Protectivness

[*Lucy*]

My bitch Molly is in the final stages of her season as has increasingly become VERY protective of one of the boys teddies (Fimbo from The Fimbles ) She takes it everywhere with her! Is this normal behaviour? This is her 4th season and she's never done anything like this before! My son, Max,  is a bit confused to say the least 

[leisl]

Yes!.  She obviously thinks that Fimbo is her surragate baby (a beautiful baby too I may add).  Muppet too a shining to one of my slippers for days on end.

I am not sure how you stop this turning into a phantom pregnancy maybe someone else will be along soon with some better advice.

[spanielcrazy]

Yes, sounds like she could be having a phantom pregnancy, which is fairly common and usually resolves itself. There's really no treatment (other than spaying) and generally doesn't present a problem healthwise for the bitch. The biggest concern is if she gets overly aggressive with her "baby". It's not her either, it's the hormone changes.

If your son can live without Fimbo for a little while I would suggest letting her get on with it and ignoring her, she'll get over it, usually it's very sudden too.