[Soundtrack]

I haven't done a lot of breeding with my males, and what was done was usually with help or AI or was done by someone else, so I can't really comment there. I have heard the theory that you should breed a male young once and then let him grow up, but I haven't done it.

Then again, Kermit did his first breeding at two years of age and managed just fine all by himself. Broke the bitch out of her crate, too..... left them in the car for 10-15 minutes and came back to find them tied. :roll:

Now, not like I'm a wildlife expert or anything, but I believe that it's only the top female in a wolf pack that's allowed to breed. In that case, I'd expect she'd be fairly mature to have earned this place. Certainly I won't breed one of my girls before they're two. They certainly seem immature, mentally and physically, before that. To me breeding them younger is like young teens having babies, possible but not a good idea.

[ May 15, 2005, 06:34 PM: Message edited by: Soundtrack ]

 

[Soundtrack]

Yes, unsupervised matings between awkward dogs like bassets can easily result in injury to one or both, especially when one of them is inexperienced. And your bitch is way too young to be bred.

Also, pregancy, even for humans, is still a very risky business. There is the potential for pyometra (life-threatening uterine infection), stuck puppies (need a c-section, if you're not there the mom and pups will die), inertia (no contractions, again needs a c-section or the pups will die and decompose and make the mother sick), eclampsia (calcium deficiency, can result in seizures, brain damage and death), mastitis (breast infection) and other risks. I've dealt with all of these except the eclampsia, fortunately I was with them 24/7 from before whelping until the pups were 5 weeks old so I was albe to rush them to the vet right away.

And you need to be prepared for the possibility of losing puppies, sometimes the mom sits on them, sometimes they're born defective, sometimes they get sick. It is heartbreaking to lose a pup because the mom sat on it, or to put a puppy to sleep because of a cleft palate or other defect that it can't live with.

If you want to experience the "miracle of life" make sure you're prepared for the "miracle of death".

 

[Soundtrack]

Show dogs AND companions. But I'm not sure I understand the question. Bassets are definitely a unique breed, but certainly trying to raise a litter of pups to be as healthy and well-adjusted as possible is a lot of work and expense, no matter what the breed I would expect.

 

[Soundtrack]

Minimum two years of age. I have two girls that are about to turn one, they are still obviously immature compared to the adults here, both mentally and physically. This IS a slow maturing breed.

 

[Soundtrack]

Also the health of the female herself. It would be like a young girl having a baby - possible but not a good idea. What's the rush? Why not let the dog finish growing up?

 

[Soundtrack]

Not as far as I can tell. As long as the male is healthy, there is no reason not to breed him. One of my litters was sired by an 11 year old dog.