Breeding a litter from your dog can seem like a lovely idea. What better than miniature versions of your precious pup charging around? However, without proper research and preparation, it can end up a costly, exhausting and sometimes heart-breaking process. From a veterinary point of view, it’s generally best left to a handful of experienced and knowledgeable breeders, who are committed to producing healthy, well socialised puppies that have desirable temperaments, and, for pure-bred dogs, that are committed to improving the breed and it’s welfare.
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Be prepared for the responsibility
If you decide to breed from your dog, you need to be ready for the responsibility involved at all stages. This includes pre-mating, all throughout the pregnancy, the birth and any complications that might be associated with it. As well as then the care of the bitch and her puppies afterwards. Be aware that you might end up in charge of a good number of dogs should you not be able to home them all adequately.
There are also a lot of potentially unforeseen costs, from mating, ultrasound scans and unexpected out of hours veterinary visits for whelping that doesn’t go to plan (an out of hours caesarean can easily run into the thousands), to feeding and worming the puppies, any post-whelping care for the bitch, the puppy vaccinations you might need to provide and any unforeseen veterinary costs should a puppy become unwell. It really isn’t for the faint hearted and you need to be financially and emotionally ready for the unexpected.
Consider why you want to breed
There are many rescue centres at their limits with unwanted dogs that were once puppies. There is a surplus of dogs already looking for homes. So be frank about whether breeding really is a good idea. Consider whether your dog’s temperament, health and conformation make them a good candidate for breeding from. And aim to have good homes for the puppies mapped out even before proceeding to breed. Good breeders aim to improve the breed’s conformation and avoid genetically linked health problems. Try to take a good honest, look at your dog and say objectively whether breeding from them is really in the best interest of the breed. Take your time choosing a suitable mate that is similarly appropriate to breed from.
Concerns regarding the female dog
It’s important to make sure your dog is in good health and is the correct age for breeding. So she should be a fully matured adult dog. But not be having her first litter too old (ie, she shouldn’t be having a first litter when approaching her geriatric years).
She should have a general health check with her veterinarian beforehand. This is to ensure she’s in an ideal condition for breeding and is up to date with her vaccinations and worming. These are important to help prevent disease in the puppies. This will also provide the perfect opportunity to chat with your vet about the process. They’ll have much experience and will be able to guide you through the do’s and don’ts of breeding and whelping, the timeline for pregnancy determination and the normal progression of whelping. It’s important to develop a good relationship early in the process, to give your dog the best chance of having an uneventful pregnancy, a controlled whelping and a healthy litter.
Trusted sources of information
Apart from your veterinarian, who should be your first port of call for breeding-related questions and queries, it’s a good idea to do some further reading. There are good books from trusted sources available. But try to avoid online forums and internet searches that are unlikely to provide trustworthy information. There are some good, trusted breeders out there who can be a useful source of information. But be careful, we are seeing a boom in breeding-related services being offered by a variety of companies that don’t have a veterinary surgeon on board, with everything from ultrasound scanning to whelping services.
The birthing process can occasionally be fraught with difficulty and put both the mum and pups in danger if it’s not dealt with appropriately. Should your dog show any difficulty in the whelping process, contact a licensed veterinarian – ideally, your own!
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