What do you look for in a brood bitch? - Page 1

If you were choosing a brood bitch what would be the things that you look at to determine if she is right? To me I would look at her bloodlines, her structure and her temperamenT right off the bat. What else would others look at? I am getting the opinion from talking to some breeders from Germany that structure isn't one of the main things that you would look at. They ask me are you looking for a brood bitch or a show bitch? Why can't a good show bitch be a brood bitch also? If this is the case then why would that be? Most qualities come from the Dam and correct structure would definitely be a factor.

correct structure Pedigree If the bitch i kored all the other factors should be resonable. Dam is about 60% of the breeding, most good breeders know this. However breeding has a factor of luck this is why breeding top dogs dosn¿t always give top dogs. You should also look at family members if the breed good or not. Again this will not always be the case. Experince some factors cant be explained it¿s a gut feeling.

It's hard to hold me down - I know - I would want to know about fertility problems in a given line -- it seems that lots of these bitches are routinely having 3-4 pups -- and this seems totally incorrect to me - A healthy bitch in her prime should easily be having 8-12 pups every year. SOUNDNESS is extremely important (to me, and others). You can have the best pedigree in the world - in the nicest looking bitch - but if she is not a good mother, even the socialization - even when done correctly, can overcome a lousy mother - one that projects fear to the whelps - even before their eyes open -- one that has no genetic memory - and is disinterested in the pups after 2 weeeks -- you need a brood bitch to be an exceptional mother in all areas and to learn this is difficult unlesss you have an open conversation with the current owner (if buying an adult dog) -- and I look to her mother for this -- did she have good healthy litters -- displaying soundness in every aspect ? In your mind, you can say that you will choose better studs and compensate for things- but your whelps will be 50% their mother. some believe MORE !! Again, don't skimp on quality -- making improvemenets at only about 10% per generation is a long row to hoe !! Start with the best you can afford and aspire to improve, improve, improve - and never make excuses for temperament faults -- you would only be fooling yourself. And yes, it is a shame that a brood bitch and a show bitch should even be thought of as two different things - but there are good bitches who produce well, who would be laughed out of the show ring -- they are just not "flashy" enough --- A flash in the pan - evaporates quickly enough -- Give me the slow simmering consistent bitch that I can count on her health - stability - intelligence - etc. time and time again.

Kim, it's ok to be young and very enthusiastic :-) but from your previous messages and from your homepage with your happy experiences with your first? puppy it seems like you are not qualified for answering this question, sorry! Soao, I totally agree with you except for the % coming from the dam, the y-chromosome brings only about 50 genes with and the x-chromosome brings 1000-? genes with. The y-genes are mostly responsible for the sex-determination and fertility and x-genes are responsible for a lot of deseases but also intelligence ;-) Because of this the % coming from the dam is about 51%

First I look if the type fits into what I want. If I don't like the bitch, I will not like the pups. Then I consider health and ability and overall disposition. The bitch herself comes first. After I have determined if she is what I like in general, will I dig deeper. The sire side will most likely represent a popular and proven choice, so I pay more attention to the motherline. Then I look at the line breeding. I avoid line breeding to poor producers, or dogs that have traits that I do not care for. I look for line breeding of strong producers, or no linebreeding at all. Then I look at the parents of the bitch, because the pups will take a lot after their grandparents. Pedigree comes either last or first. That depends on what my plans are. There are so many options in terms of pedigree. There are a lot of unknown dogs out there that are excellent producers. If the line is consistent with what I want, I can risk going with a less popular and lesser known line. I may be looking for something very specific. It can happen that a certain line or single dog in the bitches background will instantly sway my opinion on a dog, either for or against. Its a very individual situation. In the end it depends on your individual breeding goal. Sometimes you need to look for something very specific to get to that goal. What you should aim for is to stick with your own ideal. You need to have a brood bitch that you can be behind 110%. If you are not behind the bitch and the breeding, you will have a hard time selling the pups. Some less desirable traits in the bitch (they all have some) should be balanced out by the positives. There is no perfect dog. You need to determine what is most important to YOU and YOUR goals.

""it is a shame that a brood bitch and a show bitch should even be thought of as two different things"" I disagree - it's just a simple law of genetics, there is no shame in it. An average looking bitch from great parents most likely will be a great producer (conformation wise). Here is why: she carries those great genes inside - they are just not seen in her phenotype. So, combined with a "great" male, she theoretically should be able to produce offspring, 1/4 to half of which will be "great" too. On the other hand, a bitch that looks great may in fact be just a result of happy combination of some recessive genes that she will not be able to produce in phenotype of her offspring - no matter who you breed her with - here you have your show bitch that is not a great brood bitch. It is similar to the fact that children of genius parents are seldom genius. If you don't know why and how this works this way, you shouldn't hurry with getting a bitch, you should learn some elementary genetics first. It’s not always easy to judge in real life, though: each animal is a combination of thousands of genes, there is no 100% “great” bitch, and no 100% poor quality female – you should look at the aspects that are most important to you. I personally would advise to get a female that has great, strong temperament, great bone, and comes from a family of nice dogs, even if the female herself has some minor conformation faults such as short croup, short upper arm, etc. I would agree with some previous posts - temperament is the most important. It is also nice if she comes from a larger litter (more than 4 pups). Good luck! Julia

One more thing. Breeding isn't a lottery!!! It’s a matter of knowledge and experience. Trust me :)

excellent comments Julia. Breeding also is not A + B = AB !

Kennel Lotta... do you think your explanation of show bitch versus brood bitch goes with working abilities and tempermant as well. The fluke super working dog through average parents as opposed to the average working dog through great parents. Do you think the average working dog can actually produce better then the great dog? interesting topic