Why is my senior chihuahua gaining weight and looks pregnant but isn't?

Hello. A dog should not put on weight just from one meal, but if it was a fatty one, she might show some distention from gas. Since she is an older girl, it might be a good idea to have her looked at by your veterinarian to see if she is indeed pregnant. An x-ray or ultrasound would show the appearance of any fetuses in her uterus & give a heads up if she were to run into any difficulties once she goes into labor. This is the best way to make sure all is OK, & if she is pregnant, that there are no complications that could result in her death. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

It is difficult to determine the cause without an examination but abdominal enlargement can be caused by a variety of medical conditions including an accumulation of fluid, organ enlargement, Cushings disease, etc. You should schedule an examination with a vet to determine if there is a medical problem that needs to be treated. Your vet can run blood-work and take x-rays to help determine the cause.

This is worrisome - a distended abdomen could be a sign that there is free fluid present in the abdomen secondary to something like liver disease or even cancer. An organ could be enlarged as well. There are some diseases that can cause weakness of the muscles of the abdomen that could lead it to appear enlarged as well. If you are almost but not 100% positive that she is not pregnant of course that could be another cause as well. I would recommend having Sadie examined by your veterinarian - they may be able to tell what is going on by palpating or feeling her abdomen or they may recommend other testing like x-rays or blood work.

Hi there and thank you for using pet coach to address your concern. If you are noticing a loss of weight, especially at this age, I would recommend having his blood tested to make sure that there are no changes on his bloodwork that might indicate a systemic disease or infection. If blood work is normal then an abdominal ultrasound would be my next recommendation to find out why he is losing weight. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns.

Hello. Her liver values are not bad at all, & her liver does not look enlarged. You might want to request a test to look at bile acids & perhaps an abdominal ultrasound to see if the x-ray has missed something in the abdomen. Finish the Doxycycline, & see if she truly has Ehrlichiosis or if this is just a red herring. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

There is always a possibility of any female dog who is not spayed for pregnancy. I recommend to have your pup examined by the veterinarian. She looks small and so it would be recommended to take a radiograph to see if puppies are present or not. Small breed dogs are more prone to problems giving birth so it is important to know how many puppies to expect. She likely is not caught up on vaccines or anything either if you have not had her examined yet so you need to discuss the preventive care that she needs to keep her and the puppies healthy if she is pregnant. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

It is possible that Roo could be pregnant? It could also be she has a pyometra (an infection of the uterus), which would also cause her stomach to look bigger and her to drink more water. I would have her checked out by a vet in the next few days as long as she is acting normally. Take her into an ER immediately if she starts vomiting, stops eating, becomes very lethargic, or has discharge from her vulva. Best of luck.