy during this pregnancy.

Typically dogs go into heat once every six months, but if she didn't nurse the puppies, it is possible she has gone into heat again; however, that's not a common occurrence. Given that Zeva has abandoned her puppies, it is indicative that she has poor mothering ability. This could be due to her age (it's never recommended to breed a dog on her first heat), or she may simply not have good mother abilities. Based on this, I would not recommend breeding her again, and I would have her spayed. Spaying her will abort a pregnancy now if she is pregnant, and prevent future litters from occurring. There is a shot that can be done to terminate a pregnancy, but it has to be done right after mating. I would take her into a vet now.

It is not possible for a spayed female dog to become pregnant, because the spay procedure involves complete removal of the ovaries and uterus. So if your dog became pregnant, then she was never spayed. I would recommend discussing the situation with the veterinarian who you believe did the procedure to see what may have happened in this case.

If you don’t plan to breed her in the future then I would recommend spaying her as soon as possible. There are medications that can be given to abort the feti, but this can be very hard on the mama dog, and it is not 100% reliable. This is usually given under hospitalization observation. Best of luck and thank you for using Pet Coach.