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Originally Posted by ssouth  My Darcy is 8 months old and is just finishing her first heat cycle. My mom has a 15 month old male that I would like to breed one litter with. I don't want to become a breeder and my motives are not monetary. My grandfather wants a yorkie really bad and can't afford to buy one. I just want to have one litter to make sure he gets one. Can anyone give me any advice on this topic before her next heat? I am just worried about my baby girl and now after I've promised Papa pick of the litter, I don't like the idea of putting my baby girl through that!! |
I don't blame you. I recommend you do lots of reading first, people don't often understand that the toy breeds have so many more problems than the larger breeds. Knowing the line of your dogs is important because you do not want to risk your baby having too large of puppies who may require her to have an emergency cesarean, which can be very expensive. For example, both your dog and the dog she mates with, may be the smallest of all their relatives, and when they mate, the babies could be huge, you don't just factor in the weight of mom and dad to predict the weight of puppies. There so many health tests you need to be sure both dogs aren't passing genetic health risks, and that’s why many breeders feel like breeding just one litter is so expensive. I've talked with experienced breeders who have been doing this for years, and they are actually VERY frightened each time they decide to breed. They know that there is always a health risk, and they know all the things to look for and what to do in an emergency. Many also know, how hard it is to lose a beloved dog through breeding. It's hard enough for the experienced breeders I would never recommend an experienced person do it, too much to learn, and one failure on your part means the loss of your dog.
I think I would look at rescues for gramps, there are many great dogs for less than three hundred dollars, which is much less than you will spend on whelping supplies, and vet care. You sound like a wonderful granddaughter, by the way!