Should you walk a dog in season?

Even when she is in heat, your dog should be exercised to prevent boredom and depression. This is especially important for dogs who are used to being exercised often or have lots of energy to use up. However, the way that you exercise your dog should be modified for her safety. When your dog is in heat, it can be a very stressful time. To help destress her, exercise is helpful. There is a misconception that female dogs in heat shouldn’t get any exercise, but she still needs walks. Avoid strenuous physical activities, a brief walk around the block will already do great wonders. Always have her on a leash. You must always keep her on a leash, no matter where you take her. Whilst you walk your dog, she will be giving off pheromones that advertise the fact that she is in season. Avoid male dogs. If a male dog is allowed to, he will follow your dog’s pheromone trail in hopes of mating with her. If you live in an area with a lot of free-roaming or off-leash dogs, it’s important to try to cover your female dog’s tracks. Male dogs can be very determined and may follow your own dog back to your front door. So, if possible, put your dog in a car and drive half a mile away or more to walk your dog in heat to reduce the pheromone trail left behind. Female dog pants or dog diapers may also be an option to lower female scent distribution and reduce the risk of your dog getting pregnant if she meets a male dog. However, they are not contraceptives and should not be treated as such. The only real benefit of pants is keeping your female dog from making a mess indoors while she is in heat. Wearing them on a walk to reduce scent distribution and the risk of unwanted pregnancy is just a good side effect.

When the dog is in season, also known as being in heat, it will last around three weeks. So I can’t walk my dog for weeks? This isn’t true, although I would certainly ditch some of the walks, especially if you have a safe, enclosed garden. Keep your dog on a lead. Do not let your dog off the lead at any time, even if they are well-behaved off the lead. Don’t walk at busy times. During the three weeks that your dog is in season, it is essential that you walk early in the day or late at night when it is going to be quieter, and the chances of meeting other dogs are significantly reduced. Avoid parks and other busy places. Ditch the walk When my dogs are in season, we probably only go out every day or two to provide them with some new scents and a change of scenery.

We kept Ruby on a lead for the 3 weeks of her season, keeping to quieter areas early in the morning or later in the evening, and crossing roads whenever we saw another dog coming our way (especially a male dog) to avoid any possible interactions. A lot of owners think that this is when a female dog is coming to the end of their season and start letting their dog off the lead, but it’s actually the time when they are most fertile, and you have to be most cautious of their whereabouts. It’s important to understand your dog's cues throughout, so you can make sure you’re keeping them safe and comfortable. For the first week, her bleed was quite red and visible, but it would only really mark furniture or carpets if she was lying down. We were quite relaxed as owners, especially as we only have one room with hard flooring, but I know owners often keep their dog in certain areas of the house during a dog’s season, which is a sensible solution. My biggest worry was leaving her in the garden alone, as I had read so much about male dogs sniffing her out from a mile away and jumping walls to get to her. It’s probably something to be mindful of, however.

You'll need to avoid areas where she'll be approached by dogs off lead. Take her for walks at less busy times of day to avoid unwanted attention. Be prepared to keep her on a lead in public areas. Male dogs in the home and out on walks will become very interested in your female dog during this time as her urine contains pheromones and hormones that let dogs know she is in season. However, she can become pregnant any time during a season and for a few days afterwards.