Dog Breeding Tips
As dog owners and people who care deeply for animals and
wildlife, we wanted our Dog Encyclopedia to be a website that could
empower pet owners to create the most positive, loving
environment for their dogs. Dog Encyclopedia realizes that owning a
dog is like adding a new member to your family.
Dog breeding is mating of carefully selected dogs so as
to imbue the litter with pre determined and specific
characteristics. Dog Breeding nowadays can either be your
occupation, profession, Hobby, or may be it is your business.
Choosing a Mate
One of the first processes in breeding is choosing the right mate
for your dog. The mate you choose should be compatible and possess
the qualities you want to see carried on in the puppies. Both the
female and the male dog should be healthy and have no genetic faults
that could jeopardize the health of the puppies in the future.
Medical compatibility is very important, before considering to
breed. You also have to make sure that the female dog is very
healthy so that her pregnancy and birth of the puppies can be
easier. You also have to support the female dog with necessary
supplements and nutrition for the healthy birth of the puppy. Good
health will give a boost to the female dog to stay strong during the
pregnancy. Keeping a good record for both the male and the female
dog is important and can increase the breeding success. The genetic
record for the female dog is more important. Have the medical
history folder for your female dog and record important dates like
for example when you first saw the signs of the female dog going
into heat, changes in behavior and other medical issues.
Healthy Dog Breeding Advice
Most experts agree it is best to have dogs breed after the age of
two. It is also very important that their eyes are checked at seven
weeks of age and then they are annually checked either for
cataracts and other genetic flaws. The hip
and elbows of the dogs should be x-rayed and verified free of
dysplasia. Before breeding it is also advised to look at the dogs’
structure, conformation and movement. See if your dog has structural
faults as well. One of the observations you can make is to see if
each leg of your dog is in straight pillar of strength from the
shoulder or hip to the ground when observed from the front and the
rear. Your dog should have appropriate angulations in the shoulder
and stifle for adequate reach and drive when observed from the side.
The toes of your dog need to face forward. The rear legs of your dog
also need to be a straight line of strength from hip to ground, not
cow-hocked. You can notice this only if you have done and
appropriate study on your dog or dogs. As human beings suffer from
hereditary problems, so dogs does the same. Every breed is different
and hence the potential problems related to every breed can differ
from each other. You need to also perform a research on your breed
and find out what common problems would the breed have compared to
the hereditary problems for the dog you have decided for breeding.
In this process, it is also important to research on the particular
bloodlines you are going to use to see if they are prone to any
problems you would want to know or screen for the problems before
going further into ‘breeding process’.
Dog Breeding Cycle
Dog Breeding Cycle’ is one of the important factors you need to
know, when it is about time, you have taken a decision to breed the
dog. It is said, most female dogs go in to the “period of heat” also
known as estrus just about every six to seven months beginning
sometime before their first year of age. Before breeding your female
dog allow her to have full grown before considering ‘breeding’. You
won’t want to put a female dog through extra care or nursing when
her body is not geared or ready in accepting those changes. With
large female dogs such as the
Great Dane,
St. Bernard, and
Irish
Wolfhound, the breeding should not take place until they are
over two years of age. It is through the ten to twelve days of the
heat cycle for your female dog, she is ready for the male dog to
breed her. You can start counting days at the first sign of any
blood discharge you notice from the vulva. Know that, every female
dog will have different times for when she will allow breeding, so
it is your responsibility to keep good records of everything you
note, starting from her first blood discharge to noting the swelling
of the vulva to temperament and attitude of your female dog.
Sometimes you wouldn’t notice the blood discharge because of your
busy life. When you notice, according to you it will be day ‘one’
when it is actually a day three or five. In these cases, when you
bring the male dog for breeding, you do not need to wait till the
tenth day. In fact, you can actually bring the male dog to breed her
because may be she is ready for breeding at that moment. She will
also let you know her timing whether it is right or wrong for her,
she will let you know her willingness or unwillingness to stand for
the male. One of the signs female dogs’ show of their willingness is
when they crook their tail off to one side and stand in front of the
male and even back into the male. It doesn’t have any influence on
hormonal levels just because you would think that she should be bred
on certain day. Get all the information from the veterinarian so
that you and your female dog are on the safe side. Let your
veterinarian guide you through step-by step process through the
‘breeding’.
What To Expect When "It's Time"
The first sign that the new puppy-family is on the way usually is
signaled by the bitch's lack of interest in food about twenty-four
hours before whelping. You may notice a shiny, grayish sac drooping
through the vulva; it looks like a gray water balloon. The bitch may
walk around with this hanging out and will often open the "water
sac" and a clear fluid will run out. The pup's on the way! In most
cases the pup will be delivered within an hour of this sac being
presented. f The first pup often is the most difficult for the bitch
to pass, and she may strain quite hard and even moan a bit. If she
hasn't passed the pup within one hour of the "water sac" showing,
call your veterinarian and discuss the need for her to be seen right
away. When the pup is passed through the pelvic canal and into our
world it will be covered in a thin membrane that looks like plastic
wrap. Give the mother a few seconds to remove this membrane; if she
doesn't, you do it. (The pup has about six minutes of "grace period"
before it must breathe, otherwise brain damage or death will
occur.) In any litter the entire process of whelping can take from
two to twenty hours. If the bitch has progressed to the sixty-fifth
day after breeding and still no pups are on the way, there's a
problem! If the uterus has been so stretched and fatigued by a
large litter or large size of the puppies, she may not be able to
pass them. Your veterinarian must be consulted.