[bjh]

I am going to be honest here. I have been raising for nearly 12 years. During those 12 years I did breed a 8 year old female one time and a 7 year old female 1 time. Both females had pups with no problem and they were wonderful mommas. It was selfishness on my part because I wanted to keep something out of them. My vet had said that 8 years was not to old (what do they know). I would never do it again. Some females might need to be retired earlier than others. You have to consider any health issues the female might have. I have one female I quit breeding at age four because she was over weight and I knew it would not be healthy to breed her. If you have a female that has had 2 c-sections then IMO they should not be bred again. If you have a female that is a neglectful mother then she should not be bred again. My opinion is that if a female is a good size and has no health issues I see no problems with breeding them at age 5 or age 6 tops.