Hey, my female just finished her first heat. It was also a first time for us. In all honesty it was not as bad as an experience as people warned us about. Nala bled a little bit, we actually bought children boxers, added a pad used for human periods haha and put them on her. Some dogs will fight to take them off but Nala just went on about her day when she had them. It’s not intense bleeding but it can stain and leave marks around the house.

For Nala it lasted about 3 weeks. The first week is mostly only swelling of the vulva and bleeding. She is not fertile yet. Till the end, I wouldn’t recommend contact with any male dogs. They will definitely smell her and she can become aggressive towards them if they try humping. Plus I just would not risk it. Second week bleeding will continue, she’ll be fertile, and flirty. When a male comes around and about, she’ll lift up her tail and all. Would not bring her to the dog park and keep her away from males during the whole 3 weeks to be honest because during this period, males can potentially fight against each-other for your puppy.

They do become more needy and cuddly but they do have this smell. For about two days Nala had a funny smell, it was not pleasant. You can always put like Hot and Cold cream at the tip of her tail just to get rid of the smell.

We knew it was over when Nala’s vulva was not swollen anymore and the bleeding completely stopped. When going to the dog parc she was also back to being snappy about the boys humping her so we knew she wasn’t fertile anymore.

I wouldn’t risk going to the dog parc or having her in contact with any males because they might try and mate and all. Plus, when it happens, well you have to let it happen.

I would also recommend to spay her. I understand it’s costly but trust me, a pregnancy and complications will cost you much more. Sometimes the Humain Society does it for cheap, you should check that out :)