Breeding frequency - Page 1

How often do breeders breed the same female. Let's say the sire and dam are an excellent match and produce excellent litters. Is it ok to breed the female every 6 months ?. How common is such a practice.

That depends on the age and health of the female. I wouldn't breed a female more than once a year, personally. They have time to completly recover that way. To me, the health of my dogs was top priority.

The general rule of thumb is that if you do a back-to-back breeding, then you give the dog a whole year off with no puppies. However, some repro vets say the best thing for the health of the uterus is to breed however many litters you want all in a row and then spay. Their thinking is that each heat cycle "hammers" the uterus with hormones and the fewer heat cycles a bitch has, the better. I don't entirely agree with that both out of concern for the condition of the female and the pups produced--but it's good to remember that factor.

If a female is maintained and fed well during pregnancy and while she is nursing, she may not lose much condition--she will almost always blow coat, no matter what, because that is affected by the rise in progesterone during the heat cycle and pregnancy (progesterone stays very high) and labor is triggered by a drop in progesterone, which then triggers a major shed. So a lack of coat in a mother dog does not mean poor condition. You have to look at whether she has maintained good muscling and overall health.

Practically speaking, from a responsible breeding perspective, giving a dog time off between litters provides the opportunity to observe the health of the resulting puppies and make sure that there are no problems showing up, at least in that first year of life. I want to use the results of each breeding to inform my choice of stud for each future litter--temperament, drive, nerve, how fast the puppies mature, health, hips, etc.

In 18 years, I've only ever had 2 back-to-back litters (from 2 different females) and one was an accidental breeding where the female got pregnant on Day 25 of her season (she was thought to be out of season, but obviously wasn't--fortunately the male was mature and had OFA'd hips/elbows, at least); the other was the last breeding for an older female.

Christine

I agree

This topic comes on periodically and is used to crucify some breeders. 
I believe that the issue is far less important then some would make it. 
Stephanitz said :  If the mature dog is healthy then it can be bred.
So does my vet. Today society tends to disagree with thsi sentiment. 
Most importantly mother nature says the same. Healthy female dog can breed every heat.  And yes I know that wolf comes in heat only 1x per year.  For people who follow that logic they should breed only 1 x per year.  I will also say that many females will not "take" every heat which I believe is a defense of the nature of the bitch which is  not ready. 
One German breeder when I told him that I will not breed my dog which I was buying form him, every heat said that he will not sell me the dog if I will not take care of it properly so that she could be bred every heat. 
I believe  that breeding dog more often is easier on a female  then not so often. If you breed often then litters tend to be smaller and  healthier and for that reason easier on the mama dog.  I believe  that breeding dog first time in later life is the worst scenario. Far worse then breeding mama  back to back in young age.    
That said I personally believe that the dog should be bred 1st time not much later then at 2- 3 years of female's age . If the dog is bred earlier then at 2 years the mama dog will permanently  stop growing. To say that mama is turned into breeding machine  by breeding her  and that female suffers  is said by people who did not see or considered  how happy the mama  dog is with their pups. 
I think that to breed a healthy dog back to back is OK and not of any special concern. But I also believe that some brake should be given  2 or 3 litters and then brake of at least 1 to 2 heats is probably prudent if not absolutely necessary.  I have worked in many kennels and I have seen healthy and well taken care of females being bred by some breeders many times in a roll with absolutely no ill effect on such  females. 
I also believe that it is biologically better for female to be bred at least once then not at all. 
Prager Hans

What about age, how old before breeding a bitch must stop. Is it decided based on the fact that the bitch stops coming into heat ? and that's the time to stop, or is there an age limit, say 8 years ?.

The other commentor is right--too often this type of thread is used to try to "hang" or "condemn" someone, but for those who might genuinely want to know how these issues are responsibly handled, I'll give a detailed answer. I don't think there's a hard and fast age limit for breeding that is right for all dogs.

The older a female gets, the more likely she is to not get pregnant or to start having smaller litters and have more trouble giving birth. Many females just won't get pregnant after a certain age--often around 7. I agree with Prager that it's much healthier for your girl to breed her the first time before she's 4 years old--they seem to do better at getting pregnant and they seem to have an easier time whelping. (Of course, every dog is an individual and there will always be exceptions.)

Generally, I plan on retiring a female from breeding around age 7. If it's a female that I think would do better placed in a home where she will get to be the only female, I'd prefer to give her a long, healthy "retirement" with some healthy, active years in her new home, so I will try to retire her sooner than later.

I don't think it's necessarily harmful to breed a female at an older age--but it's going to be more work and risk for fewer puppies-and I would only do this if the female really enjoys having puppies and there's a really good reason to try to get another litter out of her. Some females have miserable pregnancies and feel unwell or have a lot of nausea. Some females will take care of their pups just fine, but they don't really enjoy puppies--other moms just love mothering and will try to take care of any pup they encounter. It's not like these girls get to make "informed decisions," but it's pretty easy to tell whether a bitch loves being a mom or doesn't--and that plays a huge role in any breeding decision I make.

On a different topic, I try to base the decision of whether to place a retired breeding female on what is best for the dog--does she fight with other females? will she be good with my regular house dogs (right now, this is a 10 year old male and a 14 year old female and 2Jack Russells), will she try to kill my cats? and will she have limited house time because of this? Additionally, I consider, is she going to do really well with a new family of her own or will the transition be difficult for her? Absolutely every dog that comes through my hands can stay with me -- but that is not always the best choice for that dog. For example, a few years ago, I had a female I imported at age 4. Her last litter at age 6, she made it clear that she wasn't having fun caring for the pups--the minute the pups turned 3 weeks and had their first meal, I swear she looked at me and said, "Good! Your problem now." She was done with puppies and didn't want to deal with them any more. All of my other bitches hated her and I would have had to keep her always separate and she'd be rotating with the other dogs for house time. So, I found her a home with a family on 15 acres and a 13 year old boy of her own and she eagerly hopped in their car for the ride home with them. That was the better choice for her. The "price" for her was the cost of her spay surgery.

I had another female who I bought as a mature sch3, about 5 years old. She wasn't housebroken (couldn't be housebroken), wasn't reliable with any strange dog (male or female), would kills cats, bark and spun constantly in a crate, and would chew up doors and walls and windows to break out of a house. She stayed with me the rest of her life and I gave her the best life I could. It's a good example at how having a young dog only be a kennel dog (and not housetrained) is a major disservice to the dog.

Christine

Christine:
    Thanks for your detailed reply. My intention is not to crucify someone, but to learn as always.

Thank you Christine and Prager for your generosity, it is very good to hear all you said as I was thinking it is rule of thump to breed every other heat cycle.

I've worked with 5 vets and none of them suggest back to back breeding is a good thing. 

I have to disagree with Prager on this subject as I always shy away from breeders that breed back to back or a bitch has had many litters.
That being said, I have never bred anything but horses and what little I know about dog breeding is not first hand. But my friends breed and I try and learn from them.

I really liked one kennel and was in contact with them to buy a dog few years back, then I saw that the dam had been bred 7 times in 9 years and died only few months after giving birth to her last litter, I don't think she made it 8 weeks after whelping.

Also what might have me on opposite sides from your perspective is the fact that I live on an island that requires quarintine and usually the breeding stock is not very large and there really isn't anything to justify a female being bred numours times into such a small stock, where new blood is perhaps needed.
And repeat breedings of same sire and dam into a breeding stock that maybe has 100 - 200 dogs makes no sence to me.

Hope you are all well.