Need advice please - Page 1

A dear friend of mine here in the state chose to have his never bred 4 1/2 yr old import (Ober sired) female to a well known import on loan male back out west. Simply to hold back some of her and some of a male he was looking to build on a few points she did not excell in. After the OFA (Excellent on elbows and good on hips) and a couple in house swabs the current caretaker for the male requested came back negative he drove her out there in mid December for the deed to take place. So she would roughly be 45 and some odd days in to it.

Both of us are assuming she took, her attitude is different and her bottom lower belly is rounded along with ginormous nipples compared to what I remember from petting her in the past. So there is a vet checkup scheduled for Wednesday to make sure everything is where it should be. Back to why I'm asking she recently started picking over her food. Where she was a 2 cup AM 1 to 1.5 cup PM kind of gal according to the owner she now will let a bowl sit in front of her without eating much. Some as in eating the top center out over the course of a day.

My lack of experience with a preggers female tends to think that there is not a lot of room in there to hold food and she thinks she is full. But knowing this GSD's ability to thrown down on some food and this to come on with the past few days I'm worried and I know he is.

The 1.00 dollar question .. Is this normal at this point in the game or not? Otherwise except for being a lot more vocal (as in bitchy)  than usual she is the same girl that we know.

Advice is welcomed.

P.S. Sorry I forgot to enter a topic.

Edited your title, hope that's okay for you. mrdarcy (mod)

I think that is pretty normal.  My girl, Rose, stopped eating about that time too.  The hunt was then on to get her to eat anything.  By the time she whelped, she was on nothing but muck kibble and cooked chicken.

Yes normal, however I would have her checked and maybe an x-ray about the 51 day mark, and I would give her more meat so you know she gets her protein intake, but feed her smaller amounts several times per day;  at least 3 times per day.  Cottage cheese, yogurts are good intisers for those that do not want to eat along with ground beef, or any other ground meats she will eat,  Also scrambled eggs with cheese.  Try to encourage her to eat and all can be added to her kibble or plain.  BOL  Nan

I have found with my own dog that in about the 3rd week of pregnancy she will really lose her appetite, Eating only one meal per day.  Then when whelping comes nearer she gains it back until just before whelping.

As NAN's said... feeding 3 small meals a day helps.... 

 im in the same situation my female is 28 days and she stoped eating her regular kibble about a week ago. i figured she was having a bout of the morning sickness so didnt bother with it for like 2 days then i became worried as days went on finealy i had to change her food to get her to eat. silly pregnant woman and their cravings

I have not experienced this with all bitches (I think Capri will probably still eat when she is dead) but academically speaking and from word of mouth, it seems to be normal. Anytime you have hormonal fluctuations, appetites can be affected. If the vet deems her ok and she is normal as far as you can tell otherwise (no odd discharge, not acting strange or lethargic, drinking ok, urinating/bowel movements according to what she's cosumed, etc.), I would chalk it up to hormones and possible abdominal discomfort, all normal.