Responsibilities of a stud dog owner

[Ann Felske-Jackman]

I do hope that it was clear that when I said "as many as they can keep in touch with", I also meant "take responsibility for". That's just a given I would hope.

Yngo has taught me a lot about stud dog ownership (and why I probably won't want to do it again ). It's a lot of work, a lot of personal time and expense, and a downright messy job. But, we have made some wonderful friends through him and that makes it all worthwhile.

A few things to consider for those hoping to one day own a popular stud:

1. Lay down your goals for your dog and stick to them. We've turned down many bitches who would have really complimented Yngo because we were working on finishing his Sch3 title. Showing and breeding is one thing, but working your stud dog is another matter completely. Yngo is always reasonably ready to work, but running a TDX test with a bitch in season in the car for instance is a losing battle (I speak from experience here). Pick what's important to you and choose one. You're not doing your dog any favors setting him up to fail and you're not doing the bitch owners any favors if your mind is on something else.

2. Be prepared to set aside at least a week of time for every breeding. If a bitch is shipped, it usually means picking her up from the airport and returning her. And if she's going to fly, we keep her an extra long time to ensure that she's caught before stressing her. If the owner is bringing her, plan on them staying with you for up to a week. Only once have we been lucky enough to have a bitch and owner arrive, breed twice and be home three days later. Most of the time, it's a lengthy process.

3. Have a good reproductive specialist that can get you in on a moment's notice. We always need to ship semen on Thansgiving, do breedings over Christmas etc. In the case where the bitch needs ongoing timing testing, it's a 90 minute drive each way, each day, for us. Be prepared to do what it takes. If you committed to getting the bitch bred, then it's your responsibility to do so.

4. Be ready to turn down bitches, both for their own lack of merit, or because you're not convinced that the breeders can raise or place the puppies the way you're hoping. Don't take chances. Don't take bitches who's pedigrees you don't thoroughly understand. Don't take bitches whose owners you don't know personally (or at least that don't come very highly recommended by someone you do trust). You are responsible for these puppies for their entire lifetimes. Choose only outstanding breeders who will also take that responsibility seriously.

5. Be honest about what your dog throws and be prepared to also turn down fabulous bitches because you know that your dog will not offer the breeder what they are looking for. This is difficult. It's very tempting to take bitches that you think will improve on your dog in areas that he needs. Especially when they're highly accomplished! But you job is to help the breeder achieve their own goals. If you don't reasonably think that your dog will help them to improve also, you need to be honest and tell them that.

6. Don't do similar breedings until you know what the first one has produced. I have more than once had owners of littermates ask to use Yngo. Doing such breedings doesn't help anyone. Suggest that one of them come back down the road, after they've seen what the first has produced.

7. Once pups are on the ground, travel to see them. Even if this means skipping shows, turning down another breeding, whatever. You can't make good decisions for additional pairings unless you know how the first ones worked out. Keep in touch with every owner so you know exactly what temperament traits, health issues etc. your dog is throwing.

8. Deal with health and temperament related issues properly. You will get them, every stud dog throws some pups with one issue or another. You can never go wrong by doing the right thing. Yngo's first litter came back really good in terms of health clearances. The second gave us two pups with Mild HD. It really surprised us. At the time, he also had six other litters on the ground. We contacted the breeders of the younger litters and asked them to have all of their owners get in touch with us. We offered to pay for hip prelims on all of the pups that hadn't been done, and cancelled future breedings until they were. In the end, those hip prelim's came back wonderfully, as did the rest of the pups when it was time for their official OFA. Right now, his hip passing average well exceeds the breed average, but at the time, we couldn't have known that, so everything stopped until we figured it out.

9. On that note, once there are enough pups to assess what you have, be honest about them. Keep every health clearance, temperament trait, eye color, coat, shoulder layback etc etc. well documented, as it's human nature to forget what we don't want to remember or to overlook things in a dog we really like. Be sure to tell breeders who inquire with their bitches what you have seen and what you hope to build on or avoid going forward. Every breeding will have it's risks, make sure the ones that you are taking aren't going to break someone's heart.

10. Lastly, enjoy those puppies. Be there for their owners when they want to celebrate their successes or cry on your shoulder. Encourage them to help their dog reach its' fullest potential, whether a competitor or companion. And always be sure to set a good enough example that, if theirs turns out to be the next popular stud dog, they'll know exactly how they want to manage him.

Ann