BRANDY

I HAVE A 4 YEAR OLD BASSETT NAMED LOLA AND I WANT TO BREED HER BUT I DONT KNOW HOW! MY HUSBAND WORKS WITH A LADY THAT HAS A BASSETT AND SHE WANTS TO BREED WITH MY DOG BUT WE HAVE NEVER DONE THIS BEFORE WHAT ARE THE FIRST STEPS TO TAKE? DO YOU JUST PUT THEM TOGETHER AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS?

Betsy Iole

Brandy, could you explain why you want to breed your basset? Here are some additional thoughts that you might want to take into consideration.

I believe there are only two reasons that people breed their dogs intentionally. The first is a desire to improve upon a breed that they already love and have probably spent years studying. These people breed to produce bassets of superior conformation, temperament and (ideally) performance ability. They usually have mentors within the breed who advise them in their novice breeding efforts, and it would be unusual for such a person to direct a question similar to yours to this forum. These people usually invest far more money on prenatal care of the dam, stud fees, and on providing veterinary care for the dam and her litter than they are ever able to recoupe from puppy sales.

The second reason is to make money from selling puppies. People who breed for his reason include puppy millers and backyard breeders. They provide no more veterinary care than is absolutely necessary, as it cuts into their profits. They do not screen potential puppy buyers to learn whether they will provide a suitable home for a puppy of a given breed. These people are filling up shelters with unwanted pets by the millions.

Even if you only want to breed your basset because you love her and because she's a wonderful pet, why not first consider allowing some of the many homeless bassets already in rescue in Florida a chance at a home? Are you aware of health conditions in our breed that are transmitted genetically, and do you have a plan for breeding around those problems? Do you know how to evaluate puppies to see whether they are free of these problems (these disorders can be passed onto puppies, even if neither parent is affected.) Are you aware of any puppy lemon laws in your state that would apply to you if you sell a puppy with a health condition that requires expensive veterinary care? Are you prepared to take back any puppies that Lola has, at any time during their lives, to prevent them from being surrendered to shelters/euthanised?

There are many additional issues to consider when deciding whether to breed. Because it sounds as if you may not be aware of some of these issues, I wanted to bring just a few of them to your attention.

__________________
Betsy, Mom to
CH Bugle Bay's Sin City Caper UD RE TD BHCA-VC
CH Bugle Bay's Sin City Cuppa Joe TD
CH Bugle Bay's AllUCanEat Buffet CDX RN TDX NA CGC BHCA-VCX, 1996-2008
"Bugsie" UDX NA NAJ CGC, 1991-2006

BRANDY

WELL I BOUGHT AN ENGLISH BULLDOG FROM A LADY ABOUT A MONTH AGO AND SHE BREEDS AND SELLS THEM FOR SHOW DOGS AND SHE WAS VERY PROFESIONAL ABOUT IT.I AM A HOUSEWIFE AND MY TWO CHILDREN ARE IN SCHOOL NOW AND I ENJOY MY 3 DOGS SO WELL I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO KNOW MORE ABOUT BREEDING AND POSSIBLY GET INTO IT I LOVE MY DOGS LIKE MY CHILDREN I THINK I HAVE THEM TO THE VET MORE THAN I HAVE MY CHILDREN AT THE DOCTORS! I REALLY THINK I WOULD ENJOY DOING THIS.I JUST REALLY NEED TO FIND OUT AS MUCH INFO AS I CAN.SO IF THERE IS ANYTHING THAT YOU KNOW OF THAT COULD EDUCATE ME MORE ON THIS PLEASE LET ME KNOW!

Betsy Iole

Your local basset hound club would be an excellent place for you to meet reputable basset breeders and exhibitors. You could also consider attending local all-breed and speciality (bassets only) dog shows as another means of meeting reputable breeders of bassets and other breeds. As you get to know the local basset folks, you may be able to find yourself a mentor. This person might be willing to evaluate your dog for you. At the same time, you will learn more about the breed and develop a clearer idea of what you would want to see in puppies that you might breed.

__________________
Betsy, Mom to
CH Bugle Bay's Sin City Caper UD RE TD BHCA-VC
CH Bugle Bay's Sin City Cuppa Joe TD
CH Bugle Bay's AllUCanEat Buffet CDX RN TDX NA CGC BHCA-VCX, 1996-2008
"Bugsie" UDX NA NAJ CGC, 1991-2006

BRANDY

THANK YOU!I LIVE IN SARSOTA FLORIDA AND I HAVE FOUND ALOT OF PLACES THAT DEAL WITH BULLDOGS BECAUSE I ALSO HAVE AN ENGLISH BULLDOG NAMED OTTO BUT HAVENT REALLY FOUND ANYTHING FOR LOLA.SO IM GOING TO TALK TO MY VET TO TRY TO FIND OUT MORE.THANKS AGAIN!

RKL

Before you bring more unnecessary dogs into this world, how about volunteering a couple days a week at your local shelter and see what happens to the unwanted pets in this disposable society.

Beatrice's servants

As an assistant to the basset rescue group in FL...I can give you an idea about how many bassets are already in need of good homes here...A LOT. We are always looking for foster homes & contacts that can pick up bassets from the shelters, pounds, abusive situations, etc. If you are a stay-at-home mom...then maybe you have time to donate to a rescue organization. I will include the link to Karen Axelson of Suncoast Basset Rescue so you can contact her if you are interested. You can always email me directly if you are interested. Please consider this route to help the breed...thanks! Carol http://www.stormloader.com/basset/index.htm

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Carol
arooos from Bea & George

BRANDY

I DONT UNDERSTAND WHY ITS SO GREAT AND OK THAT EVERYBODY ELSE CAN BREED THERE BASSETT BUT IT IS A HORRIBLE IDEA FOR ME TO. LOLA COMES FROM A LONG LINE OF CHAMPION SHOW DOGS AND I WOULD HATE TO THINK THAT ITS A BAD IDEA FOR ME TO BREED HER! IM SURE ALL OF YOU WERE JUST LIKE ME BEFORE YOU STARTED BREEDING AND YOU HAD TO LEARN ALL THE THINGS THAT YOU KNOW NOW.SO WHY SHOULDNT I LEARN EVERYTHING I NEED TO KNOW AND DO THE SAME THING YOUR DOING WHICH IS BREEDING AND SELLING BASSETT HOUNDS.THERE ARE ALOT OF PEOPLE IN SARASOTA THAT WOULD LOVE TO OWN ONE BUT THERES NOT MANY PLACES TO GET ONE IN SARASOTA EXCEPT THE PET SHOPS AND NOT MANY PEOPLE LIKE THE IDEA OF BUYING FROM A PET STORE.I UNDERSTAND THERE ARE ALOT OF DOGS THAT NEED GOOD HOMES,BUT SHOULD WE ALL JUST STOP BREEDING BASSETTS UNTIL THE ONES THAT HAVE NO HOMES FIND A HOME PLEASE SOMEONE EXPLAIN TO ME WHY IM GETTING SUCH NEGATIVE FEEDBACK ON BREEDING MY DOG.

winnieslo

Brandy, I think you'll find very few folks here that breed their dogs-but alot who have rescued hounds, including some with impressive pedigrees.

Betsy Iole

Brandy, would you mind not typing all in caps? On the internet, typing in all caps is the same as shouting or screaming.

If you are sincere in wanting to study the breed, you should attend dog shows and join your local basset hound club (there are two in FL), which is where you will find people who are the most knowledgeable about the breed. You should study the breed standard and refer to the several excellent publications available on the breed. You should attempt to determine whether or not your particular dog should be bred; the vast majority of basset pets should be spayed/neutered rather than bred.

No one is saying that you should never breed. I think we sense that you probably don't yet have the fund of knowledge that responsible breeders may spend years developing before they breed their first litter. For that reason, we're encouraging you to educate yourself, so that you don't unintentionally join the ranks of the puppymillers/backyard breeders, who already produce millions of unwanted, throw-away pets that are killed every year. There is simply no defensible reason to intentionally swell this unfortunate segment of the companion animal population.

Additional discussion of breeding concerns can be found if you select "show topics for the last 100 (or more) days" in the upper right hand corner of your screen.

__________________
Betsy, Mom to
CH Bugle Bay's Sin City Caper UD RE TD BHCA-VC
CH Bugle Bay's Sin City Cuppa Joe TD
CH Bugle Bay's AllUCanEat Buffet CDX RN TDX NA CGC BHCA-VCX, 1996-2008
"Bugsie" UDX NA NAJ CGC, 1991-2006