Bitches in Season & Entire Dogs

[SandraD]

OK up until yesterday Monty had shown absolutely no interest whatsoever in bitches - not even when my friends Springer came into season!

One of the dogs we regularly meet on our walk is a black Lab who is due in season any time. Monty and Willow are the best of buddies and it is lovely to see them playing together. Yesterday, however, all Monty wanted to do was sniff at Willow's rear end and obviously finding this particularly interesting promptly tried to hump her on numerous occasions!  Her owner didn't seem to mind in the slightest (!) and kept saying that he didn't think she was in season yet - Monty appeared to have other ideas! Poor Monty got so upset that we left our usual group of dog walkers and headed off in the other direction, but I am now obviously a bit concerned about walking him whilst this girlie is about.

I obviously want to be a responsible dog owner (as I hope Willow's owner will also be) as Monty is still entire and Willow lives in a house backing onto the fields that we walk in so I think I am going to have to find another route for a while.  I suspect Willow's owner could well find all the local dog walkers being dragged to his back gate!! 

[JaspersMum]

I'd be quite concerned that Willow might be further into her season than her owner thinks if she was letting Monty hump (or try to) her.

When Heidi comes into season, the initial stages she won't have the boys try anything other than perhaps a sniff but once she's full on, she's easy takings. IMHO Willow's owners are being irresponsible taking her out and being so unconcerned about whether or not she is in season 

[SandraD]

Thanks Jenny, I thought I was being over sensitive!!  Willow would quite happily have let Monty try to have his way with her had I let him!   I do hope her owner is sensible and takes steps to keep her away from other dogs, Monty isn't the only entire male in the village.   Her owners intend to get her spayed after this season so it would be awful if she did get caught.

Thanks again.

[supergirl]

Had a very similar situation with a couple of dalmations that we met on a walk.  Roly was sniffing around the dali bitch (who was 8 months) in a way that he'd never done before.  I asked the owner if the dog might be in season and was told that she could be!!  Straight away I put Roly back on the lead, expecting the dali owner to do the same.  Not a chance still let her carry on sticking her back end in Roly's face and had the nerve to shout at Roly when he tried to mount her.  We went off in the opposite direction.  The dali owner still didn't put her on the lead even though his own elderly dog (who could just about walk) was also trying to mount her as well.

A bit later when I let Roly off, I half expected him to go chasing after them, but thankfully he still likes to stay close to his mum and while he did back track a little he came straight back when he was called.

Roly also has never really shown any interest in bitches in season (my next door neighbours dog has been in season twice and he's never noticed).

[Nicola]

I think Willow's owner is being quite irresponsible too, or at the very least thoughtless. Luckily we haven't met too many in-season bitches and the ones we have come across are generally at the end of it so although Ro is very interested the bitches tell him to bog off and I can call him away. If a girl in her peak season was right in front of his face though or he was walking past her house every day he'd be desperate to get in there, in every sense of the word   I hope Willow's owners take heed and keep her away from other dogs because she'll be just as keen to get to them as they will be to get to her. 

[aliceandlouis]

If I had a pet hobby-horse this would be it!!!  I have posted before about this issue so will not go on about it - but why oh why do the owners of bitches insist on walking their in-season bitches off-lead and/or where other dogs walk?!  One of my treasured dog-walking companions of 75 was pulled over by a dog that she was walking for a friend when he caught scent of a bitch (onto hard, frozen ground - ouch!).  The owner of the bitch was totally unconcerned.  Entire dogs can go off their food and become deeply distraught if there is the scent of a bitch around - grrrrr, makes my blood boil!  (should point out I have owned bitches as well as dogs) - (but I must calm down cos it is Louis' obedience class this evening  )

[Karma]

I agree... the bitch's owner seems to be being very irresponsible.
One of the factors we considered when deciding when to spay Honey was whether we could manage a season responsibly, as I think it is the duty of every owner to do so.
We have met several people who have been walking bitches in heat, and most seem completely unconcerned about the impact they may be having on other dogs. 
One of the reasons Honey is wary of some other dogs is because she met an overly amourous black lab when she was young - he was completely obessessed and his owner was beside herself as it was so out of character, but we had not long met a bitch in season being walked around the most popular dog walking field in the area, so we were at least able to explain to the owner why her ordinarily biddable and pleasant dog was being so unresponsive to her and such a pain to other dogs... 

[sharonmansfield]

Can't believe how irresponsible Willows owner is being. My Jasmine is currently in season and she has not been out for a walk and wont go out until its over.  Its my responsibility to see that she comes to no harm and her being in season also causes no harm or problems for anyone else or their dogs.  Some people are so thoughtless 

[bluegirl]

Ok, here goes again.

I do walk my girls when they are in season, I see no reason why I shouldn't unless it is obvious that they are at the difficult time. I do also have an entire dog so I am well aware the effect this can have on him (Penny is in a permanent oestrus state atm which we have been dealing with for 8 weeks now). But I do have friends with entire dogs and I wouldn't mix the two. If one of my girls is in season then they will be left behind and I walk them separately later on. I also tend to walk in quieter areas where I know less people choose to walk there dogs. I let them off lead but am so careful to keep checking on whats around me and I always call them back if I see any dog. I always shout to the owner too from a safe distance that I have an in season girl with me.

I've also met dogs who know when my girls are coming in, even before I did. So Lab owner may be right that as far as he is concerned he hasn't seen any signs, but I would never let the situation get out of hand, I would have presumed the dog knew something I didn't and would have left the walk. (dogs can predict a girl coming in season sometimes up to a month before it happens. Penny actually came in to season on that occasion the day after and apparently this dog had been used at stud a couple of times previously.)

[JaspersMum]

I'm much the same as Karen, Heidi might go out, but the point is it might be that she goes (on lead) with Jasper who is castrated and I know will stay nearby, but it wouldn't be where others are guarenteed to be walking and I'd want to know where in her season she could be...  There was a guy out a few weeks ago who knew his bitch was in season but thought that the bleed stage was the "problem" bit and was happily letting her off lead to play with other dogs as soon as that finished..  He seems reasonably intelligent and I know he's done some research about various aspects of dog ownership 

We're pretty sure someone had a bitch in season at the dog show a week or so back, the dogs were all over the place