to own your stud or not??
 

I am trying to decide if we should actually buy a stud or just pay stud fees. I was wondering if any of you experienced in this area could give me the pro's and cons.

I am worried about a stud in the house, will he be a part of the family? I've heard so many bad stories but wanted to know from those who deal with it first hand.

Thanks a bunch!

How many bitches do you breed?

I was just going to ask the same question!

I'm interested in this issue too, as we have kept one of our puppies (male) and we have 2 females. I don't want to neuter him as I will show him in the near future but this is going to be a problem. Advice???

I have one female right now. It will be a while before I breed her but I like to be prepared?

With one female, I'm not sure I'd invest in a stud.

Owning a male comes with a whole set of problems. You have to be prepared to put up with a lot of barking, whining and pacing when a female is in heat. You have to take all kinds of precautions to keep the male away from the female for at least 3 weeks when the female is in heat. Males that are used for breeding are more likely to mark in the house.

On the upside one advantage is you don't have to pay a stud service but when you consider the cost of the dog , food and vet care then you are not saving that much. Also, consider what your goal in breeding is. If you buy a young pup there is no guarantee he will even turn out to be breeding quality. Now if you are interested in showing, I think it is much easier to show a male than a female. You could get a older show quality male and hopefully later start your breeding program out on the right track, then it can be very rewarding.

I have heard some bad stories as well, but my Huckleberry is a doll and is absolutely a part of our family! I am sure the situation with him is not the "norm" because is is EXTREMELY easy-going and never barks at anything....EVER!! So he does not do anything that was mentioned (excpet for marking). Livi was just in heat and after breeding them, I kept them seperated. My poor guy had to stay in the xpen during these weeks, but he did not once bark, pace, whine....not a peep out of him! But like I said, this is just his nature....very very very passive!!!! He does mark, though, and there is nothing fun about that. :( He has a gorgeous steel blue and gold silky coat, but I have to keep it cut because he has to always wear a wrap. He is constantly marking (although, not too bad when Livi is not in heat)....he gets a ton of baths and the pad in his wrap has to be changed quite often. You may already know this, but I didn't when I bought a stud....their marking smell is awful....when his marking is at the most, he literally stinks like a skunk! These are the not so fun things that people should probably know. I would not give him up for the world, but I do think that it is work to keep up with all that goes along with owning a stud (and I would consider Huckleberry easy as far it goes).

Tammy

I own my own male and yes he is ABSOLUTELY a part of my family. I don't have big issues at all. He wears a belly band and runs the house. Spoiled rotten :p
My house is big enough to keep them seperated when needed in a different room if I need to. I prefer to have my own male that way I am in control on the breeding.
I love boys:thumbup:

Good advice. :thumbup:

I love my boys!! I would have a dozen of them if I could. I would buy one because I like their personalities soooo much!

Well I LOVE my two boys, my Harry was here before the girls, and he is mama's boy..LOL he is the only one that is allowed to sleep in my bed...LOL I LOVE, LOVE him... yes he marks when one of the girls is in heat, if he needs to stay home to breed, other than that he moves to grandma's where he is abslutely more spoiled for the duration.
hugs,
Carmen in nj

I thought you said your boys dont mark on another thread about studs:confused:

I love my boys too.

But, coming to a conclusion on whether to buy a stud or to pay for stud services is a bit more complicated than that.
If you're planning to breed, one must look at the female without those rose colored glasses. You must assess her with a critical eye ( her assets as well as her faults) and know every aspect of her background. Find a stud that will complement her or has assets that can fix her faults. One must know what it takes to be able to know how to fix or change things. In other words, canine genetic classes.

Owning your own stud comes with a lot of responsibility of knowing how to manage a dog after he has been used for breeding.....It can be done with a minimal amount of issues, but you need to know learn how to manage those issues before they get out of hand. My biggest problem is that my boys go off food whenever there is a girl in Season. I've had to resort to hand feeding them at times. Nothing more pathetic that watching a love sick boy that won't eat.

No he does NOT mark unless I have a bitch coming into season, the person in the other thread call them a marking MACHINE, let's put it this way UNLESS a girl is in season or coming into season he can SMELL that WAY before me HE is you merry go lucky guy, I NOTICE his change INMEdiATELY and if I am not breeding he is out to my mom's he HAD NEVER marked her house, now if I let him home, HE will mark the door where the bitch is locked, I guess is is staking his claim....LOL
but HE is NOT an automatic marking machine..:p
IS a BIG difference on a dog MARKING all over the house I had seen those, and a stud claiming his territory..:)