Can a Male Dog Go into Heat?
No, a male dog cannot go into heat. After he becomes sexually mature at around 6 months of age he can mate any time of the year with a female in heat. The dog’s arousal is much more expressed when he can smell female pheromones.
What’s the reason why many people think that males do go into heat?
Simply because they see no obvious reason why their pet has a dubious interest in different periods of the year.
As stated before, the female in heat doesn’t have to be nearby for the male to sense her.
Over time – once you get to know your dog a lot better – you will start understanding when nature calls him according to the most common symptoms and alterations in behavior.
How to Stop a Male Dog From Smelling a Female in Heat?
If there is no chance to get your male dog far away from the female in heat, you can try using safe essential oils or menthol spray to mask the smell of the female pheromones which will calm your male dog down.
Be careful with essential oils, discuss with your vet if you see any reactions, and don’t go overboard.
For maximum effect, these sprays can be used on females so they don’t attract other intact males.
But it’s also useful for males because when you cover your dog in essential oils or menthol he won’t be able to catch most of the pheromones emitted by the female.
The spray can be used multiple times a day.
If you have both female and male dogs in your home, you should clean more often with vinegar, bathe your female with appropriate shampoo, or think about doggy diapers to mask the female’s scent.
The living area must be cleaned more often and using vinegar as a cleaning solution is a good option because it overpowers the pheromone scent.
During the 2-3 weeks of the heat cycle, increase the frequency of baths you give the female.
Use a mild shampoo and in the usual amount.
You can also add small amounts of apple cider vinegar to the bathwater for the female as well.
Sometimes adding a physical barrier like a doggy diaper on a female dog can hide the scent a bit.
But don’t get too comfortable doing only this and keep a close eye on the female.
Ungentlemanly Responses
When an intact male dog senses a nearby female is in heat, they’ll do just about anything to get to the potential girlfriend. This is where a usually mild-mannered dog starts behaving erratically making him hard to control. Male dogs could jump over or dig under fences or cross a busy highway just to get to the in-heat female dog.
If you have both a female and male dog that haven’t been desexed living under the same roof, things can get a little chaotic for you if you don’t want a pregnancy.
