If you have a female Pomeranian dog that hasn’t been spayed yet, then you should definitely read this article. No matter you plan to breed your Pom or just to keep her safe during heat cycles, it’s important for you to know what is really happening, why and how can you help.
Female Pomeranians go into heat two or three times a year. The heat cycle lasts for 3 weeks and during this period one can notice numerous signs and changes.
The most obvious ones are the swollen vulva and bloody discharge. Mammary glands are enlarged. Apart from physical changes, behavioral changes are noticeable as well.
Pomeranians in heat may sleep more than usual, eat less, lick themselves all over, crave extra attention or totally opposite may prefer to be alone most of the time.
Table of Contents
When Does My Pomeranian Go Into First Heat?
The first heat may happen when the puppy is about 5 months old. That is considered as early heat but the normal range for this first heat is 6-9 months of age.
In some rare cases, the first heat may happen later, when your Pom is 12-15 months old. But this is really rare as toy breeds usually come into the heat earlier than larger breeds.
If your Pom has never been in the heat before, early signs are easy to miss. Signs may appear one day or a couple of days before the breeding cycle starts. These are:
- slightly swollen vulva
- enlarged nipples which appear to be darker in color.
What Are The Signs That My Pomeranian Is In Heat?
- Swollen vulva ( the vulva might swell up to three times its normal size)
- Nipples are clearly visible and appear darker in color
- Vaginal discharge. At the beginning of the heat cycle, it may be pale pink, later on will become deep red and then the color of discharge lightens again. This coincides with the vulva being very swollen so this is the moment when the chances of getting pregnant are at the highest point for your Pom. Even when the bleeding has stopped, your Pom might be in the heat for a couple of days more, so take precautions.
- Your Pom in the heat may sleep more then usual
- Your Pom in the heat may have appetite loss.
- She may lick herself intensively ( self- grooming)
- Your Pom will crave attention, seeking more of your company
- She might show some nesting behavior, starts collecting toys and food and putting them in some safe area. Let her do that.
How Long Does My Pomeranian Stay In Heat?
The heat cycle usually lasts for 18-21 days. But this is average length and heat cycles may vary widely ( 2-4 weeks)
How Often Do Pomeranians Go Into Heat?
Usually, Pomeranian dogs come into heat every six months which means twice a year. What may happen is that the heat cycle lasts shorter than usual ( for example 2 weeks) and then the next one comes in less than 6 months.
In that case, your Pom may go in heat even three times in one year.
The older dogs may go into heat only once a year. Don’t worry, this is completely normal.
Dogs are born with all eggs they will ever have. Over the years, those eggs will start to lose their effectiveness and die off.
The fewer eggs your Pom has, the fewer hormones she will produce. This means that she will have longer pauses between two heat cycles.
What Is Split Pomeranian Heat?
Split heat is a false heat that might happen to younger or older dogs. Your Pom may show the heat signs but these can last only for 4-5 days and then suddenly stop. Your Pom will go into real heat 3-4 weeks after the false one.
Believe it or not, your dog may get pregnant during the false heat. Fortunately, split heat shouldn’t be happening more than once or twice in a lifetime.
If this problem becomes chronic and continuously repeated, you should ask the vet for help. He might run some tests in order to rule out Hypothyroidism and some other conditions.
What If I Notice Lumps During or After the Heat Cycle of My Pomeranian?
The lumps on your Pom’s nipples or around them may occur at any time but there are more obvious during or right after the heat cycle.
The lumps in that area may indicate the presence of mammary gland hyperplasia. What does that mean? Mammary gland hyperplasia is a benign overgrowth of mammary epithelial cells.
The problem is that those lumps may also be breast cancer which is malignant. The only way to discover if the lumps are benign or malignant is to get them removed by operation and let them be examined.
You need to take every lump very seriously, as according to statistics 50% of tumors in Pomeranians are diagnosed as malignant.
Pay special attention if heavy vaginal bleeding occurs in your Pomeranian. If bleeding lasts for more than 40 days, you should rush to the vet.
How To Take Care Of My Pomeranian In Heat?
Most probably you won’t have much work to do around a female Pom that is in the heat but still, you should know a few things.
Your Pomeranian Needs Extra Attention
Pom in heat may crave human attention. She can be especially cuddly during her heat cycle. Try to be gentle and kind when handling your pet.
Avoid high-pitched tones and yelling at your dog, especially if she makes a mess unintentionally. You need to send her a message that there is nothing wrong with her.
Note that the heat cycle might be a stressful experience for young Poms that don’t know what is happening. The same stress may occur in older dogs as well. So be patient and kind.
Give Your Pom Peace, If She Wants It
Totally opposite, some dogs prefer to isolate as much as possible during the heat cycle. Having a crate is super important these days, as the crate is something only hers, her own private cave, a place where your Pom girl can be alone if she wants to.
While some Poms like to stay isolated, others will be perfectly happy with a doggy bed in the corner of a busy room.
This means that your dog prefers to be in your vicinity but she would like to reduce interaction to a minimum. Respect that.
Doggy Diapers
Even though Poms don’t bleed too much when in heat, comparing to some larger breeds, the vaginal discharge still makes a mess. Not just that.
Dogs in heat may urinate more frequently so you get a picture of how your house can become messy unless you do something. Doggy diapers are the perfect solution.
They come in different sizes, styles, and prices. You will be able to find disposable ones but if you care more for the environment do purchase fabric washable diapers.
Some people are not willing to change diapers for three weeks. In that case, it’s recommended to limit your dog on one room only, preferably with linoleum flooring which makes cleaning much easier.
Note that vaginal discharge doesn’t have a very pleasant smell. If you need to leave your dog for a couple of hours, do think twice about diapers, especially if you have a sensitive nose.
Dogs will lick themselves ( self-grooming) but they won’t clean floors, bedding, toys, etc. They will leave all that stuff to you.
Keep Her Away From Other Dogs
Being in heat means that a dog doesn’t behave as usual so you might consider keeping your Pom inside and far from other dogs, especially dog park during her heat cycle.
The males are an obvious threat ( of course if you don’t want to breed your dog intentionally) and the problem is that they can smell the female in heat at very long distances ( cca 3 miles/ 5km ).
Other females are not the same kind of threat of course, but their interaction might be a challenge. Females in heat might be very aggressive towards other female dogs.
Remember just not to isolate her from humans or other pet companions ( that are not dogs). Your Pom needs a lot of love in this period so don’t leave her alone, unless she wants to be left alone.
Keep Her Distracted
It’s natural that mating is the only thing your Pom has on her mind during the heat cycle. Hormonal change is so big that she cannot do anything about it. But you can try to distract her a little bit.
For example, you can offer her a new toy every few days or you too can play a new game more often.
Visit A Vet
If you are first time owner or you are especially concerned, it will be a good idea to visit a vet. Even though the heat cycle in dogs is not unnatural, it’s normal to have tons of questions and possible concerns. The vet’s practice is the right place to find the answers.
Appetite Loss During the Heat Cycle, What to Do About It?
Your Pom may experience appetite loss during the heat cycle. This is also the consequence of hormonal changes.
There is a massive increase in estrogen levels, along with other hormone changes( estradiol, progesterone, and others). All these changes heavily affect the appetite.
What you need to do is to offer high-quality, appealing food. Since your Pom will eat less during the heat cycle, she needs to eat highly nutritious food.
No matter you feed your Pom with dry food/ wet food/ raw diet, make sure she gets all nutrients she needs. Note that your Pom girl might be pickier than usual when it comes to food, so maybe you will have to do some tricks.
Pour some warm water in dry food to make it tastier or you can sprinkle some nice food toppers such as:
Petchup Variety Pack rich in glucosamine, omega 3 fatty acids, and prebiotics or
The Honest Kitchen Proper Topper will boost your dog’s immune system and enhance vitamin and mineral level
You can also offer more treats than usual. Make sure those treats are healthy and rich in nutrients. Home-made treats are also a good idea.
For example, take quality coconut oil and blueberries. You need a mold ( no matter the shape) in which you should put blueberries ( 3-4 blueberries in each hole).
Heat the coconut oil until it becomes liquid and then pour it into each hole of the mold, freeze it. When it’s solid, pop them out of the mold and keep them in the freezer.
Do Pomeranians Have Menopause?
Pomeranians ( dogs in general ) don’t have menopause-like humans. Actually, Pom females stay fertile for the whole life unless they are spayed.
As mentioned before, the heat cycles of older dogs may be shorter or longer than normal ones. The pause between heat cycles becomes longer as time passes. The fertility starts to decrease as the Pom girl gets older.
Should I Spay My Pomeranian?
Yes, most of the vets agree that you should get your Pom spayed unless you want to use her for breeding. The spaying procedure ideally should be done before going to the first heat cycle.
It’s important to know that if you miss the moment and haven’t done the procedure on time, make sure it passes at least 6 weeks after the last day of Pom’s heat cycle before you take her to the vet who will perform a spaying procedure.
Some people may raise the question of how wise it is to put your Pom through this procedure but science has proven many benefits of it.
For example, spaying procedures may significantly reduce the possibility of your Pom getting ovarian or breast cancer. The sooner you get your Pom spayed, the greater her chances are that cancer will never occur.
Do Male Pomeranians Go Into Heat?
Someone will say ” Male Pomeranians are in heat all the time!” As a matter of fact, they are just responsive to the females being in heat, it’s not the same thing.
Once the male Pomeranian reaches sexual maturity, he is sexually active all year around.
As soon as the male senses the female in heat, he will change his behavior. The male Pom will become agitated, even aggressive trying to get to the female.
It’s just a call of nature, he needs to fulfill the natural-born duty – to impregnate the female.
This may seem like your male is in the heat but in fact, he is just responding to the female in heat. As soon as the source (the female)of his strange conduct has been removed, he will start act normally again.
So it’s pretty clear that this is not a heat cycle since he can get back to normal so quickly.
If you know that some female dog from the neighborhood is in the heat, try to keep your dog inside as much as possible.
If you are in the dog park and you notice that your pet is sniffing some female that might be in the heat, leave the park as soon as possible.
The problem is that males can sense females in the heat at far distances so some people tend to cover the smell with some natural products such as mint oil. I heard that some owners dab a small quantity of this product on windowsills and door frames.
Since every dog is different, you can try different things to cover the smell. The point is that you should never use strong chemical products and never put any product on your dog. The idea is to make your house heat-proof and not your dog.
Conclusion
Your Pom may go into heat at 5-6 months of age. It can also happen later. Pomeranians go into the heat usually twice a year. The heat cycle lasts for 3 weeks but anything between 2 and 4 weeks is considered normal.
Unless you have decided to breed her, get her spayed before she hit the first heat cycle. If you want to breed her, it’s recommended to let the first heat cycles pass and then to breed her.
The Pom in heat may require extra attention from your side. Try to be as kind and loving as you can be. Avoid harsh tones and yelling at her.
She may eat far less than usual, make sure she gets all nutrients she needs. Try to keep her distracted with a new toy or game.
Heat cycles repeat in dogs during their whole life. In older dogs, the pause between heat cycles may be longer as the fertility starts to decrease as your Pom is getting older.
