Thinking of Breeding
 

Hi I am thinking of getting into breeding Yorkies, and need all of the information I can get. How old should the female be, how many puppies is normal. Do they have less the first time, or doesn't it matter. I've read a variety of theories on how often to breed from twice a year to every two years. Should you quit breeding them after a certain age or number of times. I've had Yorkies before but have never bred them. My husband and I are retired and we thought this might be something we'd like to do.

How long ago did you have Yorkies?

Buy the best female you can find, no matter what it costs from a breeder who has been doing an excellent job of breeding for many years and will
mentor you through all of this.

First off, Hello and welcome to yt!

There are many factors you will want to consider. Do you already own yorkies or will you be looking for a good foundation? If you don't have any at the moment then I would say that's great because you can learn all you can prior to purchasing nice, sound yorkies for breeding. Purchase books, read them like 20 times each (lol :) ) and find an experienced breeder to help you. But to answer your question, females generally should be over a year old and have had their 2nd heat cycle before breeding. Yorkies can have anywhere from 1 pup up to several pups. I had a litter of 6 once. The amount of puppies is going to depend on the number of eggs the bitch releases along with how many were fertilized. Timing of breeding can play into this.

Great advice!!! You need to look for an experienced, ehtical, reputable breeder who can teach you what you need to know. Preferably one near by who can teach you how to whelp and be there 24/7 whenever you need him/her.

I am not a breeder because of the research I have done and the scary and sometimes sad stories I have heard. I give credit to those who can do it and provide the puppies to keep this wonderful breed alive.

There are lots of books you can read and research you can do which you should but of course the hands on experience is invaluable, go to yorkie dog shows, meet some show breeders and learn all of the hard hard work that it is. Have you ever bred dogs before? Yorkies are particularly difficult to breed and there is great risk to the female in any breeding so you need to be willing ot accept that risk. The puppies need 24/7 care as does the mom just prior to whelping. I persoanlly would not even consider breeding unless I had a canine reproductive specialist close by to do pre-mating evaluations and to be available in case of any emergencies.

Have fun learning all there is to learn and keep us posted as you progress on this journey.

Go to http://www.geocities.com/virtualbreeding/ for a fun little trip through what it's like to breed. :thumbup:

We recently lost one that we had for 10 years.

I'm still learning how to use this forum.

We recently lost one that we had for 10 years.

Hi and welcome to YT~

I've been breedign for only 3 years the best advise I could give is for you to find someone locally that breeds go and visit see how they do things talk to them about their breeding program. When you find someone that is responsible and ethical that you want to be just like someday chose that person or persons as your mentor(s). I have several. Each of them have good things to offer me. A mentor will be there or your for your first litter and with others along the way. Mentor's can help you pick your foundation, sometimes love is blind when starting out and we miss some of the obvious faults OR maybe you don't know what they are. A mentor will be able to answer the questions you pose above.

There are wonderful people on this forum so we are definitely a good back up :) but first and foremost you need to get some help locally if you can. Also discuss breeding with yoru vet, get their opinoin on it. SOme vets do not support breeding..find a new one until you find one that dose. YOu need a mentor for health and genetic problems too.

Where do you live? Maybe we can suggest some breeders in your area that may be willing to mentor.

Best wishes!

Hi Jeanie,
My advice would be start with the best, FIRST health priority and then closest to the standard. Getting a mentor is really important. You can look at pictures all day long but it will never measure up to be someone helping you.
I didnt do that because I didnt really know any better. When I started money was everything. I couldnt afford those really expensive dogs. Theres alot to it really, you think you know but you learn something everyday.
You may have to spend more but its truly worth it. Dont get in a hurry, interview breeders.
How often you breed really depends on the female. How fast she bounces back, if she has any problems at all.....really to hard to quote without those things.
At the very earliest breed at female at her second heat.
Welcome to YT!

I live in Council Bluffs, Iowa. I have put a deposit on a female from Praire View Kennel in South Dakota. I don't have a male selected yet.

Sorry Irene, I replied to Kelly and I meant to reply to yours. I live I Council Bluffs Iowa. I have put a deposit down on a female from Praire View Kennel in South Dakota. I have not chosen a male yet. It will be a while before she is ready to breed, but I want to get as much information as I can so I'm not going into it blind.

Jeanie

Good luck on your selection process! Next the perfect matching boy! :) you can ony hope!
Do you know the lines of your lil girl? Look for something that compliments your female. Look for a few matching lines maybe in her pedigree with the male that you chose. Maybe in the second or third generation.

Ok. SO you have a female picked out already.One thing I have learned is that you always have ot be prepared to remove something out of your breeding program at anytime. This is the hardest part of breeding. Be prepared to take financial losses from day one. This little girl you have a deposit on has so much changing to do. How old is she? Does teh breeder say she's breeding quality? Do you know what breeding quality is? I'm just askign these quesitions to get your mind juices flowing :) breeding is NOT easy. I'll send you info privately what I went through when I started out..it's on another thread..but because it's long I don't want to fill the space on this thread by duplicating the info. I don't know of anyone in Iowa to recommend..maybe some others do. Have you talked to any breeders in your area? Ask your local vets..Call them all...you first objective is to find someone to help you with this new puppy. I would suggest waiting on your male. You don't need one until your female is around 2 yrs old just focus on your femaile and getting a mentor. Rushing into breeding will not get you there faster..it may set you back alot farther.

Ok..I'm gonna send you a private message...

How old is the female and is she for sure breed quality? I would have a show breeder and a canine reproductive specialist vet assess her before you go through with the transaction if your intention is to breed her for sure. If you don't care if she turns out to be pet quality only and not breedable then it doesn't matter.

I don't know at what age they can do a pre-mating evaluation but I think the female has to be older than a puppy.

Oh Boy, we're all coming at you at once but they are things you have to think about
I am not a breeder either but I have studied the breed for a very long time and if you
get someone local or within 100 miles, you don't necessarily have to buy a male. The
breeder you pick may have a beautiful male to breed back to....study the standard
so it is pictured in your head at all times so you really know what a good one looks
like but health is even more important so I would add....study the pedigrees of the
lines you come to like. There are breeders and then there are BREEDERS and anything
worth doing is worth doing right. We will be there for you and I wish you the best.

I have a few breeders I would recommend and I don't know how close they are to you.

Willabar
Knoxville, Ia
abarb@harenet.net

Jo-Lee's
Carroll, Ia
yorkie@win-4-u.net

Sagebrooke
Mount Pleasant, Ia
sagebrookeyt@yahoo.com

Jo San's
Cherokee, Ia
djsweet@netens.net if that doesn't work try djsweet@netins.net

You can get to know alittle about them by email and then call because you really get
a feel for people on the phone.

In the hurry to answer your question I missed this, and I am so very sorry for your
lose. So many of us here have gone through the same thing and we all have had
a hard time with it as I 'm sure you and your hubby have also. I hope your dreams
of breeding come true.

Thanks for everyone's input
 

I just wanted to thank all of you for your suggestions and input. I ordered some books on yorkies and on breeding, and have been doing a lot of reading.

I have read about the genetics and recessive gens etc so I see the importance of choosing the proper mate for her. I take the resonsibility of a breeder seriously, and plan to do my best to produce quality puppies.

I have at least a year before I need to choose a mate for her so I will take my time and get to know the breed standards better, and get to know my little girl better so I can choose a good mate.

I understand that it is risky and challenging, but I believe that I can meet the challenge. Thank to all of you, I am not going into this blind.

Jeanie

I am so glad people have answered the questions that I needed to know. I have a yorkipoo and was thinking of letting a friend breed her with their purebred yorkie, I know mixed breeding, but it would not be done if we did not have homes prior to them breeding. I had the same question about doing it once because I heard that it makes the female be more loving and more bonding,(could be just a myth), after reading everything I have on this thread no way. I love Nelly too much to have her in any danger, and I know too that there is a chance that the adopters could change their mind, that is why I wanted to know how many they can have too because if it were up to me I would have kept them all. But rest assured Nelly will have her surgery in two weeks no matter how nervous I am about it I could not bare the thought of her in any danger. I did not realize all the dangers of breeding, I knew it was a full time job but the risks of your babies, I commend you all and am so glad that this site is here so I can make a smart choice instead of the niave one I was going to make. Thanks for all the info.

Sorry about your loss , I know how hard it is believe me- Been there done that.and it still hurts. But get up dust our selves off and go again.

My best to you in starting your new venture, sounds like you are at least thinking and if you study hard and hopefully find a local mentor/ breeder to guide you through it can be a very rewarding vocation even for us old retired people :rolleyes:

You will find lots of great advice on here and sort thru it and use all that you can as well as check this breeders thread on a regular schedule. I know there are many very educated breeders here that will help all they can. I find tips from them often too and I have been at this longer than some of them are old which proves you are never too old to learn if you keep your ears open and mouth shut :D

Again-Glad to have you here..

Welcome to YT. I don't know how long you researched before you bought your female, but there is not a breeder on here that did not make a poor choice in the beginning because we bought and then in our learning process about dam and sire selection, realized that we had a dog that was not the quality that we had thought was good breed potential..Learning to interview a breeder is one of the most important first lessons. Then learning what the breeder should ask you is second. If you are convinced the breeder is the best you can afford to buy from, ask them if they will mentor you.
It takes a very long time to get established in the art and science of breeding these sweet babies. So, as Pat has posted before, read thru the archives here and your concerns and questions might be already dealt with by other members..

Oh boy are you ever right !!! Why do you think my daughters and grown grandchildren that wanted a young Yorkie for forever has one ? Its hard to get the quality to breed as most breeders won't sell ( I don't blame them ) their proven dogs and about the only way to get outside bloodlines is to buy a puppy and pray that it grows up with the confirmation, looks,coat, topline etc that you need to work along with the genetic pedigree whether you line breed or out breed. Oh is it any wonder we get so picky about how and where those babies we get go to ? No I think that we are all so invested in this that a piece of us goes out the door with each and every puppy we produce and sometimes we want to keep more of them than is smart because we think that might be that certain "one".

Be willing to learn and it can bring great joy if you love the breed.