Hi

My large breed bitch has finally come into season, I know that bitch's can be ready to stand at different days depending on the individual bitch, But are there any tell tale signs that she will be ready. Im taking her to the vets tomorrow just to make sure that she is in A1 condition and she has had all of the checks to ensure that she is of breeding quality. I have bred a toy breed in the past and they seemed to be far more predictable. I tryed to mate this girl last time and she missed. She is now nearly 4 years old and a real beautiful girl in every way. Im looking to start my own lines for the show ring and am doing this for all the reasons which I believe are correct and I am sure that I can improve on the breeding lines that are held by my girl. Any advice would be really appreciated. Thanks

Hi, you could get hold of a copy of 'The Book of the Bitch' by Evans and White. It's full of the kind of information you are going to need. In addition, is there a reputable breeder of your breed that might be willing to offer breed specific advice and be a kind of mentor?

Check your bitches discharge every day, once it has gone from red blood to pale straw coloured, that can be a sign she is about ready. She will also probably show her willingness to mate, by standing still as you stroke her gently near her tail, she will twitch her tail to the side and present herself to the dog. Floozy!

I tell you what, get the book. :D

Dawn R.

Hi CG1
I'm sorry to be a killjoy but do you have lots of good homes waiting for pups from your bitch?  There are 17 litters of your breed advertised on this site alone.  It is not always easy to sell pups if you don't already have a reputation in a breed, and yours can have BIG litters.  I speak from bitter experience, having had 15 puppies in my first ever litter and taking a very long time to find suitable homes for them - and I had 7 homes sorted before I mated her.
Best wishes
Carina

the premate test should give a fairly good indication of when shes ready to be mated x

I have made the decision not to breed from this season following a discussion with the stud dog owner. I had agreed the terms with her with a dog that I felt comfortable with and I know this sounds daft but it is with a dog that my bitch knows and appears comfortable around. My problem was that at the last moment she (the stud owner) decided that she did not want to mate her dog with my bitch, instead wanted to use a new unproven dog that she has just aquired. this dog is only 6 months old, I thought that at that age they had not reached maturity? My feeling is that the breeder just wanted to get her dog proven as soon as possible. I suppose that it could be possible that the stud owner who is vastly more experienced than me thought that they would be a better match but to my way of thinking any doubt is worth investigating before proceeding. I felt that I was being pushed into a corner and definately felt uncomfortable with the whole situation. My girl means that world to me and I had taken a lot of time looking for a suitable stud. I will not breed just for the sake of breeding. Any advice is appreciated. Thanks

Is he old enough to have had all the health screening recommended by your breed club?  What do they recommend?

Hi Isabel and thanks for responding, This was part of my worry! As soon as the switch was mentioned the alarm bells started ringing! I was given no time to research this new dog so decided not to go ahead, the welfare of my girl and any offspring are my foremost concern, followed with my intention to improve the breed! I dont think that this is something that can be rushed, before commiting to this I have to be prepared and have all the facts in front of me. Im sure that I have read somewhere that a litter would not be able to be registered with the kennel club with a dog which is under 12 months old, and somewhere else that a dog does not reach sexual maturity until one year old

No, there is no age restriction on the sire and they are sexually mature well before 1 year in most cases.  The main issue is health screening.  What is recommended by your breed club?  If she is offering him before these tests are completed, rather than just turning him down, I think you should be reporting her to your breed club.

Thanks. I will consider that but will establish the full facts first.

What further facts can there be, he is 6 months old, what tests are expected to be carried out?

Hips, Elbows and eyes. I have not even seen the new dog. I am visiting the owner next week to take a look at the dog and check the papers for the boy. If all is well I may consider him at a later date. Im not saying that the stud owner has done anything wrong, simply that I felt pushed into making a decision which I was not comfortable with. It may turn out that all is well but I just have a feeling that may not be the case. I will keep you updated.

If they are offering a dog at stud in a breed that required orthopaedic screening that is not old enough to have that screening they are definately doing something wrong and should be reported another bitch owner may not be as aware.  Did she ask you for your scores?  I would report the events to the club and let them decide if she has contravened their ethics.

Need to be at lest a year old for those.

What an awful story -at 6 months he's still a MINOR puppy. You did absolutely right, no sensible breeder will use a dog at such a young an age and you want TIME to consider ANY stud dog you're going to use.