first time breeder!

[brooklynlunatic]

all right guys I got the idea , took her to the vet thank GOd she wasnt pregnant , she is on her second cycle right now ! im doing my home work , going to get my boys clearances and wait for my girl for her third cycle the get her tested thanks guys you really scared the sh_t out of me Id hate to loose any of my babys.

[brunie's mom]

Originally Posted by brooklynlunatic

all right guys I got the idea , took her to the vet thank GOd she wasnt pregnant , she is on her second cycle right now ! im doing my home work , going to get my boys clearances and wait for my girl for her third cycle the get her tested thanks guys you really scared the sh_t out of me Id hate to loose any of my babys.

There is far more to breeding then getting health clearances. How do you know your male and female are worthy of breeding? What makes them so special? Have you shown them? What titles do they have? You must put them in front of an impartial judge and make sure your boy and girl fit the standards. Not only should your boy have his Championship or V rating (German Sieger shows), but they should have their temperament tested and make sure they are smart enough for the breed. This you do by getting obedience titles on them (both), or some sort of working titles ( herding, tracking,protection,etc). They should have beauty ( conformation) and brains...and until you have proven it...they should not be bred.

Your female cannot have OFA clearances till she is 24 months of age..for her hips and elbows. The CERF for the eyes can be done now, and the heart must be cleared by a cardiologist vet...not sure how old they must be?

Please don't take this the wrong way...but only BYB's get a male and female dog to breed. Put off even thinking of breeding for many years. Put some titles on your dogs, learn what breeding and reading pedigrees is all about...and in many years time, when you have the right dogs...then start thinking of it. Now if you breed you will be a BYB.

Gina

[JoJo]

Oh goody! Now we are just going to wait to be a BYB!!!

thanks guys you really scared the sh_t out of me Id hate to loose any of my babys

I guess we didn't scare you enough! We rather not scare you but educate you. Please continue to read the forums, especially all the stickys in the Breeding forum. Then go to the Behavior Forum, then the Breed Specific Legislation Forum and please don't forget the Rescue Forum. In-between reading ask a bunch more questions. I'm sure something that will be said or something that you read will stick in your brain and convince you NOT to breed your dogs but to get them spayed and neutered. If not, then THAT my friend is what scares the --it out of us!!!

[AngelBunny]

brooklynlunatic:

From where did you get your bitch and your dog?

[rottcrazed]

So if you wait for her 3rd heat cycle, presumably in 6 months from now, she will be 21 months old .... STILL TOO YOUNG FOR CLEARANCES!

Hello!!!!

Just because they have their reproductive organs does not make them worth breeding ....

Kristi

[Apollo02771]

Having read thru this quickly, from the date on the Op's original post it sounds as if he was letting this "breeding" happen 2 weeks ago. If this is true, his vet would not be able to confirm pregnancy as of yet. Take her to the vet in two more weeks and have a blood test done for pregnancy or a fetal ultrasound. Hopefully she won't be pregnant and you can rethink whether to breed her or have her spayed. Good Luck!

[brunie's mom]

Originally Posted by AngelBunny

brooklynlunatic:

From where did you get your bitch and your dog?

Good question!
He must have gotten them from a BYB, because any COE (code of ethic) breeder would have required a signed contract that the dogs have titles, as well as hips, elbows, eyes and heart to be certified , and as well as be over 2 years of age before they could be bred.
BYB's don't care...they think selling with full registration is fine...so that the new owner can make their money back.....and keeping filling up the shelters and rescues.

Gina

[rottcrazed]

Okay, so you are going to wait until her 3rd heat cycle because you have learned so much already????? Presumably that will be in the next 6 months, which will make her 21 months old. UM, 21 MONTHS IS STILL TOO YOUNG FOR HEALTH CLEARANCES !!!!!

HELLO!!!!

Reproductive organs are not a license to breed ....

Kristi

[Luvtails]

If they just mated then it is too soon to tell that she is not pregnant. An ultrasound should be done at 25days to see if there are any pups. hopefully not.

[brooklynlunatic]

how old should the dogs be to get health clearances and how much does everything cost ?

[hokisteph5]

Originally Posted by brooklynlunatic

how old should the dogs be to get health clearances and how much does everything cost ?

You could get preliminary clearances now, but you can't get dogs' official certifications done until they're 24 months old. Here's a link to the OFA website. It'll have the information you're looking for, including how much the clearances will cost through OFA. You'll probably want to check with your vet too on prices.

[Shelby427]

Originally Posted by brooklynlunatic

how old should the dogs be to get health clearances and how much does everything cost ?

Do a search in the Breeding forum and you'll find answers to your questions. I don't know how much they cost, but the minimum age to get health clearances (hips/elbows/heart/eyes) is 24 months. You can get preliminary tests done before then, to see if by chance a puppy has a genetic issue.

Not only do they need health clearances, but titles too. Have you shown either dog? Do they have titles? If the answer is no, I see no reason for you to breed your dogs.

[OnyxGold1]

Before you even consider a breeding first off KNOW that your dogs are of standard....do you know the height of your dog and your bitch at the withers, what is their mouth pigment like?, do they have dark brown almond eyes?, do they have full dentition, are they of sound temperament.....most importantly are they complementary to each other? By this I mean can your male "fix" your bitch's faults and vice versa without doubling up on faults. Read through the AKC standard and honestly evaluate your dogs.....its easy to say "my dogs are perfect"......right.....I can pick apart my dogs in terms of faults, we all can, that is why careful breeders try to accentuate qualities they would like to keep (ie double up on the strengths of your dog and bitch) while minimizing doubling up on faults. For instance if your bitch is missing a tooth and your male is missing two teeth....would you honestly want to pass that along to their offspring?? Would you double up on two DJD II elbows? or what if you did and a puppy was born with crippling FCP?

It would definitely be worth your while, do some handling classes with them, enter a few shows and see what an impartial third party thinks.

Next off get all your health clearances in place. Eyes done by a canine ophthamologist can be done at any age......don't know what the fees for that would be in US prices, however in Canada here it is usually around the $30-35 mark / dog; canine cardiologist heart exams run around the $50-60 mark and can only be done after 12 months of age; and the xrays for hips/elbows can only be done on / or after 24 months of age, done through OFA typically run (where I'm located anyway) around the $325 mark.

Do you have a contract in place in terms of your guarantees/your expectations of puppy homes? Do you have puppy homes lined up for these puppies? Do you have a knowledgeable helper to assist with whelping? Are you prepared for the possibility that something could go terribly wrong with the pregnancy/whelping, etc and that you may end up losing both mom and pups? Do you have a plan in place for what you might do if mom HATES her puppies and you end up bottle feeding the litter? Do you have significant time off of work to stay at home and care for the puppies? What will you do when one of your puppy homes contacts you and returns a puppy to you?

THESE ARE JUST SOME QUESTIONS YOU NEED TO ASK YOURSELF BEFORE EMBARKING ON THE PATH OF A BREEDER.

answer them honestly to yourself before deciding to simply breed "nice dogs" with the most important one being:

AM I BETTERING THE ROTTWEILER BREED WITH THIS BREEDING?

.................well are you?

Heather Peters

[brunie's mom]

Originally Posted by brooklynlunatic

how old should the dogs be to get health clearances and how much does everything cost ?

You should be asking how to go about showing your dogs, or how to get obedience titles. We have told you...just because they do have ALL of the health clearances....and they are all great...it does NOT mean that your dogs should be bred.

They have to be at least 24 months of age for hips and elbows...for eyes...at 12 months of age (I think?) and then every year repeated for eyes. For hearts, I'm not sure?, but most have hearts done at 24 months of age...when hips and elbows are done.

Have you done any reading of the "stickies" in the Breeding forums?

Gina

[rottcrazed]

24 months old for OFA hip and elbow clearances, heart can be done at 12 months (really must be by a cardiologist, not just a practioner), eyes can be done any time and should be done once a year.

Hips and elbows will vary in price from vet to vet, the most important thing with hips and elbows is getting someone who KNOWS how to position the dog properly for them. Bet on $200-$400 for both.

Heart is about $60 and eyes are about $35 or so.

This is all per dog and from my own experience up here in Canada.

Submission to OFA and CERF is extra as well.

Kristi