My dog is lactating from false pregnancy. Why is spaying risky?
Updated On September 23rd, 2025
Pet's info: Dog | Beagle | Female | spayed | 2 years and 4 months old | 47 lbs
I took my dog to get spayed a week and a half ago. I was told she was lactating, in which she is going thru a false pregnancy, and they couldn't perform surgery on her. I asked why and all I was told was they didn't want to take any risks. I have contacted my regular vet but haven't heard anything back yet. She's supposed to go back this coming week for her spay, but still lactating. How can I stop it? Also, why is it a risk if she is lactating?
3 Answers
Most Helpful Answer
Published on July 22nd, 2017
Unfortunately you can not stop the lactating. It will have to stop when the hormone level drops. When dogs are in a false pregnancy the spay has a higher risk of complications. The largest complication is extra bleeding. The blood vessels to the uterus and skin are very large when a dog is in heat or false pregnancy. The blood vessels get smaller after they cycle. Also the tissue is more friable and likely to tear. I find patients are more painful after surgery too. Hope that helps. If you have more questions you could always set up a pet coach consult
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Related Answers from Veterinarians
-
Published on July 6th, 2017
Yes, I would recommend spaying Lacey Mae. It's the only way to stop the false pregnancies and prevent them from occurring again. In addition, spaying her will eliminate the chance of her developing a pyometra, which is a life threatening infection of the uterus. This affects middle aged and older dogs, and requires spaying to fix, only it's a much more complicated surgery due to the infection and as such costs a lot more. Spaying her is the best option. I hope this helps you :-)
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
-
Published on January 20th, 2020
I recommend to have Meyja spayed. You can't prevent false pregnancy and spaying has several health benefits. Here is some information: https://www.petcoach.co/article/false-pregnancy-in-dogs/ https://www.petcoach.co/article/spaying-ovariohysterectomy-the-benefits-in-dogs/ I hope this helps.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Why is my recently spayed chihuahua lactating?
Hi, Tasha seems to be lactating eventhough she is not pregnant. She had her cycle a month ago and has never been outside the house on her own. I have been seeing white fluids oozing from one of her nipples for quite a few days now. She has never give
Why my dogs mammary glands are becoming like she is lacting. She was spayed 3 months ago. Please help me to find what is going wrong with her. she is not having pain when I touch her breast. She is looking normal and playing but mammary glands are g
My 8yo Golden had a falsepregnancy w milk. Cabergoline has resolved it now. I hear conflicting opinions about spaying. She has never mated. Some say not spaying would cause pseudopregnancy recurrence+dangerous conditions like Mammary T. But UCDavis s
My beagle is going thru a false pregnancy, it's a her 2nd one, but has 3 heats cycles already. I was told to spay her, I was wanting more input on the situation.
I feel my dog is having a phantom pregnancy she is lactating but is spayed has become very placcid and doesn't want to move.
Doctor i ask past day whats da dogs lactation hormones .and answer was oxytocin ,bt doctor my female dog was alredy lactation bt she dose not pregnant , then how she can be it,and she dislike to eat anything ,im in serious problem doctor and my vete
I have a 10 month old peagle. She got her first period 2 months ago. Recently her nipples swelled and she vomited occasionally. Today I noticed that she has nipple discharge. She was in contact with a male dog but they never mated. Could this be a fa
My dog has started whining non stop and licking her teats. She had a litter 14 months ago, now her teats are leaking milk. She isn't pregnant.
We recently went to the vet at the end of May because my puppy was scratching a lot and we got medication to control it. The vet noticed she was in heat still. Now its 18 days later and we're wondering what is going on with her breast. They look a li
Book an appointment with the pros – our expert vets are here to help.
