what age is the right age to start breeding my pup. my pup is only 8 weeks but in due time I want to start to breed her.

Can I ask what breed she is and your reasons for breeding? as it will depend on the answers to those questions.

hello and welcome, can i ask what breed she is, do you have pictures of her, we would love to see her,

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I would wait a while and see if she is suitable to breed from first.
If she is, and according to size and breed her second season would be what i would aim for. But there are a lot of health issues to take into account in the mean time. Also will you have homes for the puppies, can you afford for things to go very wrong financially, have you the time to spare looking after Mum and litter, have you the space and facilities to cope with a litter, I could go on. But first of all just enjoy her being a puppy and growing up.
Mary
x

The problem with going by number of seasons is that the variation in when they have a second season is huge. A bitch can have a first season at 6 months, so a second season at a year. IMO breeding at a year old is too young for ANY breed. My own bitch didn't have her first season till 11 months - she has just had her second at 17 months, which is still too young for my breed, but may not be for others, so relying on seasons is fraught. I personally would not consider breeding until the bitch is mature, both physically as well as mentally. Not only will she be in a better position to cope with the effort of whelping and raising a litter, but as the owner you are in a better position to judge whether she is breeding material, and what sort of stud to choose to compliment her.

Yes I would agree with that. Maybe I should said never BEFORE her second season.
Mary
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It would be worth looking on the KC at their regulations regarding the breeding as i am pretty sure i read that the bitch has to be at least a year old and no older than 8 for them to regnise it, i could be wrong.

Most breed clubs recommend that bitches should not be bred from until they are at least two years old.

It is also really important that before breeding you go through the following stages:

1. Ascertain whether or not she is of good enough quality to breed. Has she been shown or worked successfully. Has she been assessed by a breed specialist judge?

2. If she is good enough, have you researched the pedigrees of both your bitch and the dog you wish to use at stud? Are there any health problems in the background? Are the pedigrees compatible?

3. If everything is still green to go, have the breed appropriate health tests carried out and assess whether the results are good enough for her to be bred from.

4. At this stage, you have to ask yourself, who would I sell my puppies to? What sort of puppy contract would I ask new owners to sign. What sort of conditions would I put on the sale?

5. Can I afford to have a litter? First of all there is the stud fee - usually the price of a puppy and often to be paid upfront. Then there is the "insurance" - as far as I am aware, no pet insurance company covers problems/complications arising from whelping, so if your bitch needs a C section and/or has other complications, can you afford a vet bill which might reach £3000?

6. Do I have the time to have a litter? A litter of puppies is a very time-consuming affair. From birth they will be with you for at least 8 weeks and will become increasingly demanding as they grow.
If, for whatever reason the bitch refuses to feed the pups and rejects them, can you spare the time to feed and clean them hourly for the first 96 hours or so, then slightly less often as they grow?

I am sure there are many other aspects I have forgotten, but one thing is clear, unless you are a bad breeder whose only concern is for the money you can make, breeding is not someting to be undertaken lightly.

Mick

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DREAMCATCHER SIBERIAN HUSKIES
Siberian Husky Welfare Association (UK)
"For I am a raindog too!" - Tom Waits
"Believe none of what you hear and half of what you see" - Benjamin Franklin
"As long as people believe in absurdities they will continue to commit atrocities" - Voltaire

Hello and welcome!

Breeding a litter of puppies is a very serious responsibilty and lots of people on this forum will say that to you from the moment you make the suggestion of breeding your bitch. And I say it too!

What is great though is that you are starting your enquiries while your girl is still a very young puppy so you have lots of time to consider the ins and outs and make contact with more experienced people to give you help. The best person to help you is the breeder who you bought your puppy from, assuming that was a responsible breeder, but sad to say many people are not.

So for now, enjoy your puppy and get as much information about her and her parents from your breeder.

Sgurr

yes i agree it is nice to see a newbie asking questions rarther than just jumping in the deep end
im sure we will all try answer the questions