Hello
We have a 19 month old black male labrador (kenmilfore bouncing bob is his name)who is looking to father a litter ,before his day comes with the dreaded visit to the vets ,we have no idea how to find a partner or what is expected of us can someone please help
thank you
Cass Johnson.

You are better to contact the labrador breeders society.
Bearing in mind, have you done the health checks that are required. Unless the dog has been successful in its breed you will find it hard to use a bitch as most people look for an outstanding example of the breed that has good lines which have been successful in their breed.
You have to ask yourself the question why do you want to use him to breed a litter.

Read the first post on the breeding forum 'Should I use my pet dog at stud.'

Have his hips and elbows scored and eyes tested. This will cost several hundred pounds.

Enter him in shows and show him successfully. If he's an excellent example of the breed, you MAY get interest from bitch owners, though bearing in mind how many Labs there are about, the competition will be stiff. It may be a sweeping generalization, but a dog with a Ken..... affix is unlikely to be of the best quality.

Also, Labs are by far the most bred dogs in the country, rescue is swamped with them. Unless you are very sure about what you are doing and can ensure that the pups will have homes for the rest of their lives, think again about why you want to breed from him.

As other posts have said he will need health checks. hip and elbow scoring can be done by booking him in with your vet. Then he has x-rays, and these are sent to the British Veterinary Association for scoring. If his scores are good, you still have to get a bitch owner to want to use him, which means you would have to show him or work him in the shooting field, and possibly do both. He will have to prove he is worthy to be used on a bitch.

This is because you should only ever breed from a dog to produce something better than he/she is. He may be a very nice pet with a lovely temperament, but other than that what can he add to the breed? It might be he is a pet but also a working dog, if so, (since you don't say), if he is used for picking up, whether he has run in working tests, the Kennel Club Working Gundog qualification or perhaps a field trial. On the show side has he been shown? Has he won any prizes and if so where and what?

Whether you breed from him or not he should be the best dog there is in your judgement, butalso in the judgement of a bitch owner. You have to be realistic and ask yourself what would he improve on a bitches litter if one was mated to him.

So from there you have to now ask yourself, would you be prepared to get his hips, elbows and eye checked? Would you be prepared to show or work him? Perhaps a good place to start is to contact the breeder of your dog for advice or the Labrador Clubs? The details of the Labrador clubs can be obtained from the Kennel Club.

Hope this helps you.

Hi Cass
I'm not sure I'm reading this right, but do you mean you want him to father a litter before he is castrated?  If so, as others have said, read the link 'Should I use my pet dog at stud'.  There is absolutely no need for him to father a litter, and if he's a pet, it is preferable that he doesn't.