Very well said! I am not an incredibly experienced breeder, IMO, when compared to some of you veterans here, therefor, I try not to act like my knowledge is complete. I am glad the newbies (myself included) are blessed with some with years and years of experience to help us as we go.

Wow, thanks Kimberly...that is all very helpful. :thumbup: It's almost like a checklist! :eek:

Kim, you vet sounds very well versed and knows who to contact if need be. That's just as good as a RS IMO.

Irene and Rini are two of the most well respected breeders on this forum. I would trust either of them and consider them to have the highest standards when it comes to their respective breeding programs. This is a perfect example of the fact that you can have different programs and ways of doing things and no one is wrong or better than another per se.

Rini has many many years of exprience and a medical background as well as a vet she trusts implicitly under any circumstances ( proablby because she has trained him well over the years...lol...) while Irene is fairly new to breeding but is intelligent and knows the value of the fact that her regualr vet just happens to be a RS.

In the situation of advising this OP and possibly first time breeder, I felt no qualms about advising her of the existence and possibility of seeking out an RS for the added protection one may offer her little girl in making the decision as to whether to breed her or not. Will she get good advie from the vet she currently uses?? Maybe, but what would be harm to asking for a referral to a specialist? Yorkies are difficult to breed and have more problems than other breeds so why not use every available resource to reduce that extra risk?

What? That is a repost of my list from Post #17?

Kimberly? Why would you repost that without putting it in quotes?

Thanks for the compliment? :confused:

Good plan Irene :thumbup: :thumbup:

Um, I meant with the descriptions and her experience with each of them... I realize you brought them up first and they were very good points then too--I never said that they were NOT good points, they were :thumbup: , regardless of WHO posted them first.

EXCUSE ME! you are in bold I am in normal type face giving a simply and clear explaination what is entailed with each from your list.

passing you my glasses!

Very nice and I think this was just the kind of answers Wendy was looking for :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

I'd love to see no debating for a change or this thread will get locked - the OP of this thread specifically asked for NO Ranting in her first post.

A simple question was asked and she's getting answers from breeders - why not keep this on topic ?

I too use a REPRODUCTIVE SPECIALIST. Dr. Emily Roberson. I'll clear this all up real fast like for ya! She is not any smarter/better than any other vet I have ever been too ...although she does deal with pregnancy alot more so than the others in my area. I go to her because she is a fun loving , down to earth girl around my same age and she is 2 MILES FROM MY HOME. Thank you.

Ha ha ha...good way to get things back on track V! I agree, I think this will only benefit her and everyone else if it says CIVIL! (OK, maybe that's not my best quality... :rolleyes: )

Most vet schools have them.

I just know that I would never risk the life of a female yorkie as a first time breeder w/o taking her to a RS for a thorough evaluation. Just as it is my opinion, and yours I think, that is not right to breed a female under 4 lbs and I can say, as you can, that you shouldn't do it if you care about your girl, I can say it is my opinion that "it is worth the effort and the expense to see a RS if you care about your girl". There is no difference in the two.

Kim,

I don't think that's a fair. If a vet is not RS, I would feel just as comfortable with them telling me they will contact one if need be.

My point is there are times when a person may not be able to see one if they are not near one- remember there is a middle America and schools and such may not be realistic for them to get too.....so in that case if they have a vet they trust they may have to go with that-

"When need be" is the opertive words~! :thumbup:

Quietly and deiberately stepping away from the computer....... :zip: ;)

Sorry Wendy, to answer your question. About your female. I would give her until her 3rd heat, she may puff out a bit more..good luck!

I hesitate to jump into the middle of this heated conversation, but I used a "reproduction specialist" to breed my two yorkies, and here is why:

I've been attempting to breed them with letting nature take its course and then with a my not very helpful assistance. So this latest time Paddy went into heat, I called their regular Vet - who is not a RS. I wanted to just take them into the office and them help Kenzy mount her. But they told me they didn't do that and there was only one Vet's office in our area who did...so I called them. Not until after I had the appointment and was standing in the exam room did I find out that he is a RS. Personal, I didn't notice a difference while there because he was treating all kinds of illnesses and conducting regular checkups.

So why does he call himself a RS? He told me he had a passion for breeding. He breeds and shows dogs himself, and because of his interests in the field, he made it available in our area for people who want to, for example, breed with a championship bloodline in a distant state (yes, frozen sperm being shipped here). :D

Anyway, I did not pick him for his specialty nor did he come across as a doctor who felt he could assist better than your average Vet - he just loves helping with breeding so much that he focuses most of his practice to it.

I'm just glad I found him because he is a wonderful Vet in general and such a gentle soul. So perhaps a generalized Vet who wishes to focus on breeding-type issues is not such a bad thing to have available if that would be something you choose to utilize. Hey, it worked first try! And he is actually less expensive than their other Vet. Ok, sorry this got long...