|
|
Puppies or not? |
|||
|
DOG BREEDS AND MONGRELS |
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
The cycle
The bitch will have her heat season typically twice a year, but it can also be rarer. Some bitches have 8 to 10 months between their heating seasons. When the bitch's hormones tells her that now it is soon time for the heat she begins to shed her coat. Some believe erroneously that the shedding is linked with the seasons, but this is not true. Within a couple of months, she sheds her coat in order to get a new "wedding dress" to be attractive to a potential partner. Shortly after she she begins to bleed. You will discovers small drops of blood around on the floor and the furniture. Most bitches are good at keeping themselves clean. While she is having her period she might be more contact-seeking than usual. The bleeding will continue for about a week. When the bleeding stops is when she is most fertile and ready to mate. If you don't want puppies you should be very careful in this period. Don't take her places with other dogs, don't tie her up outside when you go shopping etc. If you want her to mate her, and your have found an appropriate dog for her then count the days from the first drop of blood. She is typically most fertile after 10 to 12 days, but there may be individual differences. If you want to know for sure the vet can make a test for you that tells the exact right time to mate. The mating When two dogs mate, they usually start by fooling around for a while. She will tease him a little, invite him to play and then reject him for a while. When she is ready, and if it's the right day for her, at some point she will stand still and let him climp on top of her. Young inexperienced dog may have a little trouble finding out what to do, but it is best to interefere as little as possible. If the dog is inexperienced, it's a good idea to allow him to mate with an experienced bitch the first time, she'll show him how it works. After penetration he will make a few quick mating movements, and then he will descend again. The dog's genitals will swell inside the bitch and lock the two dogs together, and they will stand close together while the seamen is pumped from the dog to the bitch after he has descended. If it is a young first-time bitch, she may well be nervous, and try to get loose. You should try to avoid this, since she can do great harm to the dog if she tries. Kneel down beside them and talk calmly to them and wait for that resolves itself again. It varies how long the dogs are locked together, it can range from 5 to 45 minutes. After the separation, if you want to bitch to become pregnant, you should not allow her to sit right away. If possible you should sit with her on your lab at make sure her lower parts are raised. If the mating was successful she will be pregnant for 63 days. Unwanted mating If you have a bitch, and you do not wish for her to have puppies, then beware when she is in heat. But if the accident happened, there is not much to do about it. Two dogs caught in the act should under no circumstances be separated. You can do terrible damage to both dogs. Throwing a bucket of water at them, like some people advice, is plain nonsence and even cruel. If they are locked together in mating there is nothing to do about it! At the vet's you can get an abortion injection for your bitch, but this is absolutely not recommenable. It is very harmful for the bitch and it can disrupt her hormonal balance for the rest of her life. You can also get injections from the vet in order for the bitch never to get in heat. But we must warn strongly about these. The concentration of hormones in a this injection is 100 - 1000 times higher than in the contraceptive pill for women. It can destroy the hormone balance and there is a good chance that she will develop cancer. Sterilization of bitches Before purchasing a bitch puppy, you should consider whether she should have puppies or not. If you are sure that you don't want puppies, the sensible thing is to have her sterilized. This will remove her uterus and ovaries, she will never be able to have puppies. Although the operation will cost money, it is not more expensive than a birth control spray every 6 months, which we strongly warn against. If the bitch is sterilized, it is important that it happens at the right time in her cycle, namely in the middle between two heat seasons, when hormone productions is lowest. When uterus and ovaries removed, the hormone production will remain at the current level for the rest of her life. Castration of dogs We do not endorse for all dogs to be castrated, but we want to mention the possiblity. Many people mistakenly believe that castration will solve all the problems, which is not true. For some breeds, especially shepherd dog breeds, it will not make a big difference, and the dog will be more or less the same as before. Most problems can be addressed by education and training. Some dogs can be very anxios to mate and they can be quite uncontrollable. If you have a dog like that, you can have him castrated to make him a little calmer. Castration is a relatively simple procedure that dog recovers from very quickly. Usually, the younger the dog, the bigger difference will it make on the dog. However, if a very young dog is castrated, it can influence its development and constitution. |
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
LINKS: |