We think it is extremely important to learn the facts and possible consequences in advance if you are contemplating breeding your dog. In today’s overcrowded world, we must accept the responsibility ourselves.

CONSIDER THESE POINTS:

Quality
AKC registration is not indication of quality. Most dogs, even purebred, should not breed! Many dogs, though wonderful pets, have defects of structure, health, or personality that should not perpetuate. Breeding animals should be proven free of these defects before starting on a reproductive career. Breeding should only be done with the goal of improvement.

Cost
Dog breeding is not a large moneymaking proposition when done correctly. Health care, vaccinations, proof of quality, extra food, facilities, stud fees, advertising, etc. are all costly and must be paid before the pups can be sold. An unexpected Cesarean or emergency intensive care for a sick pup will make a break-even litter become a major problem. And this is if you are lucky enough to sell all the pups!!

Sales
First-time breeders have no reputation and no referrals to help them find buyers. Previous promises of “I want a dog just like yours” evaporate. Consider the time and expense for caring for pups that may not sell until four months, eight months, or more! What would you do if your pups did not sell? Send them to the pound? Dump them in the country? Sell them cheap to a dog broker who may resell them to a laboratory? Veteran breeders with a good reputation often don’t consider breeding unless they have cash deposits in advance for an average-sized litter.

Joy of Birth
If you’re doing it for the children’s education, remember the whelping may be at 3 a.m. or at the vet’s on the surgery table. Even if kids are present, they may get the chance to see the birth of a monster or mummy, or watch the bitch scream and bite you as you attempt to deliver a pup that is half out and too large. Some bitches are not natural mothers and either ignore or savage their pups. Bitches can have severe delivery problems or even die in the process pups can be born dead or with gross deformities that require euthanasia. Of course there can be joy, but if you can’t deal with the possibility of tragedy, don’t start.

Time
Veteran breeders of quality dogs state that they spend well over 130 hours of labor in raising an average litter. This is over two hours per day, every day! The bitch cannot be left alone while whelping and only for short periods for the first few days after. Be prepared for days off work and sleepless nights. Even after delivery, mom needs care and feeding; puppies need daily checking, weighing, and socialization. Later grooming and training, and the whelping box needs lots of cleaning. More hours are spent doing paperwork, pedigree, and interviewing buyers. If you have any abnormal conditions, such as sick puppies or a bitch that can’t or won’t care for her pups, count on double time. If you can’t provide the time, you will either have dead pups or poor ones that are bad tempered, antisocial, dirty and/or sickly--hardly a buyer’s delight.

Humane Responsibilities
It’s midnight do you know where your puppies are? There are three and a half million unwanted dogs put to death in pounds in this country each year, with millions more dying, homeless and unwanted through starvation, disease, abuse, not to mention those hit by automobiles, etc. Nearly a quarter of the victims of this unspeakable tragedy are purebred dogs “with papers.” The breeder who creates a life is responsible for that life. Will you carefully screen potential buyers? Or will you just take the money and not worry if the puppy is chained in a junkyard all of its life or runs in the street to be killed? Will you turn down a sale to irresponsible buyers? Or will you say “yes” and not think about the puppy you held and loved now having a litter of mongrels every time she comes in heat, which fills the pounds with more statistics-- your grand-pups? Would you be prepared to take a grown puppy if the owners can no longer care for it? Or can you live with the thought that the baby you helped bring into the world will be destroyed at the pound?

THINK ABOUT IT!!!