Guidance please!
 

Hello!

Just yesterday, I became the owner of a 1.5 yo Yorkie named Mia. She's just the sweetest little thing :)

I've been reading here a lot and I know some of you feel very strongly about breeding and I respect and thank you for that but I hope you will nicely give me some guidance. There is a chance Mia is accidentally pregnant by her previous owners friend's Yorkie. This took place two weeks ago, they are both registered, in good health and the same size.

With this being a holiday weekend, I can't get her in to see my vet so I thought I could start here. If she is, I do not want to immediately spay her, her puppies would stay within our extended family. However if she is not, she would get spayed asap and is she is, as soon as she can after delivery. She is showing all the signs...tired, extra cuddly, not eating, enlarged teets/vulva, licking herself/very slight vomiting.

What should I read/watch/buy to prepare for this? Please do not flame me for my decisions to keep the pups. I will not be selling them and they too will get fixed as soon as they can and hopefully this will have a good outcome.

I know there is so much to learn in a very short amount of time but pointed in the right direction, I'm sure we'll make it. Common sense, street smarts and educating yourself goes a long way, lol :)

Anyway, sorry for the long post and thank you in advance. You have a great site here!

Ellie

Since she's only 2 weeks along and much too young to whelp a litter, my strong suggestion would be to have her spayed ASAP.

You say that she is healthy; however, I ask what tests have been performed on the two dogs? Whether or not you are just placing and not selling the pups, are you prepared to take on the financal responsibilty should any of these pups be born with a congenetal/inherited disease/defect?

As you've stated you've been reading and know how passionate we are about yorkies and breeding correctly. There is much information on YT to tell you what is needed. But, number one you need to find a coach that is well versed on whelping. Contact a breed or an all breed club to find a person such as this. Someone that will be available to you during the whelping process. Make sure you build a good relationship with your vet, and make sure that he'll be available to you 7x24 as her time draws near.

But, first and foremost you need to ask yourself are you prepared to loose her and possibly the litter. Are you prepared to give up a minimum of 4 months of your life.....and I mean being tied to your home, going nowhere. Do you have a savings for emergencies.....cause more often than not emergencies occur during the whelping process and you'll need deep pockets.

With that being said, start gathering your whelping supplies, find a quiet area in the home where she can be kept as her time draws near, a place where it is quiet, warm and away from other pets, drafts, etc. This place will be where you can be with her and her pups.

I could only point you in the direction of getting this girl spayed. There are many reasons not to continue with this pregnancy (and it sounds like she is) and only one I can think of to let it go on.

First, the reason to let her have the babies...your family gets a free, or nearly free, pup! Ummm, maybe not, as you'll want to recover your costs, right? Figure your costs, at minimum, being several hundred dollars with no complications. Complications, such as an emergency c-section, could add a couple thousand dollars to that figure.

Now, reasons to not let this go forward. First, you obviously have no experience and breeding Yorkies is not something you learn on the fly. But saying you're a bright, dedicated person and do your research, you still have no experience. You really need a mentor, or at least a coach, as you go.

Second, no matter your research, it won't do any good if you're not there when the time comes. Yorkies simply cannot have babies on their own. If your lifestyle doesn't allow you to be available, no matter the time of day or night, then you shouldn't let her go to term. If you aren't there and know what to do, dead babies or a dead Mommy are the likely result.

How could that happen? Well, Mom may not be a free whelper and could tire during contractions. She could die from this or from many other complications Or, a baby may be mal-presented and will not come out on its own. Or, the baby could be seen by the Mom as a placenta and be eaten. Or, the Mom could rip the baby apart trying to teat the sac and cut the cord. Or any number of other things. Bottom line, you must be there for the whelping and be knowledgeable enough to do what needs to be done and to recognize the signs of distress.

It doesn't stop there. So much can happen once the babies are on the ground. Your life will not be your own until the babies are placed into their forever homes. A baby that needs to be hand fed will totally take over your life for weeks with around the clock hand feedings. Are you prepared for that?

I've only skimmed over some of what it takes to birth and raise a litter of Yorkies. There is much more to it. You cannot count on everything to go smoothly and must be prepared for anything that may come up. Also, everything that isn't textbook will cost you money and you still may wind up with only heartache to show for it.

You never mentioned what size the girl is. The minimum breeding weight is 5 pounds and that is only if the girl has a good structure for whelping. If she's not of size and structure, that reason alone is enough to not continue forward, experienced or not. The vet will not be able to determine yet if she's pregnant or not, but can perform a spay and eliminate all the possible terrible outcomes.

Don't take this as flaming you. It is only the reality of breeding Yorkies. They are not a breed for a novice to fool around with and learn as you go. Every lesson learned this way is likely to have tragedy written all over it. Do yourself, and your girl, a huge favor and have her spayed. It simply is not worth the stress and heartache to go forward with no knowledge and experience. Remember that it is not you going through this, but rather your precious new girl and she and her pups will pay the price for your hard lessons learned.

I do want to welcome you to Yorkie Talk and thank you for posting before things go too far. But, as I said, I only sketched out some of the possibilities of things that can and do happen and am not being alarmist. Since you only just got her, this decision of yours must have been made rather quickly and I hope you will reconsider, for the sake of your girl.

I'm sure others will add to this as my reply is very incomplete. Please take to heart the advice of those that have been there/done that.

Ist of all welcome to yt! You made it quite clear that if she is pregnant you are going along with the litter so we need to support you! You need to get her into the vet,hopefully today! Usually the vet will not xray her until around the 44th day and you are not sure of exact dates. You need to buy or make a whelping box, start saving $$$, these are just a couple of tips and the most important 1, bond with Mia!

A vet will not x-ray until a week before her first due date of day 58 from her first breeding. With that being said the safest date x-ray is day 51.

The best possible way to support the OP is to provide her with the facts. Be completely honest of the undertaking. Anything short of that is being irresponsible.

If your mind is set on allowing a litter..if there is a litter..then simply read all the threads regarding whelping...develop a close relationship with your vet and hope for the best.
Your female is 17 months..not too young IMO, the pups would be born when she is nearly 19 months...but that would depend on her size and pelvic structure...we all differ on these things, but most show breeders I know breed in the 16 to 18 month range...
IMO the best you can do for this Yorkie is to spay her now.
Best wishes

Most of the breeders I know do not breed prior to 18 months of age but, prefer waiting till 2 and basing it not only on their structure, but their mental maturity.

I think breeding especially toy dogs is best left to the experts. Alot of things can go wrong and you can lose the pups or the mother or have to provide 24 hr care to the pups. It really isnt worth it and I will tell you my own breeding experience with cats where I lost all kittens but one then mom got a infection was enough to convince me to leave all breeding to the pros. It was seriously a scary and heartbreaking experience for me. Dont put yourself through that just enjoy your girl as a pet

Hi and welcome.

I feel that I would probably feel the same way you do. If one of the girls I adopted might have been pregnant, I would strongly consider letting the pregnancy go through IF the vet thought she would be ok. However, letting the pregnancy go through, may be what you feel is best for YOU and NOT what is best for her (I am not judging bc I feel I want to do the same thing).

Please be aware that because of their size, yorkie pregnancies and whelping are a lot more high risk than your average lab-mix farm dog. So start saving your $ for a c-section. Also, try to get to know your vet so that you can get his after hours/home #.

Hopefully, with enough preparation, you and your girl can make it through the birth. Be prepared to not sleep for two weeks following the birth as you supervise (and the very least) the mom and her new puppies or feed and potty the newborns.

Good luck!

First of all welcome to YT.

While you have just got this wee lady, did you have an idea she might have been pregnant before you accepted her into your home? I'm wondering how in a 24 hour period you came to such a big decision? And she hasn't yet been to see your vet. You will really need to ask his/her opinion on her "fitness" for whelping, as well you will need to know if this vet has the "whelping" experience to guide you through a pregnancy and a whelp. Even with the vet's help, you should secure a labour coach; Mary/Mardelin had some excellent suggestions.

As Woogie Man said you are putting your little girl in danger. There is no if'a and's or buts about it. You are at a real risk of losing your girl from a number of factors; 1) your inexperience - will you recognize signs of distress in your bitch during the pregnancy or during the whelping 2) Your girl is on the young side for a first time whelp, and as you didn't share what prebreeding tests were done, there was likely none done. 3) She will have barely had time to bond with you and her new environs, how easily will she accept your support and help during the whelp?

Should you after discussion with your vet, and through considerations of all the risks you will be exposing your little one to; then as another poster said; read all the stickies in the breeding section, read the stickie;" Dog Breeding your questions answered" by Mary/Mardelin, found in the YT library

You will need to ready your whelping supplies - there is a thread on here about what you will need
Book time off work to attend to your bitch during her last week of pregnancy and for at least another 13 or so weeks.

Be prepared to do all the vet work necessary both on your bitch and your pups. Inquire with your vet the cost of an emergency C section (just so you know that you will have the funds to cover this).

Have all pups regularly checked out by vet and their initial shots done, and at 16wks do a BAT test on the total litter, and btw your bitch should be checked as well. After all you don't want to place a Liver shunt pup that needs special care, with an unsuspecting family member.

I wish you and most particularly your little girl all the best, and would encourage you to take the time to read some of the posts here in this breeding section, about just what perils await your pup.

I don't know any ethical show breeders that have intentionally bred a bitch that young. It's one of the reasons we say that it's better to begin exhibiting with a dog, not a bitch. Few bitches complete their championship this young. This is why we see more bitches out with handlers pushing those upcoming heat cycles.

I don't see any reason on earth why someone would allow a bitch to face labor willy nilly. So many things can happen with a pregnancy that you created. These people are playing Russian roulette with a bitch when they think she's pregnate willy nilly. How many posts have we seen HELP HELP, panic stricken too late? These people just refuse to listen. They want puppies, the babies will be here, she will drop them out beautiful and loving. Oh we will have a perfect liter. Mom wants one, LuLu wants one and we'll sell the other three. OH Nooooo, He's not breathing, what do I do? I studied everything. I'm educated, I'm insulted. It's different for us. We will spay her afterward.

Spaying is loving. I don't mean to sound mean to the OP. My post is about people not listening to all of the people that have replied. I started not to. What's the point. We do the same thing. We'll rehash it. Some will die, one will live. The bitch may or may not make it. We'll be devastated and they'll move on. It's horrible. Spay her. Love her. She is a teenager. Let her be a princess, she WILL make you proud. I promise you. Nobody EVER regrets spaying a yorkie. They only regret NOT doing it. LOVE HER, don't try to hope it's okay. You know it's the right thing. Look at her tiny little body.
I'm a breeder. I KNOW WHAT TO DO IN MOST ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. If I didn't plan the pregnancy, knowing what the pedigree (peno and geno) I would spay my own. It's not mean, it is to love her. Please reconsider. If you'd like more information on this, we will be happy to supply. I KNOW it sounds horrible. However it's nothing like allowing her to have puppies. I promise you, I promise. It will also save you lots of money and hours of broken heart. I swear to you.

I perfer a solid 2 yrs, depending on other factors..but what some people say and do are two different things..not you, Mary! I do not want to start a disagreement...just saying what I see...I can count and when I asked a couple breeders about a 14 and 15 month breeding, I was told, the bitch was mature..and these were not no bodies in the dog world.

Mary..what does the code of conduct state...same for regional but I cannot recall just now...is it not before the seocnd season..and do they state an age...thanks :)

I would not skip a bitch if she was 21 or 22 months and came in season once a year...most all of my girls are and go 10..one I have now is a full 12 months between cycles...
BUT...I am only saying what has worked for 35 yrs..but again, I do not breed a bitch much before spaying..I want her done by 4 to 4 1/2 yrs..and that is not for any medical reason, ..just perfer to spay them in their prime.

Code says 18 months or 2nd Season. I have a few reasons as to why I breed closer too two years. First of all I don't breed unless I champion. Second, most of my girls don't come into their first Season until about 14 months. And come in every 8 to 10 months. I usually spay as close to 5 years as possible.

Ellie -- look your girl in the eye as you think of this -- Many, many, many more dams are lost in inexperienced childbirth than they are in the vet's office being spayed. Do you really want to do that to her? The people you got her from think maybe she got with the male yorkie -- but what if it wasn't the yorkie or if it was the yorkie and ALSO a neighbor dog or two. If one of those was on the large side, those puppies could grow too big for her to have. Stand by for a C-section $$$$ and much danger to the girl. Also -- you can NOT ethically register the puppies if you did not see the mating and know it was the only one. Spay and enjoy your new puppy! I loved what Elle said -- let her be a Princess!

Thanks...I thought 18 months...and I do understand not breeding until they get their title...unfortunately that is not the case with many breeders.