Breeding Back-to-Back
On Breeding Back-to-Back....
Because we truly desire to do the best for our dogs, we breed our females back-to-back when they are of an appropriate age and then retire and spay them fairly young - usually before they are 4 years old. Several new studies have conclusively found that this approach is much healthier for a breeding female as opposed to skipping heats, as the old thinking goes. Please see the linked studies below.
While we do breed every heat, we never breed on the first two heats and sometimes not on the third heat either. Breeding dogs in their prime is much healthier and safer for dam and puppies. While it is better to breed every heat, we also think that breeders need to use common sense and make sure that their females are in top condition. They need to have completely recovered from their previous litter. A dog is more than just a uterus!
Dogs that do not enjoy being moms are not bred again - it is not fair to them and very stressful for us.
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In short:
The female will go through estrus no matter if she is bred or not and by breeding a healthy dam back to back, can lessen the chances of the female experiencing pyometra, infections and false pregnancy. Spaying her earlier also greatly reduces her risk of mammary cancer.
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Information on Breeding Age and Back to Back Breeding
Simple explanation of a dog's estrus cycle and hormonal effects thereof.
Here are a few scientific articles for those interested:
Back to Back Breeding and Pseudopregnancy The Australian Journal of Professional Dog Breeders
Prolactin and Anti-Prolactinic Agents in the Pathophysiology and Treatment of Mammary Tumors in the Dog.
Canine Pseudopregnancy: A Review (Last Updated: 23-Aug-2001).
Clinical aspects of uterine disease in the bitch and queen. Proceeding of the Southern European Veterinary Conference Oct. 2-4, 2009.
Johnson CA. Cystic endometrial hyperplasia, pyometra, and infertility. In: Ettinger
In dogs, the females showing most stress, and damage of the uterus were the females that were bred "every other" heat cycle. Part of the rational that skipping heat cycles is harmful stems from the fact that with consecutive heat cycles there is no "flushing action" of the uterus, which normally occurs by having a litter of puppies.
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We will continue to FOLLOW THE SCIENCE and do what is best for our dogs. We are open to reasonable discussion - again, backed by scientific research, not opinions, feelings or traditional thinking.
