Self Whelping Bitches
Sorry if this is in the wrong category.
I am just looking a bit of education.
Talking to a breeder here she told me a few things that surprised me.
I am new to learning about pure Bred EBTs.
Anyway,all her bitches were caesarian sectioned.
She also used AI a lot even though she owned the Stud and Dam.
When pups were delivered she would sleep beside them all night putting pups on the teet every so often then taking them away fro Dam.
The Lady told me that Dams would regularly kill pups on purpose.
Either this or lay on them and kill them by accident, by the way I lost a couple of my own pups with that happening so its not just EBTs that do it.
Though from what she was saying it seemed that HER EBTs were prone to squashing every pup if left unsupervised.
Also on a lot of occasions an EBT would simply refuse to feed the pups and they had to be hand reared.
I was always told from a young boy,49 now, never take a pup that the mother didnt feed as it will never make the grade.
This concerned working dogs by the way.
Also if a Bitch had 5 pups and pushed one away then she had a good reason for doing it and it should be left to die.
Or perish as it s known here.
Now being honest I found all this goings on a bit disturbing and unnatural.
No way do I question her comittment to the breed in general and her dogs in particular.
She spends a lot of money with vet fees and puts in hard work time and effort.
Her pups sell for 1 thousand pounds minimum.
They are respected show stock.
But I dont believe she does it for the money.
More love of the breed.
Apparently this is very common in this country.
What are the dogs in America like.
Do the same problems exist.
I wonder would it not be better to try and remedy this situation by people encouraging breeding of self whelping Bitches.
A Dam who would deliver her pups in the natural way and then rear them proving herself a good mother.
I cant help feeling that it would be better for the breed as a whole.
Maybe I am just being old fashioned and its me making a fuss over nothing.
People tell me modern puppy milk is almost as good as the real thing,
I would be interested in hearing the situation with America.
Also your own opinion on the whole aspect of natural breeding.
Comments
Breeding: At least 50% of all our breedings are conducted by Artificial Insemination. I normally try and conduct supervised natural breedings prior to conducting an AI. However, in the event several attempts to tie have been made with no results AI becomes necessary in order to ensure breeding is conducted with the proper ovulation time frame when estrus levels are ideal. Unfortunately, many of the females we provide stud service for have not been well socialized with other dogs and often won't tolerate a stud mounting them especially if they are not ovulating. Proper ovulation tests and supervision during breeding is a must. Studs need to be actively breeding or purged on a routine basis to ensure fresh and liable sperm is produced otherwise you pose a risk of infecting the female as well as lowering the chances of impregnating. It is also important to have semiannual sperm counts done on the males to ensure their sperm count is appropriate for breeding. Not all male Bull Terriers are studs and unless they are raised and maintained as studs they will often become "Duds."
Whelping: I really wish I could say Bull Terriers took better care of their babies than other breeds but that would be a lie. In truth, they are probably one of the worst in regard to whelping a litter on their own. Your friend says she's spends the first 24 hours with the dame which I can't say is the norm. It depends on each Dame and most require a lot more constant supervision than 24 hours. We often have to spend several days (even up to one week) with constant supervision. This is with the mothers who at least have the capability to whelp their litter. It is not rare at all for the mother to either show no interest in caring for her puppies or kill them. In the event an ideal setting and whelping box is not provided in a isolated room at perfect temperature with privacy the chances of the mother safely whelping a litter is greatly reduced. Litters of 6 puppies or more require supplementing in order to make sure sure each puppy is receiving proper volumes of food intake each day. MANY litters require the breeder to bottle feed either from day one or a few days after birth. This means the breeder will be feeding each puppy every four hours until the puppies reach 4 weeks old and can be weened onto solid foods.
Yes, there is a huge commitment involved in whelping a litter of Bull Terrier puppies but the rewards are well worth every minute of efforts. Nothing beats seeing a litter of Bull Terrier puppies happily playing together at around 6 weeks of age. It's simply awesome.
I have a friend of mine that breeds Boxers and I'm always in awe in how well his bitches take care of their babies. I WISH it was like that with Bull Terriers but I know if it were we'd be seeing Bull Terriers everywhere. During both breeding and whelping stages Bull Terriers go through so much chemical changes that it is impossible to predict just how well they will accept their mate for breeding or how well they'll do with their puppies. Don't get me wrong there are some females who are absolutely perfect in both spectrums but they are not the ones to draw an opinion on in regard to the average Bull Terrier litter. We've been breeding for over 20 years now and have probably whelped close to 40 litters and by now I can at least say we have a great deal of experience and confidence in breeding and whelping healthy Bull Terrier puppies. I could write a book on all the difficulties and I've only touched base on a few difficulties in this short reply. This is why I welcome other breeders to contact us at any time when the run into challenges with their litters. It's all about looking out for the welfare of the breed.
"It's not just a Dog, it's a Bull Terrier!"
www.bulliesofnc.com
"It's not just a Dog, it's a Bull Terrier!"
www.bulliesofnc.com