Is my female GSD in heat? How can I tell? Some dogs heat cycles may be shorter than average while other dogs may have longer ones.

First it is nearly impossible to tell the sex of fry. Some maturity is necessary to see the signs of gender indication, in species that have gender indication. For instance you know you have a boy and girl angelfish only when you see hatched fry. Other than that, angels can be very difficult to tell. In general the following can be used as markers in helping determine gender. However, as with the English language, for every rule, there are exceptions.

This can vary from one dog to the next. Typically, the heat cycle lasts around two to three weeks. The female's vulva will swell and then bleed for several days. Mating is typically done after being in heat for a good 10 days. Some females have what is called a silent heat. This occurs when a dog does not show the typical signs of being in heat but can still get pregnant. Be careful if your dog is in heat and you do not wish her to be bred.

A female is in heat about every four days, usually at night. If you are observant, you will notice signs when she is receptive to mating. When she is near a male or smells his scent (on your hands, for example, if you handled him before handling her), she will flatten her body and become as “stiff as a board.” I like to refer to her as being “frozen” at this point. This indicates that she is ready, willing, and able to be receptive to a male who wants to mate with her.

Some physical signs that your female pet is going into heat are a swollen vulva and a light red vaginal discharge. Cats become very affectionate and vocal.

Early signs include a swollen vulva and a light red or bloody discharge. Often, a dog’s first heat may be "silent" and accompanied by no or minimal discharge. Male dogs are usually attracted to her, as well.

There is no difference in appearance, between males and females. About the only sure way to tell the sex of a squirrel is to turn it over and look. Index

Cats reach puberty around six months of age. A female kitten's first heat cycle will last about four to eight days and if she is not spayed or mated, she may go into heat again in another two to three weeks. A female cat's ovaries do not release eggs until she has mated, so a sexual encounter nearly always results in pregnancy. Because a full-term pregnancy is only eight to nine weeks, a healthy female is capable of producing several litters of kittens in a year.

Dogs reach puberty around six months of age. Your female puppy's first heat cycle will last 21 to 22 days, and she will continue to go into heat on the average of every six months, usually in the late winter and summer.

Females go twice a year into heat. The cycle starts at about 6-9 months of age. Dogs may skip a heat occasionally, if their mental or physical condition is weak.

Same as in humans, the first cycles is just the signal that your dog biological matures. It does not mean the female is ready to raise puppies. Do not breed your female before she is 1 1/2 year old. Some dog breeds like the Golden Retriever should not have puppies before 3 years of age!

It happens every four to five days, mostly in the evening hours, for twelve hours at a time. You will quite often see the other female(s) in the cage trying to mount the female in season. If you look at her vaginal opening, it will be open, moist, and kind of purplish in color. If you touch her hind quarters, she will stretch out, putting her nose and rear end in the air, arch her back downwards, and vibrate her ears.

The first telltale sign will be your queen beginning to nest, or to search for a place to have her kittens. By a bit more than halfway through the pregnancy, I start preparing a few nesting boxes. There are commercially available nesting boxes, but I find it easiest to use a cardboard box. They are readily available, highly customizable, and easy to clean (to the recycle bin with it!).

Chickens: There are several "theories" but one I have found to be the most accurate....is using a nail, needle or ring, fastened to a 6-8 inch piece of sewing thread. Hold the string with the nail swinging freely above the chick. The string will swing in a circle if it is a female and back and forth if it is a male. You can try this over people's wrists. It is fun and makes for very interesting conversation. I do not know why it works but we have found it to be very accurate.

Livebearers are voracious eaters and sometimes their stomachs bulge after a full meal. Pregnant livebearers bulge in the stomach area, and it doesn't subside after feeding time -- it just keeps growing. Light colored livebearers develop an obvious darkening of the skin, called a "gravid spot," right at the anal area. The spot enlarges and grows darker as the pregnancy progresses. It's like a window to the little babies inside.

There's no practical way. Not unless you can do some bloodwork, or observe the bird during mating season.