A litter of pups is advertised as being kc reg that are due soon but i know these people bred the same 2 dogs together and kc those pups in january, how can they register both litters when 12 months have not passed? and is it common for people to bred there bitch twice in a year surely this isnt good for her health? she is a giant breed of dog.
thanks for your thoughts on this.

The 12-month rule only applies to council-licenced (ie, commercial) breeders. But no, it isn't common for breeders to have litters so close if the first one was 'normal' sized. However not all bitches come into season at 6-month intervals - it's possible that she had a clear season between them.

> However not all bitches come into season at 6-month intervals - it's possible that she had a clear season between them.

That is true. One of ours comes in every 4-5 months. Not that I have ever given a bitch less than a complete year between litters myself, but maybe if she only had a very small litter it might be acceptable. It also depends on how quickly the bitch recovers her condition. Some seem to sail through the whole thing very easily, others take longer.

i was told that a "back to back mating" could be done if the first litter was small.   But then again i know poeple who have bred a bitch twice in the same year and registered the litter even though the previous  litter was a fair size.  i think its unacceptable that the kennel club allow this time and time again. surely the animals health should be the most important thing.

i think the same and the kennell club should protect the bitches and only allow a litter to registered once in 12 months.

A few years back the KC did make that change, but due to an outcry from breeders it was changed back.  Problem was, dogs are not clockwork, so if a bitch whelps with say 11 months and 3 weeks between litters the pups could not be registered.  KC were left with the situation of reputable, ethical breeders being disadvantage, whilst others simply adjusted the registered dates so the pups could be reg.

Yes I have a bitch who always has a season every 11.5 months. :)

Indeed. If you have a bitch that comes into season every 6 months, she could give birth 364 days after a previous litter, possibly just by giving birth a few days early -and in that case the litter could not be registered if there was a 12 month rule for everyone. That would mean you'd have to either wait another 6 months, or even another 12 -personally I avoid litters in the winter of my large breed so would not breed that time of year.

> personally I avoid litters in the winter of my large breed so would not breed that time of year.

Me I am the opposite less likelihood of neighbour issues with winter litters.

One of my girls has just whelped her second (and final) litter 11 months after she had her first litter. She had a clear season inbetween but because she cycles at about five and a half months, there is not a full 12 months between her litters. I am happy that she had recovered well from her first litter which was slightly smaller than the breed average. If I had any doubt about her health, I would have waited until her next season. However, I have a giant breed and do not breed my girls until they are two years old. I also don't like to breed them once they reach five years of age as my breed has a fairly short lifespan . Allowing for bitches missing, it leaves a fairly small window when I would actually breed them. If the 12 month KC rule had been in place, I obviously couldn't have done this.

JaybyJasper, it's happened to me too.  My girl went just over 11 months between litters, and I feel that I was perfectly entitled to register both litters.

She only has 2 pups, and had more than recuperated from rearing two puppies.  She had a clear season in between, and my vet was happy that she be mated again.  As she is still young, and I'm not expecting to breed her again, it is lovely to have one of her daughters to carry on my best line, and really nice to see how well they get on together.