Another update to my "Canine Post-Estrus Depression" DogBlogMusings article, as my website analytics inform me that this topic is the second most popular page on my entire website! This is unusual as my website welcomes a fair number of visitors regularly. I also receive email pleas for assistance on the topic. Still, the elevation in popularity on my popular website concerns me. It seems that this behavioral change in dogs is increasing considerably. Buy why?
I originally penned my first article (see below) with what I believed was a possible solution in the hopes that others may find it helpful. Unluckily, it was based on my experience with my fairly exclusive bloodlines meaning that this behavior was typical for my female lineages. I had not heard that other bloodlines were experiencing the same. So, of course, I offered my solution with the full knowledge that it may not work for all dogs, but even if it helped a few, it was worthwhile.
Back to why this issue is happening with such frequency now; the answer is, I don't know. Any surmising based on commonality cannot provide an explanation. Could it be commercial dog food with its common preservatives or additives? Not possible as my hounds are "Naturally Reared" and have been so for about 29 of my 39 years. Please visit my Nutrition page for those unfamiliar with this term, but the short answer is I do not feed commercial dog food.
All I can do is provide other possible solutions that I have also used to counteract the depression and lack of appetite. But first, I want to caution everyone who is searching for an answer to have your dog tested for Tick diseases. No excuses are valid such as “I haven’t seen any ticks on my dogs” or, “My dog wears a tick collar”, or “We do not have ticks in our region” or “It is winter.” Tick diseases can lie in the body and dependent on what stage they are cause symptoms or not: Acute, Subclinical, or Chronic.
Please have your Veterinarian run a SNAP 4DX PLUS test run on your dog. This test will screen for seven vector borne diseases, to include not just Heartworm but very importantly Lyme, Ehrlichia, and Anaplasma diseases. Anaplasmosis symptoms include loss of appetite and in todays environment a dog can have Anaplasmosis at any time of the year. Ehrlichia symptoms also include weight loss and inappetence. Recently, I had several bitches who were eating poorly 3-4 weeks after completion of their heat cycles. My Veterinarian and I tested with SNAP4DX and all came back positive with varying levels of Anaplasmosis and Lyme disease. As a result, they all began a drug protocol regiment of doxycycline for 30 days. Several began eating normally again shortly after.
In addition to the original suggestion of Wobenzym N Systemic Enzymes from The Garden of Life,
I also suggest R&R Medicinals as an excellent manufacturer of CBD tinctures. They do make a Full Spectrum version for pets that you can use. Follow the directions on their website, and once your dog is acclimated to it, I would increase the dosage to twice daily. As they say, consistency is essential for the best results; that is when you will see changes. If you have a giant breed, I would consider dosing up to 50 mg daily after the dog has adjusted to the initial doses over a couple of weeks.
My females come into season about every 4 - 6 months. As such, one of our girls is consistently on CBD, and she is 8 years of age. It has shortened her "downtime" of not-eating. She still experiences depression, but it is curtailed to about a week or so, whereas before CBD, she would go off her food for 3 weeks at a time. Nonetheless, while she is in her "woe is me" self-inflicted fasting, I resort to other means to get nutrition into her. These recommendations suit any dog that has gone off its food, barring severe diseases.
I take raw, pure honey that I purchase directly from the local Bee Apiarists, and I refrigerate about a cupful at a time. The refrigeration nearly solidifies the raw honey so that you can scoop out one tablespoon at a time and place it in the dog's mouth with a spoon. Let the dog swallow as they lick repeatedly and then repeat again in a few minutes. For a 140-pound dog, I give about three tablespoons of honey in this manner twice daily. My big male will go off his food when the females are in season, so I do the same for him, but his dose is much larger. He weighs about 175-pounds, so he gets about 4 Tablespoons of the refrigerated honey twice daily. If you haven't figured it out yet, administering the honey in this manner resolves the issue of significant messes. Honey is very thick and sticky and will drip everywhere if you try to use it in its liquid state right out of the jar.
Another nutritious trick I use on these dogs who are not eating is fresh eggs. First, I crack a raw egg into a small 1/4 measuring cup (adjust to a smaller size for small dogs). Then, with one hand, I open the dog's mouth and slide the egg out onto the back of their tongue while quickly closing the mouth and keeping their muzzle elevated as they swallow. I have seen improvements in their attitude and behavior after having raw honey twice daily when refusing all other foodstuffs. And don't forget the egg once per day.
Original Article on Post-Depression Follows
Possible Remedy for Canine Post-Estrus Depression
It is possible that I might have found a remedy for post-estrus depression in our female Irish Wolfhounds. For a number of veteran breeders, this is a familiar syndrome that affects wolfhound bitches typically two to three weeks after concluding their heat cycles.
First, the female canine has four cycles including before and after her reproductive period. These are Anestrus, Proestrus, Estrus, and Diestrus with the latter being the stage after mating. Anestrus is the term for quiescence or dormancy between her semi-annual or annual heat cycles. As I explained on my website page "Irish Wolfhound Spay-Neuter Considerations and Concerns," my tail-female (maternal bloodlines) endure difficult episodes two to three weeks after concluding estrus (heat cycles). They stop eating, lose weight, and are depressed which has been very worrisome. I even had a bitch once regularly lose up to 15 pounds during these depressions. I am not describing pseudopregnancy or false pregnancy in which the female's exhibit mothering behavior and bodily changes such as mammary gland enlargement, lactating, nesting, depression, even abdominal swelling.
No, what I coined post-estrus depression is more worrisome because my girls have the "woe is me" and "life is not worth living anymore" attitudes. We do everything we can to entice them to eat, yet, most of the time they turned their noses up at fresh meat, homemade chicken stock, you name it. However, recently I began trying systemic enzymes on my intact young female wolfhounds.
I have been feeding systemic enzymes for some time now in which I use Garden of Life's 'Wobenzyme' for our veteran Irish Wolfhounds. I also take them myself. Enzyme therapy is considered therapeutic "promoting health in every part of the body by reducing pain and inflammation, speeding healing, supporting a healthy immune system." You can read more about Enzymes here in this article written by Mary Straus, published in the Whole Dog Journal, July 2012 and reproduced at DogAware.com, "Proteolytic Enzymes, Enzymes for Healing Body Tissues, Not “Just” for Digestion."
I began my trial with the Wobenzyme on the two intact bitches as soon as they came into season continuing throughout and past their reproductive cycles and even today, they still receive the enzymes regularly. As usual, two weeks after the conclusion of their heat cycle the first signs of depression began and an indication of disinterest in food. However, this time I noted that both females' depression were much milder than previous post-estrus depression events. If I were to use a percentage, I would estimate that the undesirable behaviors were reduced as much as 80%. Yes, the bitches would miss a meal perhaps three times a week, but that frequency pales in comparison to previous depression events when they would go for several days without eating a thing. I have observed a marked difference in their daily behaviors and this trial has been a success. A protocol that I will continue to administer as so far it has afforded me a huge sigh of relief!
How does it work? Well, I can only hypothesize referring to the data provided in the article which states,
"Studies in the U.S. are limited, but systemic enzyme therapy has been studied and used in Germany for decades. For example, a 2008 German review of “rigorous clinical studies” published in the journal Integrative Cancer Therapies found that “systemic enzyme therapy significantly decreased tumor-induced and therapy-induced side effects and complaints such as nausea, gastrointestinal complaints, fatigue, weight loss, and restlessness and obviously stabilized the quality of life."
It is only logical that my seeing a marked improvement in their eating behavior is a possible result of what this study concluded -- systemic enzyme therapy significantly decreased nausea, gastrointestinal complaints, fatigue, and weight loss. It appears to have done so in my Irish Wolfhound bitches.
If your bloodlines, regardless of dog breed, have undergone this same depression-like event, I would encourage you to try the same.
Please know that the author cautions that Proteolytic enzymes can thin the blood and increase the risk of bleeding, especially at higher doses. Do not give to dogs with clotting disorders, gastric ulcers, or those receiving blood-thinning medications. If anemia or signs of bleeding develop, discontinue right away. High doses may cause diarrhea.