Your dog is in heat and you want to let it mate. A lot of questions about breeding or mating come to your mind.
What information do you need to help your dog mate successfully? Do dogs have to get stuck together to get pregnant? Or how to know if mating was successful? What is known as slip mating?
In this article, you will find out:
- Do dogs have to get stuck together to get pregnant?
- What’s slip mating?
- How do you know if the mating was successful?
- What are the chances of my dog being pregnant without getting stuck?
- And more…
Do Dogs Have To Get Stuck Together To Get Pregnant?
Dogs do not have to get stuck together to get pregnant, provided that the male dog ejaculates inside the female dog before getting retracting. However, the chances of pregnancy in a slip mating is lower than when a tie happens as there will be spillage of semen during withdrawal.
Dogs getting stuck together or having a tie is a natural phenomenon in the dog mating process. However, not all dogs are able to get stuck due to a myriad of reasons and this is also natural.
When the male dog penetrates into the bitch’s vagina, the bottom part of the penis (bulbus glandis) grows 3x in width and 2x in thickness. This enlarged bulbus glandis makes it hard for the penis to retract, creating a situation where both dogs are stuck together.
The evolutionary purpose of having dogs stuck together is so that the male dog can ejaculate as much semen as possible into the female dog’s vagina without any spillage. This maximizes the possibility of a successful pregnancy.
Having said that, there is still a chance for the female dog to be pregnant if the male dog has ejaculated inside of her prior to retracting the penis even without being stuck.
Understanding The Mating Process
The dog mating process starts when they are in heat. Ideally, both male and female dogs should be physically fit and healthy.
According to Dr. Ryan Llera, DVM, a female dog is ready to mate when she reaches 9 to 10 months of maturity, depending on the size of the dog breed. A small dog breed may have its first heat cycle as early as when they are four months old. The sexual maturity depends on the breed and the size of the dog.
The maturing period for different dogs:
- Small-sized dogs: 4 to 9 months old
- Medium-sized dogs: 15 to 18 months old
- Large-sized dogs: 18 to 24 months old
One of the many signs that a female dog is ready to mate is when she experiences vaginal bleeding and vulva swell. According to Vet Info, the vaginal bleeding phase lasts around 5 to 9 days. In the first cycle of heat, the female dog may not allow dogs to mount over her.
3 Phase Mating Process
When the male dog is starting to mount and attempt to penetrate the female dog, he will undergo 3 phases in the mating process:
1. First Phase: Clear Semen with Little Sperm
The first phase in dog mating is when the male dog begins to mount and penetrate the female dog. The dog ejaculates a clear fluid with lesser to no sperm count.
2. Second Phase: Ejaculation before locking
At this stage, the male dog has penetrated and begun thrusting rapidly. Soon, he will start ejaculating his sperm. This happens before the final tie takes place. If a sufficient amount of sperm successfully reaches the female dog’s womb, the chance of pregnancy increases.
3. Third Phase: Bulbus Glandis Swell And Tie Happens
The third phase is when the dogs form a tie because the bulbus glandis expands inside the female dog’s vagina. This phase lasts around 15 minutes on average, but it may last anywhere from a few minutes to an hour. This is when the fluid from the dog’s prostatic glands ejaculates as the last phase of mating.
Due to the swelling of the male’s bulbus glandis, the dogs end up tied for 15 minutes or more for some it goes till 45 minutes. The dogs may change position and stand end-to-end.
However, it would be best to keep them locked together and not separate them to avoid serious injuries. It’s a natural process and they’ll separate on their own once the male dog feels relaxed.
The male dog’s penis may exit the female dog before this third phase of a tie can occur. This is called slip mating.
Also Read: Should I Get My Dogs To Unstuck After Mating?!
What Is Slip Mating?
Slip mating is when there’s dog mounting but no tie. When the male dog mounts the female dog, he goes inside her but pulls out quickly. We call it slip mating because the dog jumps on and off the female dog’s back before they get stuck together.
Now comes your question: Do dogs have to get stuck together to get pregnant? Not necessarily, as slip mating also has chances for dog pregnancy.
According to Jane Harvey, a professional dog breeder, the moment a dog ejaculates in the bitch’s body, its sperm are already deposited and therefore presents a chance for pregnancy to happen.
What Are The Chances Of My Dog Being Pregnant Without Getting Stuck?
Slip mating success rate could be as high as 40% but of course, the chances of pregnancy increases if there is a tie. If your dog ejaculated before pulling out, there is still a chance that your dog could get pregnant.
According to Petmd, here are some of the initial signs of dog pregnancy:
- Loss of appetite or eating too much
- Feeling lethargic
- Abdominal enlargement
- Nipples getting prominent
Success rate weather slip mating or tied totally depends on following various factors:
- The age and health of the dog
- The experience of the dog
- Quality of the male dog’s sperm.
What To Do When My Dog Mates Without Locking?
Some breeders think that dogs who mate without getting locked will not be able to get pregnant. Hence, to make sure the bitch conceives, they take them to another dog for breeding which can result in the female dog giving birth to dogs from different male dogs in the same litter.
This practice is deemed as unethical according to the American Kennel Club and many other professional dog breeding authorities.
The best practice is to wait to see if your dog gets pregnant from the slip mating. Observe her for 2 – 3 weeks to see if you notice any early signs of pregnancy such as decreased appetite, increased lethargy and abdominal enlargement.
If she does not get pregnant in slip mating, then you can repeat the mating process in the next heat cycle.
Also Read: Is It Okay If My Male Dog Doesn’t Mate?
Can A Dog Get Pregnant After A Few Seconds?
A dog can get pregnant after a few seconds provided that there is ejaculation inside the female dog but the probability is very low if the duration of penetration is short.
For pregnancy to happen, the male dog has to mount the female dog, penetrate her and ejaculate inside. The deposition of semen inside the female dog allows the sperms to enter to fertilize the egg.
Dogs can likely get pregnant right away at their first estrus cycle. Estrous cycle usually takes place around their 9th and 15th day. Pregnancy occurs in dogs by the time they get one year old.
The more semen is deposited into the female dog, the higher chance of her getting pregnant. If the male dog withdraws quickly after ejaculation, the semen may drip out thereby reducing the chance of pregnancy.
How Many Times Should A Dog Mate To Get Pregnant?
As long as both male and female dogs are reproductively fertile and healthy, there is a chance that they can get pregnant even with a one-time mating session. Most breeders recommend 3 matings – once every other day for 6 consecutive days for the best shot at pregnancy.
To ensure the best chance at breeding, it is important to take note of the following factors that can affect a dog’s fertility:
- Dog’s Age
- Dog’s Health
- Dog’s Physical Strength
- Ability to mate during the most fertile days of heat cycle
How Do You Know If A Dog Mating Is Successful?
Early signs that your female dog has mated are a bit hard to detect in female dogs, particularly if you are an inexperienced dog parent or breeder. To determine if mating turns successful, you need to consider visiting a vet.
According to the AKC, your vet would conduct a serum progesterone test or abdominal ultrasound diagnosis test to identify the pregnancy as early as 25 days post-breeding and an x-ray examination of the skeleton 55 days post-breeding.
In addition, you can also observe your dog for these pregnancy signs and symptoms like:
- Swelling of nipples
- Larger and darker nipples
- Swollen belly
- Vomiting
- Not eating or showing interest towards food at the start of the first or second week
- Eating more (for some cases)
- Being lethargic
- Abdominal swelling
- Clingy behavior
- Irritability
- Gets affectionate
If you notice signs a female dog has mated, then congrats! You are going to be grandparents.
You can go to the vet and wait for clinical pregnancy test results for 100% surety.
Once you get the confirmation through the vet, feed them a high calorie diet, less stress enviornment, and exercises. Keep taking them to the vet for regular check up and diet follow up.
