Do female animals naturally carry milk without ever being pregnant?

Question

The news about the dog nursing the cubs remind me of my dog allowing my kitten to suck her nipples but she never had another dog...The vet said it was ok but I was afraid he was hurting her....Was StarsWars getting milk from Princess?Or was she just his pascifier?

Answer 1

I don't have time at the moment to look for links, but adult humans can produce milk without being pregnant, in remote tribes a grandmother can produce milk ( it takes a while ) if a daughter dies or becomes ill.

Add on... Took a look around, in all the animal cases I found the new mother was already producing milk and the  the new animals just joined in, there's even video on YouTube.  Your dog is a warm pacifier :)

David  O, I can't back you up but I'm sure it's possible, maybe in primates?

Answer 2

No they dont they  start having milk when they are  pregnant.

Pets

Answer 3

most mammals only make milk after birth.  there is a group called La Leche League that helps adoptive mothers nurse.

Answer 4

Female wild animals only make mothers milk once the fetus begins to develop.  Domestic animals have been breed over thousands of years to provide milk almost constantly.

Answer 5

there are cases of allo-lactation in cooperative breeding mammals - ones that help raise the offspring of other females, like meerkats. These will generally have been pregnant and aborted, at least that is assumed. I think it is possible for it to happen, though I can't give you any decent sources. It is so rare that it is hard to find in the literature, and it isn't my field, really. Oxyticin, one of the hormones that stimulate milk production is also associated with emotional connections between individuals, so a close connection along with suckling could in theory induce milk production. I'd like someone to back me up on this, though.

Answer 6

Most mammals do not constantly produce milk.  It's actually a pretty large energy drain, so whenever their milk is coming, there's usually a reason.  The main time is just after birth of their young.  The milk will usually dry up once the pup/baby is weaned.  

Dairy cows will not give milk until they have their first calf.  After the birth of their calf, the calves are taken away from them, and they are milked twice a day for the rest of their lives.  As long as their is a demand, their body will supply it, even if it's artificial.

In the case of the mother dog with the tiger cubs, she probably already had her pups and either was just about ready to wean them or they may still be with her, fighting over her with the cubs when the cameras aren't on them.