My younger female did not go into heat until she was 13 months old. I too was going to skip her first heat (assuming it came earlier), but decided that since she was this age to go ahead and breed her. She did fine. It all just depends on you and your dog. If you think that she is mature enough physically and mentally to handle breeding and that you are educated enough to go through the whole process from start to finish- then I do not see why you cannot go ahead and breed a dog on her first heat if she is over a year old. For the person who was wondering if they missed their dogs "window" of opportunity. Remember- a dog in heat will bleed first (time varies w/different dogs)- when the bleeding or spotting stops a clearer discharge will start to appear. Watch your girl for signs that she is ready to breed- Flagging (tail up in the air twitching) is a good indicator that she is ready. My gals will stand in front of the stud and flag or sometimes get really playful w/ the male. It is actually really cute when they get playful because they act like a puppy again- stretching their legs out in front w/ their rear in the air and bark at the male!
