First Season

[KellyP]

Hello Folks,

We believe little Millie may be just "starting" her first season.
As you may recall a few weeks ago she was off her food, she has been recently licking her private benjamins over the last week or so, and today she came for  a belly rub and I noticed small reddish stains on her belly. I got my baby wipes and had a check - definitely some reddish brown (like rusty water) discharge, albeit not very much.
As a result we have come to the conclusion that she is in or is coming into season.
No show for us on Sunday!  
My question is - what have other bitch owners used as a protective measure for furniture and carpets?
my friend at work used mikki pants and pads on her shih-tzu ... I have seen somewhere that one woman uses kiddies boxer-short-type-pants on her dogs and just boils them to clean  
Obviously tomorrows agility is now out of the question, and no walks for 3 weeks .. my  bum will turn to jelly!  

Any thoughts / advice peeps?  

***Modified to say - My breeder has recommended that I give Millie sepia 30 (?) (homeopathic remedy from boots) and "Viotin" (fur and nail powder from a farm shop) in order to try to prevent her from losing too much of her fur as she comes out of season. Have I got the names of these right? ***                    

[PennyB]

Ruby's was like a flood but I didn't do anything as she mostly kept herself clean.                    

[Anonymous]

yup Jessie was really really messy..I covered everythin with throws and covers becasue you just'knew' where shed been    luckily no more...                      

[LindaW]

hi Kelly,
We just use throws on our sofa (old bedspreads to tell you the truth!)
Any spots on the carpet treat with cold water but I've never really had much mess and I do have five of them!
I'm not sure mine would take to the panties and pads but maybe with a young bitch like Millie you could accustom her to them!
Haven't heard of Viotin - which farm shop do you get it from and how much does it cost and how much do you give them?
BFN
Linda                    

[KellyP]

thanks folks.
We've got some old towels which we are putting over the places she likes to sit most often. However she seems to be spotting as she walks so I have also been and bought some cheap boys cotton boxer pants (£1.50 for 2 pairs!  ) which I have "adapted" to fit Millie - I'll post a picture later - she looks hilarious  

It wasn't Viotin Linda, it should have been Biotin. The stuff I have got is made by N.A.F Horse feed supplements - its used in horses to promote healthy hoof and coat growth, the smallest box is 1,5kg! and I only need a pinch a day! - it was also pretty hefty price to (£10.50). However I have also found it in standard human supplements for healthy nails and hair in Boots, but these also have various oils  - apricot and peach kernal, riboflavin, and some other B vit complexes, so I wasn't sure which to use. I thought about asking the vet if he thought it would do any damage / cause any problems giving her the human ones, or even the horse one (depending on its BBE date) - but I was worried that he would probably just say "you shouldn't give the homeopathic remedies or any suplements to your dog" - a bit like the old thornit-powder-and-disapproving-vet syndrome.
 My breeder said just a pinch of Biotin every day in her feed or a treat, along with one sepia-30 tablet - which she actually just ate from the tablet bottle top today - clever girl  

So I'm not sure what to do  :-                    

[Jane S]

I don't think the equine Biotin will do Millie any harm but don't put too much store on it Over the years we must have tried every coat remedy & potion on the market but whatever you give as a supplement, most particolour bitches will drop their coats after a season & there's not a lot you can do about it but sit & wait for it to grow back Its more likely to happen if your bitch has a quite fine coat to begin with but even heavy coated bitches can lose their tummy feathering, as our Ruby did.                    

[KellyP]

hi folks,

I have spoken with my vet who is interested to know any results I find from giving her these supplements. He has recommend horse Biotin for dogs with coats issues before and so said a pinch a day should be fine.
 
Jane - I understand what you are saying about her coat. She's got quite woolly legs, but her back is quite silky and fine  :-    Even my breeder said that it was no guarantee of working, but it 'might' - so I thought I'd give it a try  :-  

Kel x                    

[xander_ho]

Hi Kelly,

Your post is very interesting!! I know that Sepia 30C is used for premenstrual symptoms in humans and the reason why bitches looses their hair is to do with the hormone estrogen!!!(it creates a different type of hair) Are you going to try Sepia?? Is that the recommended strength suggested? 30C it is quite powerful for a dog!! Please let us know the results!! I'm really interested and intrigue to see how would Millie get on Thanks in advance!!

Alexander                    

[Gilly]

I have to say I tend to agree with Jane on this one...after talking to other breeders at shows...it seems to be par for the course when you have a bitch....patience is a virtue                    

[xander_ho]

Hi Kelly,

I went to have a double checked at my homeopathic reference books and your breeder is correct. The remedy for hair loss related to hormonal changes is Sepia (squid ink) however the potencing strength recommended is 6C not 30C, maybe you should ask your breeder is that the strenght that she uses and why?

p.s: do not worry, homeopathic remedy doesn't have any side effects, 30C is so diluted , it will be so interesting if it does work!!


Alexander                    

[KellyP]

Hi Xander,

its definately 30c - and I have been giving to her.
We took her to see her breeder today - she commented that her coat was so fine and silky that she probably would def lose her coat from her belly regardless of anything I do - but I had resigned myself to some loss anyway    
I will let you know how she gets on                      

[xander_ho]

Hi Kelly,

I think Jane and Gilly are right and they are experienced  , you can't really stop mother nature!! Its really good that your trying different methods and we are all learning from your experience

I don't think you have anything to worry about, the amount of care and attention Millie gets , she'll get her coat back in no time. You'll never know, her feathering  might grow back even thicker and longer!!

Alexander                    

[Katina]

All my bitches have dropped practically all their coat after their first season, -except my Ada, who is the only one from the gang that doesn't attend shows. Is that ironic or what  ..
It took a year for my Emma to grow her coat back, even though I was giving her Biotin+ Viacutan  ..
All my girls wear panties (especially made for them) and pads when in season.                    

[tracey]

All my bitches have dropped practically all their coat after their first season, -except my Ada, who is the only one from the gang that doesn't attend shows. Is that ironic or what  ..

All My parti colours have lost all their coats following a season regardless of any  lotions potions and pills I have given them
The solids seem to hold their coats better, well mine do  
Tracey

edited to say anything is worth a go though                    

[Katina]

All mine are parties too. Ada, who has _never_ lost a single hair, is an orange & white.