
Use of Glucose Sticks or “Canine Ovulation Pads”Ĭanine “Ovulation Pads” are just cheap glucose detection sticks (used for urine to diagnose diabetes) with a hefty price rise. However, if you need to use someone else’s dog, either for a natural mating or AI (especially if using short-lived frozen sperm), then pinpointing ovulation accurately may be necessary.
ANIMAL BREEDER 2 HOW TO
However, some bitches will respond positively to the dog throughout proestrus, and some will never respond at all, even at ovulation!įor the bitch that does respond, the breeder can ensure that fertilization had occurred by mating her every two to three days during her estrus period.įor the bitch that doesn’t, the breeder can learn how to do their own Artificial Insemination (AI) and inseminate her with semen collected from their own dog at the same 2 to 3 day intervals. Flirting with the dog (gamboling playfully around him in a teasing manner).Flagging of the tail (it moves to the side).Standing still to allow the dog to mate her.Vaginal bleeding that usually diminishes as ovulation approaches.Pinpointing Ovulation Vulva in proestrusīreeders have access to a range of means of pinpointing ovulation: There are several methods available and they vary in their simplicity, accuracy and expense. So the challenge for you as a breeder is in pinpointing when your bitch has ovulated. However, a successful pregnancy can still result if the bitch is bred any time between the 2 days prior to ovulation to the 4 days after ovulation. The biggest litter size, therefore, will be achieved when a bitch is bred two days after ovulation, when both semen and eggs will be at their peak viability. And once mature they remain viable for a further 2 to 3 days. However, the eggs are not mature enough for fertilization until 2 to 3 days after ovulation.

A few days before estrus ends, the follicles on the ovaries of the bitch will ripen and burst, releasing the eggs.

It is also the area where breeders most commonly run into problems.įresh dog sperm is capable of fertilizing an egg for 5 to 6 days. That is normal and a fact of life, so don’t assume something is wrong if you miss a pregnancy now and then.Īside from that, accurate timing of mating is the single most important factor for breeders in optimizing both the number and size of the litters that they are able to breed. And once the bitch is six years old her chance of conceiving drops by a third once she is 7 years old, it drops by a half. Mating at the right time in the Reproductive Dog Breeding CycleĮven where both the bitch and the dog are healthy, and mating occurs at exactly the right time, about one time in seven you won’t end up with a litter.

But one in three bitches don’t fit the average! So using the old rule of thumb to mate on days 9 and 11 (or 10 and 12 – depends who you talk to) from day one of bleeding will fail a lot of the time. The “average” bitch bleeds for 9 days (proestrus), then will stand for mating for 9 days (estrus).The average bitch will cycle approximately every 6 months and an individual bitch will tend to conform to her own unique repeating pattern throughout her fertile years. It can vary from one cycle (or heat) every 18 months (this is typical of some of the giant breeds) to one every 4 months.The Reproductive Dog Breeding Cycle Can Be Tricky! But there is a lot of variation in the frequency and length of the reproductive cycle between different breeds and different bitches.

Take control of your breeding.Īnd it’s not easy! All cycling bitches experience a defined heat period within which there is a small window of opportunity for fertilization to occur. Having your finger on the pulse of the reproductive dog breeding cycle of your bitches is the single most important factor to getting the litters you want.
