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My dog's nipples are enlarged after her first heat. Is this normal?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | American Staffordshire Terrier | Female | unspayed | 10 months and 21 days old

My female dog had her first period on the 29 Dec. She finished on the 17th January. I noticed some changes in her body like enlarged nipples and last two looks a dangly as you can see in the photo. Is it normal pls? They used to be flat before the had her first period.

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2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Linda G, MS, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on January 27th, 2020

Hello. If you are sure that she is not pregnant, then this is just a hormonal response. The breast gland tissue may regress a bit, but as long as she remains unsprayed, she may develop a little more with each heat cycle. Spaying her now may help regress the tissues totally, but with each additional heat cycle, she may develop just a little bit more. So yes, this is a normal condition in an unsprayed female dog. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

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    Answered By Dr. Elizabeth

    Veterinarian

    Published on January 20th, 2020

    Teats and vulva enlargement are normal. I also recommend to have Sasha spayed. There are many health and behavior benefits: https://www.petcoach.co/article/spaying-ovariohysterectomy-the-benefits-in-dogs/ The USA also has extreme problems with pet over population (especially pittie type breeds, 1 in 4 shelter dogs is a pittie type dog, thats how bad it is). Having pets spayed and neutered helps to not contribute to this problem. https://www.petcoach.co/article/5-great-reasons-to-spay-or-neuter-your-pet/ I hope this helps.

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