Hi,

have mated my foundation bitch this week, this will be her last litter and i want to keep one, also have three people on list who have been waiting for just under a year! Last time my girl missed (different stud and only slip matings) this time different stud, my young lad and his first mating - had a good tie 18 min on day 13, 14 and 16 (all 18 mins, he is like clockwork!) last mating 48 hrs ago my girl was very wingey throughout the tie, was very willing but as soon as tied she started to create. my dilema is he is still screaming (not that surprised as he has probably got a little carried away now after his first encouter with a lady!) but she is running straight over to his kennel when let out for a wee, she flirted loads last night, flagged a little and let him mount but when he entered she pulled away,snapped and sat down, so i took her away so as not to stress him out, took as she is going over, this morning she is still running over and looking for him but i dont want to put them together and she resists as this will upset him again, her vulva has decreased in size to what it was when matings took place. would you leave it now and keep everthing crossed - just really want a litter this time but wont force anything
what do you experienced breeders think - i hope she is covered
Advise greatly appreciated

Not an experienced breeder but I have been told that sometimes the boys will go mad like this when the bitch is going or gone over as they can tell the moment is slipping away! Certainly my boy howls like mad from day 14 onwards, but the matings we had with a different dog and got puppies were earlier than that and the stud dog owner said she was a lot smaller on the 2nd mating, which was still before the howling from my own dog started!

Have a premate and that will tell you if she has ovulated.  If she has then presumably one of the matings covered it.  I often have a premate the day after mating, just to check that the bitch has ovulated and then I don't bother with any more matings.  Sometimes premates done before matings say "ovulation imminent" and if it is a weekend and you are travelling a distance to a stud, then you have to go and take a chance because there is no chance of another premate until the Monday.  But I have known bitches coming to my dogs to have the "ovulation imminent" result for several days before the vet says to go.  So a premate the day after the mating settles the issue if there is any doubt - and saves a fortune in petrol if the stud dog lives hours away!

This sounds like a very good idea! When you say premate , is this a blood test? If I take my girl to my vet on Tuesday and ask for a "premate" will he know what I'm talking about , she is being mated over this weekend and it would certainly save us a long journey back again on Tuesday evening. Do you get the results there and then?

> Do you get the results there and then?

that can be the problem, the quantative tests are sent away so may take a day or more, and the kits that have a  colour test can be done in house (that one has the name premate) is not as sensitive but will give a result in a couple of hours.

These testing kits come in packs of 10 or 20 and many vets don't stock them routinely, unless they have a  lot of breeders using them, as they don't have a long shelf life.

When I had my bitch tested they had to order the tests taking a few days.

When I asked about a pre-mate test on one of my girls , my vet asked what day she was on, it was day 8 and to me was showing signs of being ready, but as this is early for my girls thought the test would prove either way.  My vet said as she was this far into her season he would prefer to do a smear test, but the test would have to be sent to the other surgery so the results wouldn't be back until the next day (pm) I didn't wait, we just took the bitch to stud and had two good matings 48 hours apart.

Thanks for the idea and it makes alot of sense however i couldnt get a test now until tuesday with the bank holiday and by then she will have gone over for sure, she seems very content and although interested my male is no longer crying for her and she isnt crying for him either so fingers crossed now - i so hope we are successful i am very excited about this combination and am looking forward to adding baby number 14 to the family!

I never used to bother with premates, but I had one bitch a couple of years ago who I had booked to a champion about 4 hours away, and I was sure she was in season, but she had no colour at all, so I didn't have a clue what day she was on.  After about a week she started presenting to my dog, so I had to get a premate done.  The result was re-test in 2 days.  Two days later she was crying and scratching at the door for my dog, but the premate still said re-test in 2 days.  Two days later it said ovulation within 24 hours, so I went to the dog 48 hours later (to allow time for the eggs to mature).  She had 6 pups.  If I hadn't had the premate done I just would not have had a clue and would probably have gone to the dog about 2 days after she was first presenting, which would have been much too early.

I always use a premate now if I have any doubt (or have a long journey to the stud dog).  The vet I use for premates is very experienced with them and I get the result back within about an hour.