So you are interested in breeding your dog. You think your dog is cute and you want to have puppies, you want to make a quick buck in selling puppies or you are genuinly interested in becoming a professional breeder.

What if your dog had a pre-disposition or genetic flaw that meant those puppies were going to live a life of suffering and pain? What are you going to do then?

There is much you can learn from this forum before you put two dogs in a room and call yourself a breeder. I am interested in the Universe but beause I have looked through a telescope doesn't mean I am Steven Hawking.

REQUIRED READING

Woodhavenlabs.com Breeding (http://www.woodhavenlabs.com/breeding.html#breeding)

Woodhavenlabs.com Explanation of Clearances YOU NEED TO DO (http://woodhavenlabs.com/clearances.html)

Coat Color Chart in Labrador Retrievers (http://members.tripod.com/~beulahland/coatcolor.htm)

Please read the follow posts and they include important information. If you have links to add etc then PM and I will update it or unlock it so you can update it. I don't want the thread to be filled with posts but rather be a link to usefull reads and guides.

I don't have any links to add Woody but this is a good Thread "sticky post".

I would just like to say to anyone thinking about breeding. You have years of homework to do. Need money to do all clearances, hips, elbows, eyes (cert and optigen) and heart doppler-echo. And must have a quality bred dog with all these clearances behind them (parents, grandparents, etc.). You should have your dog evaluated by other breeders. Go to shows and learn all about it.

You should find a reputable breeder as your mentor to teach you all you need to know "before" you even consider the first litter. And that can take years. Without a mentor you will not find a reputable breeder with quality lines willing to sell you a puppy without Limited Registration.

I have been breeding for over 35 years and it is not for the faint of heart. you can and most likely, at some point, will loose pups and can even loose the bitch. Sometimes the entire litter is lost and it is heart breaking. You can end up with costly c-sections and have to know when to make the call for a c-section so as not to loose the bitch or the pups.

I could go on and on but I think I've said enough and most of what I have said and more is in the links provided on this thread.

Love your Labs and think twice about breeding if you don't gain "years" of knowledge first! If you are willing to do all the homework and find that special mentor than I commend you. If not, DON'T DO IT!

Where is Dani's post on breeding... It would be perfect here in the sticky section! :) I'll go look...Okay, here is is:

Directly from a post from Dani:

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Labs are terribly overbred in the United States. All too often folks think they are a gateway to money making. If you are breeding because people have stated that they would like a puppy out of your dog or you think your dog is the best or that you want your kids to witness the miracle of life. Stop, get your dog neutered and enjoy him as a pet.

If you have been showing your dog or competing with him in trials and he has attained some titles which implies that he is more than a couch potato, then I think you would have more merit in looking into breeding than to just say "he's from championship lines or hunting lines" which usually say that the CH or FC are about 4 generations back which have no direct bearing on the ability of your dog.

To Breed or Not to Breed
This question plagues people every single day. Let me tell you, there are many reasons why people decide to breed their dogs and there are millions of reasons why people should not breed.

Reasons that people give as reasons to breed:
My dog is awesome. I want to have his legacy live on.
My children would benefit from seeing the miracle of birth.
I want to make money off of my dog.
They are AKC registered and come from championship lines.
I didn't plan on breeding but she accidently got pregnant.
My dog is beautiful, others have told me they want a dog just like it.
None of these reasons make the persons or dogs involved reputable or necessarily "breeding stock". These reasons for breeding usually result in what are known as Back Yard Breeders and produce dogs for the sake of producing dogs and not for the betterment of the Labrador breed.

Did you know that there are OVER 125,000 Labrador Retrievers registered with the American Kennel Club annually? This is but one registering entity in the world (there are over 25)! Add to this number the other registering bodies, mix in the "oops" litters that never get registered, the registerable dogs that don't get registered, all of the strays and all of the labs stuck in shelters or rescues right now and the true Labrador Retriever has become lost in translation.

If you need a reason not to breed your Lab, I would highly suggest looking at the Petfinder™ website to see how many available labs there are out there in the United States alone. Unfortunately, many of these homeless labs never make it out of these shelters alive.

If you still are interested in breeding:
Are you a reputable breeder or just a backyard breeder? Find out the difference between the two here http://st15.startlogic.com/%7Ejustonel/breeder.html

Now ponder this. Youd should breed ONLY under the following conditions:
You are active in dog clubs, competitions and of further IMPROVING the Labrador breed.
Your dog is mature enough (2 years or older).
Your dog is themselves titled proving that they are a capable working dog as the breed standard outlines and not just from "champion bloodlines".
Your dog is free from genetic and physical defects and has all OFA clearances and eye certifcations of favorable scores completed and on record.
Your dog is of sound temperment.

A registered dog is not an indicator of QUALITY!
Most dogs, even purebreds, should not be bred. Many dogs, though wonderful pets, have defects of structure, personality or health that should not be perpetuated. Breeding animals should be proven free of these defects before starting on a reproductive career. If you do not know what these defects are that we are talking about, you should not be breeding. Breeding should only be done with the goal of improvement - an honest attempt to create puppies better than their parents. Ignorance is no excuse - once you have created a life, you can't take it back, even if blind, crippled or a canine psychopath!
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If you are interested in breeding, you need to be INVOLVED with the breed.

You should find a kennel club or regional labrador retriever club to join. Get involved, start working...

http://thelabradorclub.com/clubs/

Below is an excerpt from this link:
http://www.dolittler.com/index.cfm/2...cat.vs.11.6.06 (http://www.dolittler.com/index.cfm/2006/11/6/pet.vet.dog.cat.vs.11.6.06)

"A few days ago I wandered into the hospital on my day off (I just can’t stay away) and walked into one of those disaster scenarios worthy of Animal Planet’s Emergency Vets TV show.

The scene: Two techs vigorously trying to stimulate respiration in two recently extricated newborn pups. A German Shepherd bitch anesthetized on the surgical table, all four legs akimbo. One tech busily manning the anesthesia and instruments. The vet, my colleague, fully gowned and sweating over an open abdomen. And finally, the stunned owner standing nearby, hands over her mouth, looking for all the world like someone who’d like nothing better than to be anywhere else.

Great. Another one. Here’s where backyard breeders and I usually intersect—always under unpleasant circumstances, usually over a disaster C-section.

My colleague is like me. He likes to make them watch the fruits of their irresponsibility. While that might sound cruel—it usually works.

Faced with the impending death of two innocent babies I rolled up my sleeves like everyone else (save the ineffectual owner) and got down to the business of getting puppies to breathe.

The pups were huge and their lungs fluid-filled. They’d been overcooked. This bitch was probably due three full days ago (a very long time when gestation is only 63 days). This owner had completely missed the due date, signs of distress, etc.

By far the biggest mistake inexperienced breeders make is to assume nature will provide. This bountiful life force, she’s always in control and knows just when the little darlings will come into the world, right? Think again. After you breed a seventy-pound bitch to a hundred and ten pound male you’ve just offended Mother Earth. And she’s not so forgiving as the vets you desperately need when it all goes to hell.

When backyard breeders (ubiquitous offenders in Miami) get to teaching "the miracle of life" to their children, they can be truly stupid. Here are the mistakes they usually make that lead to that last-second, emergency C-section:

1-They don’t know the date the dogs got it together. (But they live in the back yard and they’re always together.)

2-They have sought no pre-pregnancy or pre-natal healthcare for their dogs. (When I was little we never needed to do that and my dog had ten puppies six times.)

3-They were not prepared for the birthing process. (No whelping box, no towels or newspapers, just a big backyard with a "comfy" patio.)

4-They have no idea what to look for when the bitch is ready to whelp. (What’s whelping? You mean I should hit her while she’s giving birth?)

5-They ignore signs of distress. (But she always paces around all night in a circle and that stuff coming out of her is normal, right?)

About half the time backyard breeders get lucky and they bring their dogs in before all is lost. The other half are not so lucky. While we can usually save the mother the pups are often dead or simply not sustainably revivable.

My own dog was one of these irresponsibly bred dogs. Although her owner considered herself a dog breeder, those pesky methamphetamines had been getting in the way of her breeding business. Sophie Sue was one of her casualties: her uterus had ruptured when the pups couldn’t make their way out. Who knows how long she had been trying to deliver them? I managed to negotiate her freedom for the price of the C-section and spay. (Crassly explaining that she didn’t need another non-productive mouth to feed, she enthusiastically made the deal.)

This week’s case was similarly disastrous. The bitch`s uterus was fluid-filled and unresponsive to oxytocin—it had clearly been over-used and less than cared for. In its current state it was a perfect candidate for pyometra (an overwhelming infection of the uterus). The owner did not, however, grant permission for the recommended spay.

After an hour of working on the pups it became clear we couldn’t maintain their hearts or respiration in the presence of all that fluid. Suction, oxygen, drugs….and then nothing. Yet this owner was undeterred. (Next time I’ll have to keep her inside when she starts to look big.) Great. You do that. We’ll look forward to your next visit.

You’re thinking: There should be a law against that! Nope. That’s not negligence in the eyes of the law. Nor is it considered animal cruelty. If you overstuff your fridge and it breaks that’s your dumb luck. While in Miami-Dade County (where I live) breeders have to obtain a license and fulfill some basic puppy care requirements, no pre-birth regulations are included in the legislation. Dogs are your property. You can f--- them up any way you like as long as you don’t actively do them violence.

Make no mistake, breeding is not for the meek…or the ignorant…or the irresponsible. It takes years to learn how to do it right. In lieu of that, it takes a whole lot more research and veterinary care than most people realize. I make that point with the owner of every single unspayed female that walks through my door. Are you willing to risk her life for some potential puppies?

Until backyard breeders stop doing their thing and until laws can be installed and enforced to make them stop, I’ll have to keep doing these disaster C-sections. There’s no point in denying any animal a life-saving surgery. But I will continue to make those responsible observe the outcome of their ignorance and arrogance. I want the "miracle of life" to be at least a fraction as painful and uncomfortable for them as it was for their pet."

I admit, I've thought about it. My puppy is a beautiful dog from champion lines. But just the thought of dealing with whelping if something goes wrong, or there is something seriously wrong with the puppies makes me realize that I am not willing to take those risks. So Cooper will be spayed as soon as she is old enough.

I actually wrote this the other day in response to a thread that was locked while I was composing it.

I would like to share it here as I think it very appropriate.



Breeding is NOT a hobby and costs lots of money.

First you need to make sure that your dog meets the breed standard. It he/she was sold on a limited registration then their puppies are worthless and you can be sued by your breeder (if they are reputable and not a puppy mill or BYB). Does your dog have proper structure, head, eyes, shoulder lay, does it have a nice topline? How is its gait?

Second, you should have a championship on your dog either a CH, RN, CD, WD, etc. If you don't know what any of them mean, then you have lots of home work to do.

Cost of a stud dog can be anywhere from $500 - $2000 plus testing on the bitch for STD's which most stud owner's incisit on, also clearnaces of the hips/elbows (mine were just $400 on my one girl and she fail as it showed she has moderate Hip Dysplasia) CERF eye exams that need to be annually and even PRA test which is about $300.

You also need to do research on your pedigree so you know the dogs behind it and know if there are any hidden health risks like eye folds, epilepsy, parrot mouth and the list can go on and on. You need to find a comlimentary pedigree to match yours. There is a LOT more to breeding than just putting two dogs together and in 64 days you have puppies.

Every time you breed your Bitches life is at risk. Would you know if you bitch needed a c-section? Do you have a whelping box? (do you even know what one is?)

There are many reputable breeders out there and if you are serious about getting into breededing then you really need to find yourself a mentor and learn about all of these things.

Are you willing to be around for the rest of the puppies lives that you produce? You do have a committment to them for their entire life. If for whatever reason a reputable breeder will take back a puppy that they have sold so it does not end up in a shelter. If you cannot do this then you should not be breeding.

This is just the tip of the iceburg.

Honestly, it really does not sound like you have done your homework at all and while most of us are all for new breeders if they go about it the correct way, it does not sound like you even know the first thing about this.

I am going to be very harsh and say that it is because of people like you that our resue's are so over crowed.

I recently heard of a breeder in my area that responds in the following way when someone says to her that they want their children to witness the maricle of birth "oh, are you also going to take them to the local shelter on kill day so they can witness all the dogs being put to sleep?"

Some things people who want to breed should really think about.
1/ you need to start off with a top quality bitch, not the pet you bought becasue the pet comes from a great pedigree. find the best you can and a breeder who will mentor you.
2/ just because joe blow down the street has a lab and look nice " gee we should have a litter." is not a reason the breed.
3/. just because you dog passes clearances is not a reason to breed.
4/ in a litter you may only have one pup who represents the breed to the standard defined by the country you live in whether you are in england/usa/canada.
5/ all puppies should be placed on limited registration / spayed and neutured and double check with the owners to ensure this is completed.
6. are you willing to care for the entire litter and if you cannot place to good homes " what are you going to do"?
7.are you willing to take back any of your puppies for their entire life iF something happens.. if not DO NOT BREED.
8.LEARN/LISTEN/READ.GO TO EVENTS( SHOW/ HUNT etc), join a club ,get guidance from members in good standing,

i could go on and on.

"The average female dog can produce two litters every year. The average number of puppies in each litter is between 6 and 10. In 6 years one female dog and her offspring theoretically can produce 67,000 dogs." From a 3rd grade lesson plan.

Something to think about for someone who "just wants one litter".

A Quick Bump to put it up top.