Hi everyone, I am looking to mate my lil cocker spaniel, she is just coming into season but I am not 100% sure when is the right period during the time she is in heat to mate her. Is there anyone who can give me advice on this?

Also is there anyone out there who has a proven pedigree cocker stud dog? I live in the Leigh area in Lancashire.

I would say as you have not got your stud already lined up & she is in season now, not to bother & either wait until her next season, which will give you time to find the correct stud dog which is right for your bitch or save alot of heartache & go to buy yourself a puppy.

I also think you've left it too late, you need to arrange for a stud and possible back up before she comes in season.  Also if she hasn't been health tested it will give you time to get all the tests done before she comes in season again.

How old is your girl?

Hi hassinrasool

I agree with the other posters that you've left it too late. Responsible dog breeding is not about just finding a proven dog to mate to your bitch. You need to do some research to find the most suitable mate for your bitch. Is she from show lines or working lines? This will make a difference as to the type of dog that you want - the cocker spaniel has diverged into almost two breeds.

Also, in these days of litigation, you need to have done your best to ensure that you produce healthy puppies. This means that you need to be able to prove that you have tried to do this by doing all the health tests that are recommended for your breed, otherwise you lay yourself wide open to being sued by puppy buyers if their pup develops health issues that could have been avoided.  If you don't know what these are, I'm sure someone in the breed will come along to say, but it's at least eye tests as far as I know. Check on breed club sites, or call a breed club secretary, or check the Kennel Club website. Personally, I think breed clubs give the most information.

I think you need to do a lot more research and find someone knowledgeable about breeding before going ahead and breeding from your bitch.

Please take this in the spirit that it is intended - to help you and your bitch  :)

If you have only just thought of this, can I ask does your bitch have the relevant health tests?  Most important the FN DNA test and the eye testing?  If not think about getting them done and breed her next time.  Have you checked if she is endorsed on her KC papers. As for finding a cocker locally, yes there are some good ones about in your area.  

Well I thought she was going into season but it doesn't look like it now, probably be another week or two.
The main thing I would like to know is how do you know the exact right days for mating, my vet told me it was three days after she starts spotting but i've been reading and some say it is just after the heavy bleeding has stopped.
She is almost 2 years old, and no I haven't had the FN DNA and eye tests done, where would I be able to get them done and how much are they usually?
My dog is registered to the Dog Lovers Registration Club and i have a certificate of Pedigree for her, so should i get a stud with the DLRC or KC?
I have a stud already lined up and he is registered with the DLRC.

Well your vet has told you wrong, I would suggest you get a book called The book of the bitch by JM Evans & Kay White. It will give you lots of info you need to know.

If your bitch is almost 2 then you still have time to wait until the next season. The eye tests are done by vets not sure about the others(my breed doesn't have any required tests) but i'm sure somewhere here can give you more info on them.

The eye tests are done by an ophthalmic specialist; your vet should be able to tell you where the nearest one is to you. Make sure that the stud dog has the same tests done - you could both find yourselves in legal trouble if the resulting puppies go on to develop problems which could have been avoided.

Here is a list of the conditions which need to be tested for when breeding cocker spaniels.

My dog is registered to the Dog Lovers Registration Club and i have a certificate of Pedigree for her, so should i get a stud with the DLRC or KC?
I have a stud already lined up and he is registered with the DLRC.

You will not be able to get any puppies from this bitch KC registered and it is ONLY the KC that prints official health test results on registration certificates plus publishes them on their website, so KC registration is what all knowledgeable buyers will be wanting to ensure they buy a pup that will grow into as healthy a dog as possible. You'd be best off spaying your girl and enjoying her as a pet.

> My dog is registered to the Dog Lovers Registration Club

This is a made up registry and the so called 'pedigrees' are also made up. I could go to them with any cross breed and make up a pedigree as i so wish.

You do need to make sure that if you are going to breed that both parents are KC reg and have no endorsements and that they are both health tested with good results. With being KC reg you will get a legit history and also be able to trace back many registrations and learn about how these dogs have done in the ring or in their working field and also their health tests which will be recorded.

I hope no one here is going to advocate that you breed from your Cocker.
if you are going to do this seriously which means wanting to improve the breed on what it is now then you need to find a decent bitch from either working or show lines and that the show does reasonably well. You will also require, or should be looking for a mentor in the breed to help you and they will know the lines and which dog would be best suited.

Breeding is not about just putting any old bitch with a dog and hoping for the best, its much more involved than that and many breeders will spend months looking and deciding on a dog which would suit, sometimes they find that what is out there doesn't suit and they need to wait or go abroad.

If something is worth doing it is worth doing well.  Additionally because your dealing with living breathing beings and also bear a responsibility not only for any lives produced but also to the prospective owners, this holds doubly so for breeding.

There can be no legitimate excuses for cutting corners, especially when it comes to health.

As your girl isn't Kennel Club registered I would not breed from her at all.

You have no way of knowing if her pedigree is anything other than a work of fiction, and it certainly will not have any health record history for any of her purported ancestors.

To breed responsibly and to have the best chance of breeding healthy pups you need not only to health test the bitch and use a health tested sire but know of the health of the generations before.

Most bad genetic traits are recessive, that means they often are not apparent in the dogs being bred from but are carried from generations before and two copies of a bad gene are needed, or combinations of bad genes.

Unless you study the ancestry you won't know any of this.

To do so most reputable breeders belong to breed clubs who monitor the breeds health and advise breeders and owners.  The only real registry for pedigree dogs is the kennel club, even they don't demand health tests, but certainly encourage their use, any other registry is just interested in the commercial production of puppies and supplying documents to make them seem more than what they are.

I would advise you spay your girl and enjoy her as a pet.

Fro the price of the health tests alone you can very nearly purchase a well bred puppy as a companion from her.

Pleases go through one of the breed clubs and choose a responsible breeder who has generations of health tested stock behind the puppies they breed and will be there to help and guide you in the future.  You never know you may then if you find your bitch is good enough breed once you have gained the required knowledge, and with a firm foundation of a well bred bitch with people who know and care about the breed there to guide you.

The best breeders will tell you it is rare for their first pet to be the quality to be the foundation for their line and, when they did breed from an average specimen ti took many generations to improve the quality.

Why not take your bitch to either gundog or show training classes and have a go at working or showing her, and learn more about the breed while you go on the waiting list with a good breeder for a quality puppy.  Attend shows or working days and join your local breed club.

You will then have a head start with the new pups in whichever side of dogs your interested in getting involved in.  Breeding should be a by product of showing or working your dogs.

hassinrasool,

Can I point you into the direction of these links, have a read and see what you think
http://www.champdogsforum.co.uk/board/topic/121110.html - costs of breeding plus other bits to think about, not exhaustive by any means but gives you an idea of what you need to think about.

http://www.champdogsforum.co.uk/board/topic/89071.html - should you breed from your pet bitch

I think you will find you are not able to advertise your puppies on this site - so you will have to find alternative ways to advertise them should you decide to go ahead and mate her.

Please take note of the advice given and have your bitch spayed and enjoy her for what she is, your pet.

Thank you everyone for your comments, when I first bought her I (for some reason) always thought she was KC registered but only realised recently that she is with Dog Lovers.
I understand what you're all saying, the certificate of pedigree does show the last 3 generations (Sire/Dam to Great Grand Sire/Great Grand Dam) but as you mentioned i would not know the medical history of any of them.
I will now look into getting her spayed.

Well done on your decision. 

I know it is disappointing, but no reason you can't enjoy the process of locating a good breeder for a puppy instead. 

Your girl won't mind it not being her own puppy, and you can enjoy the dogs just the same.

I'm pleased to hear of your decision as I'm sure will many others on the forum.  Perhaps in years to come you will find yourself in a position to have another dog and I'm sure you'll make sure she is KC registered next time.

A very brave and honourable decision - not only do you not have the health situation on your bitches ancestors you do not even know if they are her ancestors.

Well done on making the right decision and I hope in the future you will have a nice bitch to breed from if that is really what you wish to do, in the mean time I am sure your bitch is a lovely pet and that you will enjoy her company for many years.

Apologies, but not read all replies. What I have read then (this is not lecturing, this is educating) you need to do a whole lot more research about how your bitch 'works', all about the mating process, what can and does go wrong, all about the health tests relating to your breed, etc, etc.

As an extra point ... you are aware that the Dog Lovers Registration Club are heavily puppy farm linked, aren't you?!!

Edited: OK, read your last post. If this is what you are genuinely going to do then honestly, you have made the right decision, well done. :-)

Brilliant news, another happy outcome and a lovely sensible owner. I hope you have a wonderful time with your girl as a pet, and you can still get the books, do all the research, and when you are ready, get a KC bitch from breeders who health test and go from there. :-)