HYSTERIC PREGNANCY

False pregnancy (or hysterical pregnancy) in the English bulldog is not a disease, but a temporary physiological condition in which the high production of the hormone prolactin simulates a real pregnancy in many aspects. This hormone is produced by the ovary, both in the case of actual pregnancy and in the case of a false pregnancy. In the female, maternal behavior and external attitudes typical of a pregnancy appear during the phase of sexual rest. It is thought that this condition is attributable to a hormonal imbalance in which a drop in the serum level of progesterone and an increase in prolactin are determined. The hysterical pregnancy occurs approximately a couple of months after the end of the heat and without the female having been fertilized. It can also occur following an unsuccessful pairing. Symptoms may appear such as: the onset of a milky rise and / or maternal behaviors such as the choice of a den (which can be the kennel or another place) and the aptitude to keep objects (toys and puppets) as if they were puppies. Lactation can cause mastitis and the female can manifest mood changes such as greater attachment to the owner, loss of appetite and, at times, maternal aggression towards those who touch or move her "puppies". In the acute phase of the phenomenon, the female has distension of the abdomen, depression or restlessness, poor appetite, increased volume of the breasts with secretion of whey-brown liquid or milk. To counteract this situation it is necessary to try to prevent the dog from stimulating lactation by licking the breasts, for example by applying cold packs on site as well as obviously pharmacological help, for example with Cabergoline: this active ingredient is able to reduce the duration of related events. to this pathological event (which can resolve spontaneously within a couple of weeks) and in particular it allows to regress any milk supply which, if not treated properly, can lead to the onset of mastitis. In some circumstances, in fact, false pregnancy can cause the onset of complications such as mastitis or diseases of the reproductive system and tend to be females who have had an episode of false pregnancy once, often are subject to relapses. In these cases, sterilization is therefore recommended, which definitively puts an end to this problem.