A dog in season: understanding the cycle
Seasons come round roughly twice a year and last two to three weeks: it's normal, neither an illness nor a problem. Your dog bleeds a little, attracts males and sometimes has mood swings. Your job: keep an eye on her, make walks safe, and stay relaxed.
What's happening inside her body
A season is her fertility cycle starting up, driven by hormones. The bleeding isn't an injury: it's a sign that her body is getting ready.
The cycle runs through four stages, but only the first two are really visible.
The bleeding starts
The vulva swells and bloody discharge appears on her bed or on the floor. She already attracts males, but still turns them down.
The fertile window
The discharge becomes paler, the vulva softens: this is when she accepts a male and can conceive. That fertile window is short.
Things settle down
Whether or not she has been mated, she leaves the fertile window and the signs gradually fade.
The quiet spell
She shows no signs at all for several months, until her next season: six to eight months on average, sometimes longer depending on the breed.
How to tell she's coming into season
- The vulva swells and becomes more noticeable.
- Bloody discharge appears, red at first then paler (sometimes hard to spot: a clean dog licks a lot of it away).
- Males from the neighbourhood start hanging around and get pushy at the gate.
- She licks her rear end more than usual.
- Her mood shifts: clingier, or on the contrary more aloof, sometimes grumpy with other females.
Getting through the three weeks without stress
What you need to sail through it calmly.
0 / 3If she turns clingy, sulky or short-tempered with her friends during this spell, it's hormonal and temporary, not a training problem. Support her calmly: don't tell her off for a mood she has no control over.
"Stopping" a season: what actually works
No home remedy and no "natural" trick stops or shortens a season once it's under way: herbal teas, supplements and tips seen online have no proven effect, and trying to act on her hormones without veterinary advice can harm her. What does put an end to seasons for good is spaying. There are also hormonal options to postpone or pause a season, but they're prescribed and monitored. These choices are made with your vet, never on your own at home.
Spaying has real benefits: it removes the risk of pyometra, a serious infection of the womb. Some studies also point to fewer mammary tumours when it's done early, but the leading systematic review on the subject judges that link too weak to draw a firm recommendation from. It also comes with real trade-offs: weight gain that's easy enough to manage, joint problems in large breeds spayed too young, and sometimes incontinence. The right timing depends on her breed and adult size: it's a case-by-case decision to make with your vet.
After the season: two things to watch
In the weeks that follow, some unspayed dogs go through a phantom pregnancy: they mother a toy, build a nest in a corner, their mammary glands swell, and they sometimes produce a little milk. It's common, usually harmless, and it settles down within a few weeks. Don't stimulate her mammary glands: that keeps the milk coming. Speak to your vet if the episode is severe, if it drags on, or if it comes back with every cycle.
The other thing to watch in an unspayed dog: pyometra, an infection of the womb that mostly turns up in the two months after a season (in a 2001 Swedish study of insured dogs, around one entire female in four develops it before the age of ten). If you see these signs, ring the vet.
Keep an eye on it
- Low spirits, unusual tiredness
- Reduced appetite
See a vet soon
- She starts drinking and weeing a lot
- Vomiting
- Yellowish, pinkish or foul-smelling discharge from the vulva
Emergency, call straight away
- Swollen, painful belly
- Very low, collapsed dog
- These signs with no discharge at all: the "closed" form, without discharge, is the most serious
- Jitpean S., Hagman R. et coll. — Closed cervix is associated with more severe illness in dogs with pyometra (BMC Veterinary Research) (2016)
- Egenvall A., Hagman R. et coll. — Breed Risk of Pyometra in Insured Dogs in Sweden (Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine) (2001)
- Hart B.L. et coll. — Assisting Decision-Making on Age of Neutering for 35 Breeds of Dogs (Frontiers in Veterinary Science) (2020)
- Beauvais W., Cardwell J.M., Brodbelt D.C. — The effect of neutering on the risk of mammary tumours in dogs: a systematic review (JSAP) (2012)
- Merck Veterinary Manual: oestrous cycle, phantom pregnancy and reproductive disorders, MSD
Going further
Frequently asked questions
How long does a dog's season last?
A season lasts around two to three weeks. Careful, though: the window in which she can conceive is shorter than the bleeding lasts, so keep watching even once the bleeding eases off.
How do I know if my dog is in season?
The vulva swells, bloody discharge appears (sometimes hard to spot), males get pushy and she licks her rear end more. Her mood may change too: clingier or more aloof. If you're unsure, your vet can confirm it easily.
How can I stop my dog's season naturally?
There is no home or "natural" remedy that stops a season once it's under way: the tips you see online have no proven effect and some are risky. What does put an end to seasons for good is spaying; there are also hormonal options to postpone them. These choices are made with your vet.
How often does a dog come into season?
On average twice a year, so roughly every six to eight months. Some large or primitive breeds only have one a year, and at the other end some small breeds can have up to three: either way, that's normal. The first season comes between six months and two years old, depending on adult size.
Should a dog have a litter before being spayed?
No. No data shows that a litter would make her more "settled" or healthier, and pregnancy and whelping carry their own risks. It's a stubborn myth: the decision to spay, and when, is one to make with your vet.
My dog is drinking a lot after her season, is that normal?
Worth watching closely in an unspayed dog: drinking and weeing a lot in the weeks after a season, especially alongside low spirits or vomiting, can point to pyometra (an infection of the womb). With or without discharge, ring your vet.
How do I stop my dog being mated while she's in season?
Walks on the lead, a garden that's genuinely secure and checked, and extra vigilance: a determined male will come from a long way off. Season pants limit the mess but don't prevent a pregnancy. If a mating has happened, don't try anything yourself, ring your vet.
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