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Reproduction: (The Heat Cycle)
Signs of Heat
The first sign of a female (Dam) coming "Into Season" is
often swelling of the Vulva. This swelling can occur a week before bleeding, or
the day before. Other signs of heat are behavioral changes, your Dam may start
to hump other dams, or pups or even your leg. She may also begin to lick her
self a lot.
If you own more than one dam, they will usually
cycle together, One dam in heat, will bring other dams into heat.
A Female, should NEVER be bred on her first heat,(she has immature eggs) and
preferably not her second either. The rule of thumb that works best is to breed
on the third season, or at 1.5 to 2 years old, and after all health tests have
been passed.
small Vulva - Dam Not in heat
small Vulva - Dam Not in heat
A Dam in Full heat, and almost ready
to be bred. you really need to stand your girl up, and look at the vulva, it
will tip upwards, and change position slightly to make it easier for the male to
penetrate, also if you insert a gloved finger it will squeeze your finger
inward. When a female ovulates, she will try to mount the male. She will have a
very STRONG distinct smell, that dogs from MILES around can smell. Her discharge
will have changed from bright red, to a more yellow color.
Other signs of "ready to breed", is her willingness to stand
for the male, and she will hold her tail off to the side called "Flagging", she
will often back her butt up to your leg as well.
You will notice after her first heat, that her teats will be
more noticeable.
9 month female before heat - no boobies
after heat, tiny pink, more noticeable boobies
So your Dog has come into heat
The normal and most common is for the Dam to come into heat at 6 months of age
and then every 6 months there after.
Some Dams come in at 4 months and some at 12 months for their first heat.
Some every 6 months and some every 5 to 8 months. All Dams vary, so you should
keep track of what your dam is doing and when.
Most Breeders Breed the Dams on 3rd heat or after 1.5 or 2 years of age when
proper genetic testing is complete and the Vet gives approval that Dam is an
adult and ready.
SO, WHEN IS SHE FERTILE?
If you have the male with you he will tell you. Normally it is about 12 days
after the bleeding starts. When the bleeding has slowed and thinned to pink. The
male will know, he will regularly check, lick, analyze in his build in lab
;-)
BUT, if you are taking your Dam to the Sire the use of a Vet is needed.
On day 1 call your Vet for instruction. He will likely have you come in for a
SMEAR, on day 5, 7 & 9 and will do a Blood Progesterone test on day 9 to 11.
Then you will know Exactly when the peek is. This is the type of testing the Vet
does if they are doing artificial insemination.
This blood test, measures in
nonamoles, and nanograms, Each measurement is different. It tests her
progesterone levels, and lets you know when she drops eggs.
Recently we bred our girl, she was (nanomoles per liter)
7 nanomoles = 2 nanograms
2.5 on day 7, 4.2 on day 9
7.0 on day 11 and 16.1 on day 13 (ovulation)
A smear, done earlier in the cycle, will test for cornification. it is not as
accurate, but when she is fully cornified, she is ready to breed.
puppies are born 63 days from ovulation. (not 63 days from breeding, as the male
can breed her several days before, and after ovulation)
Fresh Sperm can live 5 days, (maybe 7 days at most). Chilled sperm lasts 12 (max
24) hours after insertion. Frozen sperm lasts 1 (2) hours after inserted .
Ann egg lives 5 days. But on day 1 the egg is immature and cannot be penetrated,
Day 3 the egg will be ripe, and this is the best day to inseminate. Day 4, eggs
are still ripe, Day 5 the eggs are dying.
See Breeding Tie for more
breeding info
Belly Bands for Male Dogs:
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Belly bands are a GREAT training tool for male
dogs, to keep them from marking (lifting their leg on your furniture).
Put them on while they are in the house, and take them off when outside.
Also if a dam is in heat, it helps to stop the marking. |
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Generally the dog comes into heat, and the experienced breeder notices right away, and the newbie may not notice till day 4.
Normally they are breedable on approx day 12 to day 18.
But they can remain in heat till day 21.
Each dog is different, and heat averages 2 to 3 weeks.
They start to bleed, and then by day 12 it goes pink, and by day 16 they stop bleeding.
Unfortunately many people think when they stop bleeding, they are out of heat, but in a dog, it means they ovulated.
So... many unplanned breedings happen.
Courtesy of MistyTrails Havanese
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Although this section is based on a
whelping of an English Mastiff, it also contains good general whelping
information in large breed dogs. You can find more whelping information in the links above. The links below
tell a story about Sassy, an English Mastiff. Sassy has a wonderful temperament.
She loves humans and Adores human children. An all around mild mannered,
wonderful Mastiff. Sassy however is not the best mother towards her puppies, she
is not rejecting them, she will nurse them when a human places them on her to
feed, however she will not clean the pups or pay any attention to them. It is as
if, they are not her puppies. This litter is getting moms milk, with major human
interaction, manually giving each and every pup what they need. In return, the
pups will be super socialized and will make remarkable pets, however the work
involved is astounding. It takes one dedicated breeder to keep this situation
healthy. Thankfully this litter has just that, a dedicated breeder. Read the
links below to get the full story. There is a wealth of info that everyone can
appreciate and benefit from.
C-Section in a Large Breed Dog
Newborn Puppies... What you need
Whelping Mastiff Puppies One to Three Days Old
Things do
not always go as planned (imperforate anus)
Orphaned Litter (not the plan)
10
Days Old Plus ++
3 Week Old Puppies
Puppies 3 Weeks - time to start
potty training
Puppies 4 weeks old
Puppies 5 weeks old
Puppies 6 weeks old
Puppies 7 weeks old
Socializing the Puppies
Mastitis in Dogs
Whelping Large Breed Dogs Main
Whelping, a new
found respect
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