I have a 2yr old male terrier and am looking at studding him out. He is not registered with KC but is instead with a commercial registry. He is a full pedigree and has a 3 generation pedigree certificate showing his lineage. Could anyone provide me with tips on how to stud him, what to look for in a Bitch and how to gain interest in him as a stud dog?

Your best bet is to forget the idea, I'm afraid. Your dog does not have KC registration and that's the only registration that means anything. Without it you cannot show your dog and it is by showing that you find bitch owners interested in using your dog. Bitch owners come to you, not the other way around. :) There's a good article here about keeping a dog at stud:
http://www.champdogsforum.co.uk/board/topic/55104.html

Sorry - you aren't going to like this - but you really should not be even thinking about this.    His pedigree could well be worthless - unless he is registered with the KC you have no way of verifying the lineage behind him.

Even if he were registered with the Kennel Club and not the other registry, has your boy been tested for luxating patellas?
And what about Legg Perthes disease - do you know of any incidences of this in his lines?   

Enjoy your boy for what he is - a loving and loved member of your family.    Read and learn more about your breed, and where you should really be looking if you wish to get into breeding - start by looking at the Kennel Club page - see http://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/cgi-bin/search.cgi?qt=West+Highland+Terriers&x=10&y=7

Sorry it isn't the information that you wanted.

I agree with Marianne - you're best to forget the idea of using him at stud because he's unregistered (only KC registration is valid) and noboby with a nice bitch will want to use an unregistered dog. You're best just keeping him as a much-loved pet.

Why do you want to stud him?  No reputable breeder will use a non KC registered stud for the sire of their puppies, and remember, a pedigree is merely a family tree........................

Thanks for all the responses. He is currently registered with a commercial registry. Is is possible i could also register him with the Kennel Club or as he is now registered with one organisation is that it?

I am in the process of researching the breeding process and am really just in the early stages of it. Not in it for the money just wanted to carry on his line as his characteristics and features are consistent with what the 'ideal' attributes are suggested in the literature i have currently read.

Only his breeder can register him with the KC, and then only if both his parents were also registered with them.

To be honest, we all think our beloved dogs fit the breed standard perfectly, but they all have faults, even the great Champions! In fact only about 10% of pedigree dogs are close enough to their breed standard for their genes to be of value to future generations.

Have a read of this post; the principles apply to all breeds. I'm not specialist for your breed- what tests for hereditary conditions do they need before they're used for breeding (by responsible breeders)?

Sorry - but the breeder of your dog is the only person who could register your dog - and then only if both his parents were registered with the Kennel Club - and then without endorsements.    It isn't just a case of registering your boy.  It has been known for registrations with commercial registries to be not what they should be :(

To be honest, you don't really know his "line" - just your dog.   What about luxating patellas - do you know if any of his parents have suffered from this?

Only the breeder can register a dog which has to be done for the whole litter in the first year.  After that the breeder may register an individual dog at a much higher cost.

they can only register their dog if the parents were registered and had no breeding restrictions in place.

It can be assumed that if a dog was able to be Kennel club registered by it's breeder it would have been.

it is fairly safe to say that your dog was not responsibly breed,a dn therefore to breed from him would also be irresponsible.

The reasons are many, his parents may nto have been themselves registered or even purebred.  His mother may have been bred from too often, too young or too old.  His parents may even have been stolen and not belonged to his breeder etc etc, or one or both his parents may have come from responsible breeders who placed a restriction on his paperwork that 'progeny not eligible for registration'  this is usually done to stop people breeding Willy nilly without the proper health testing, knowledge and commitment to the breed.

the kind of paperwork your dog has is used to get a better price for puppies that aren't registrable with the Kennel club.

Again thanks for the info. As i said i havent got into the processes of breeding and therefore havent looked at the problems with the breed yet. I have previously read some info into the responsibilities of breeding and it looks far deeper than I expected. I was just investigating the KC registration implications and from what has been said from other posters i might have reached the end of the road before even getting started. I may try contacting the breeder directly (if i can find them) just to satisfy my own curiosity but it looks as though Erics stud career will be over before its even started.

Wow, well done you for asking, and taking good advice.  So many ask, and then seem to go quiet, and you can only assume they've gone ahead without really thinking things through. 

It isn't the end of the world, my first hope was to breed from my bitch Indie, unfortunately, the vet mucked up the plates for her elbows, and then they were returned with quite a high grade, which I questioned, but was told in no uncertain terms bad plates weren't accepted!!  That's the short version, but anyway, I decided to have her spayed, she's not shown any problems with her elbows, but I'm very careful with her, just in case.  If I could clone her, I'd make millions, she's just a fabulous character, and a lovely lovely dog, but I'm happy she's mine, and she's unique.  I may, in the future, breed my chosen breed, but I'm glad that if I do so, I'll go about it in a way I know is ethical, so good luck with any future plans. 

Hi Monkey , Im not a breeder but i do have a kc reg boxer who is only 10months and i have been showing him , and i just out of curiosity have been researching today and yesterday about possibly studding him eventually. And i am in doubt now having read that it is not just investigating possible gene defects and testing the dog , But also like in humans there are sexually transmitted diseases, dog pox is one, and the viral herpes, also bovine abortion fever known as brucellosis, dogs can be rendered sterile I believe and certainly become carriers, then they cannot ever be used at stud again. which is very sad when you may (hopefully) have a male who can pass on his lovely virtues and be a bonus to the breed as a whole.
A pair of unsupervised dogs can result in trauma, from bruising, to haemorrhage in both or either the dog or bitch. Some stud dogs can be left with a kind of persisten bruise to the tip of the penis, which can break down and bleed copiously at each mating, Not forgetting of course fracture of the penis which can cause untold damage.
I love my pup and i would not want anything to happen to him , so therefore when i am ready for another addition to my family i will be going to the proffessionals ! Natalie x

Well i asked for the advice and there is no point in asking if you arent prepared to people who know more than oneself. It  was never a point of financial gain so i have lost nothing by asking the questions and acting on the advice received. Eric wont know any different either.

You may be surprised just how refreshing your attitude is!  And every person that asks, and learns, rather than ignores, is just brilliant, and helps spread the message about responsible and ethical breeding. 

agree sleeping lion ..and also when people put it into the search engine about studding dogs this page will pop up!

The thing is your interest has been engaged.

if you ask any breeder of note very few bred from their first dog, but that first dog got the interest going.

they then maybe attended some shows, researched by joining the breed club, Reading etc.

Those that really felt a passion for the breed of their choice when they got their next one went to the breeder who had the kind of dog they admired, they may have then shown them, and then perhaps bred after that.

That is true. I was quite nieve when i bought Eric. I knew about the temprement and characteristics of the dog as i had one when i was a youngster so when i bought Eric i just bought 'a westie'. From my research now i know that if i was to do this in the future i would go to a accredited and known breeder. This opens the door if i did want to breed. I would not change Eric for the world, i am just more knowledgeable now on what to look for and who to contact. I am however not to interested in showing a dog. No idea why it just doesnt appeal to me. Hope this doesnt totally contradict what i have said and am looking for?

Have you read the link that MarianneB posted above?  It's good reading and explains quite well about offering your dog for stud.
http://www.champdogsforum.co.uk/board/topic/55104.html

It is so refreshing to read your attitude!  Enjoy researching Westies - who knows, you may decide to get another, from a KC registered, accredited breeder and, in time to come, you may find yourself showing!

Good luck.

Yes i read that article a while ago. That is the article which really made me see that it is more in-depth than i thought and prompted me to do further research.

This is interesting too. :)
http://www.dogplay.com/Breeding/be_a_breeder.html

Brainless, where's that link you have about types of breeder?

Here it is on the same site: http://www.dogplay.com/GettingDog/breedercomparison.htm

DUH!  Time I had my cocoa and went to bed! :)
Thanks.

Isn't it amazing just how much is involved? It isn't until you ask the guys on here for good, realistic, honest advice that you find out just how much there is to breeding.  I recently asked a similar question for my bitch (Here; http://www.champdogsforum.co.uk/board/topic/128450.html)and I got some really helpful answers which, like you, I was grateful to receive and made me see the light and that, in breeding, patience is a virtue.  Like you I have lost nothing, but gained some more knowledge and the dogs won't have a clue! 

Oh and give the showing a go, just once to try it.  I was like you before I tried it, didn't think it was for me, but I have found it fascinating and surprisingly addictive.  I started showing because a friend talked me into going to a show and now both my girl and I enjoy our doggy days out.  Its a great way to learn about some of the subtleties in your breed, watching some of the other dogs makes you really appreciate the many differences one breed can have and some of the grooming you'll see, well they are amazing walking works of art.

This is one of the nicest threads I've read in a long time - really makes me feel like we are achieving something with education! And yes, have a go at a companion show or something for a laugh even if you're not interested in the more 'serious' shows, they really are fun!

This is one of the nicest threads I've read in a long time

I agree, and well done to Monkey aa2002 for asking the questions and taking on board the answers.

what type of terrier is it? as there are several types which the kennel club does not recognise. in which case, an alternate registry is the only way it could be registered.

as said, you won't be getting any calls from kc breeders if it is a kc recognised breed, but there are those showing and trying to gain recognition for other types of terrier. in which case your first port of call would be a breed club, or pop along to some game fairs and terrier/lurcher shows to speak to people in the breed about your dog and what they think of him.

>what type of terrier is it? as there are several types which the kennel club does not recognise. in which case, an alternate registry is the only way it could be registered

This is a numerically popular KC recognised Terrier breed.

ok, i thought it was worth asking as it hadnt been mentioned. in which case, without a decent level of working ability, the chance of getting him used at stud are slim

If you read the thread thoroughly, you will see that once the OP appreciated all the efforts and obligations of owning a dog used at stud that s/he has decided that it would be a bad idea.