[secrets0stolen]

Yesterday Ella suddenly started caring for her rainbow colored dinosaur like it`s her puppy. She picks it up very gently, licks it, sleeps with it, carries it everywhere with her. I`m not allowed to touch it or stare at it for too long ...

What to think of this? Should I take it away from her? Or will this pass naturally on its own? How long could it last? Should I be worried about her health?

She`s also been panting weirdly for the last few days... like she`s hot... only thing it`s -20`c outside and inside is barely warm.

Her last heat was in Nov I think.

Thank you!

 

[StormyPeak]

The panting might be due to stress....if she's so totally focused on the toy and not eating or drinking like she should and worrying about the toy so.

My dog HaHa almost always has a toy. I call it it 'toy of the day' He will chose one, then pack it from room to room and even outside with him. Sometimes, his toy of the day might last 2 or 3 days then he'll get up one day and chose a different toy and that's what he packs around for a day or two or three.

He doesn't lick at it much, but he does bite down on it trying to make it squeak...not all of his toys are squeakies, but he has mental issues and cannot remember which ones do and which ones don't. I noticed he tends to keep the squeaky ones as his toy of the day for more than a day....and the non squeaky ones tend to be just for one day. I can, also at any time take the toy and he acts happy, like we are going to play, rather than upset that I have his toy of the day.

Anyway...he's not stressing over them, changes them out from time to time...all he does is pack them from room to room and plays a little with them...shaking them or biting them in excitement, like just before going outside, or before eating.

If your dog isn't looking relaxed with the toy...and you said she seems to be nervous when you are around it too... to me, that's a warning sign that it's not a healthy thing. She's resource guarding if she's not allowing you to touch it or look at it for very long and that's really really Not Good! If she were my dog, I would take it from her and then start on some training to help her with the resource guarding issue.

Stormy

 

[TrampolineBoxer]

The panting might be due to stress....if she's so totally focused on the toy and not eating or drinking like she should and worrying about the toy so.

My dog HaHa almost always has a toy. I call it it 'toy of the day' He will chose one, then pack it from room to room and even outside with him. Sometimes, his toy of the day might last 2 or 3 days then he'll get up one day and chose a different toy and that's what he packs around for a day or two or three.

He doesn't lick at it much, but he does bite down on it trying to make it squeak...not all of his toys are squeakies, but he has mental issues and cannot remember which ones do and which ones don't. I noticed he tends to keep the squeaky ones as his toy of the day for more than a day....and the non squeaky ones tend to be just for one day. I can, also at any time take the toy and he acts happy, like we are going to play, rather than upset that I have his toy of the day.

Anyway...he's not stressing over them, changes them out from time to time...all he does is pack them from room to room and plays a little with them...shaking them or biting them in excitement, like just before going outside, or before eating.

If your dog isn't looking relaxed with the toy...and you said she seems to be nervous when you are around it too... to me, that's a warning sign that it's not a healthy thing. She's resource guarding if she's not allowing you to touch it or look at it for very long and that's really really Not Good! If she were my dog, I would take it from her and then start on some training to help her with the resource guarding issue.

Stormy

I agree with StormyPeak that it might just be a toy that she really likes, but there may be a bit of a problem with the not eating and drinking problem, it's fine if she's relaxed but if she's constantly guarding the toy also known as resource guarding as mentioned by StormyPeak above, then that may be a issue that requires training, as always good luck:thumbsup:

 

[animalcraker]

Sounds like a false pregnancy. How old is you girl? Dogs who exhibit false pregnancies have a high risk of developing pyometrias, so if you don't plan on breeding her and she's fully mature it may be in everyone's best interest to spay her.

 

[TrampolineBoxer]

Sounds like a false pregnancy. How old is you girl? Dogs who exhibit false pregnancies have a high risk of developing pyometrias, so if you don't plan on breeding her and she's fully mature it may be in everyone's best interest to spay her.

If it's that case the agreed:thumbsup:

 

[secrets0stolen]

Thanks everyone. It wasn`t behavioral .. it started very suddenly and also ended after one day. She doesn`t have that kind of relationship with her toys. And it was old toy since Xmas. It was def false pregnancy. She`s intact and will be 3 in March.

I`m now worried - is there really connection between false pregnancy and pyometria?

Is there any comfort in fact that it only lasted one day? She doesnt care for the toy anymore...

I have been reluctant to spay her because:

1. more recent research suggest intact dogs are actually healthier
2. previous dog nearly died during operation
3. previous dog developed all kinds of issues after spaying - fur got too thick, shed like crazy all year, put on insane amount of weight, joint issues, lost bladder control

I`m also not worried about her getting pregnant. She`s part of the family and well looked after.

 

[secrets0stolen]

Here they are btw