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Hello Julie, I'm Dr. Deb and I'll do my best to help you today. More than likely, Jessie is coming into heat again. Of course, without vaginal smears and progesterone testing, we can't know for sure but I suspect that this is not something you're particularly interested in pursuing (and I don't blame you). Her behavior as well as physiological changes back in December would be consistent with a heat cycle although she may not have ovulated. The presence or absence of a discharge is not a particularly reliable indicator of estrus for some dogs as you mentioned.Since she's showing signs of coming back into heat now, she could be experiencing what's known as a "split heat". Basically this means that even though all the signs of estrus were present in December, she wouldn't have been able to get pregnant (because she didn't ovulate). Now, several months later, she's coming back into heat and more than likely will be ovulating and could become pregnant (if you were interested in breeding her).A split heat is absolutely normal for young females and shouldn't worry you at all. She should be out of heat by April, of course, and you can keep that appointment to spay her. Most vets don't like to spay a female while in estrus and would prefer to wait until they are out.I hope this helps. Deb
Julie: You're more than welcome. Glad I could help and provide peace of mind:) Once she is spayed, she should not show any signs associated with a heat cycle. Her ovaries and uterus will be removed and thus the hormones that trigger an estrus will be gone. Deb