# What do I need to know about breeding/studding?



## Saures (Sep 20, 2011)

I just want to know the ins and outs of breeding, because it is something I want to do in the near future.

I have a french bulldog and I am looking to studd him when he is old enough, I've been told the appropriate age of studding/breeding dogs is one year old, he is currently 3 months.
People said something about if my dog does not have a spay/nurturer contract, its not suitable for studding..? 

My plan, basically, is to studd my dog, and from the money I get from studding, save up money for a bitch, frenchbulldog or not.

I've had a lot of criticism from people on previous forums, saying how they think I shouldn't be breeding when there are so many dogs and puppies out there in shelters "because owners like me have puppies", which I found really offensive, but anyway, I just want some advice, so I know whether or not I am prepared, willing to start breeding...

On previous forums I got no advice, just a lot of slating for wanting to breed even just one dog to see how it went... which I don't think was fair, so hopefully I recieve some feedback and some advice/experience on this so I know and can tell if breeding is for me or not!

And don't get me wrong! If anyone else things I wouldn't love to take home a shelter dog, I would, but unfortunately shelter dogs just aren't for everyone and my parents, who I currently live with, have never been too keen on the idea due to siblings buying/adopting dogs which haven't set a good example on the rest of the other shelter dogs


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## Elles (Aug 15, 2011)

You will need to know the lines of your dog. Have him fully health tested and his back x-rayed. Find a mentor who knows french bulldogs. Have him looked at by judges at Pedigree dogs shows to see if he's a good example of the breed and what he can bring to it. Then realise that it is unlikely your dog will be able to breed without help from more than one human handler to hold him and guide his penis into the bitch, who is likely to also need restraining.

These dogs are some of the most difficult dogs to breed, imho, the breed shouldn't be bred at all, but people who like them of course wouldn't agree and would shoot me down in flames. 

It is very unlikely that you would make any money breeding these dogs in an ethical way, even if you are just standing your dog at stud, unless your dog is a prime example of the breed and has won at shows. The difficulties breeding them calls for expensive procedures and owners of good bitches wouldn't pay to put them to an unproven young dog.

Enjoy your puppy and unless you decide to get involved with showing, top judges love him and a top person says your dog is one of the best and will help and advise you, don't worry about breeding him and get him castrated when he's old enough, so you don't have to worry about it. 

Hope this helps.


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## Sparkle (Jan 28, 2010)

Firstly I'd go to some champ shows and look at French bulldogs see who is winning and compare your dog. Ideally you should show him to see if he is a good example of the breed. At 3 months you wouldn't know as he is still a baby. 

If he is a good example of the breed then you want to have him health tested (a list for your breed is available from the kc site). 

Study his pedigree. You should only breed to improve your breed not to get money for another dog! If he is a good example, passes all his Health tests then you want to only use him on bitches he compliments... Remember you are trying to improve the breed so he should be strong where she is weak and visa versa. 

Stud handling isn't to be taken lightly as you will need to know how to deal with a whole host of complications. There's a sticky on here. Get yourself a mentor too. 

Remember there are a lot of stud dogs out there, I personally would only ever use a successful show dog on one of my bitches. You have a long way to go. Read what you can, you're doing the right thing by researching.


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## Devil-Dogz (Oct 4, 2009)

If your dog came on a spay/neauter contract - you should not be breeding, if breeder finds out is well within their rights to sue yourself.
- If your dog has endorsments - again the dog should not be bred for the above reasons, as well as no 'decent' breeder will touch a dog that has endorsments against breeding.

You will need to become educated on the breed, their history, the lines within the breed, the lines of your own dog, you will need to know the difference between a good and bad breeder, and not stud to anything other than the best dogs/breeders!
- Its best if your dog is a proven example of the breed, so maybe shown lightly - and had more experienced folk go over the dog and give you feedback!

when someone studs a dog out, they are in affect offering a service to another owners with a female - it doesnt stop at letting the dogs mate, you need to be able to offer a advice in all areas!

The person studding their dog can advertise the fact the dogs for stud but its not down to them to find the females, the females owners will approach the owner of the stud they want to use.

- There are lots of dogs in rescue, and this breed isnt an easy breed to successfully breed. - Breeding should only be done by them most passionate, from dogs that have something to offer with conformation, temperamant and them that have passed all health tests.

3 months is very young to consider breeding, you as of yet havent a clue as to what your dog will end up as. - I think you need to sit down and think why you want to stud and what your dog has to offer, here you are asking basic questions which worries me - it also seems like you want to use your dog to make money - you also need to remember that once a dog has been used, his temperamant is likely to change.


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## swarthy (Apr 24, 2010)

Devil-Dogz said:


> when someone studs a dog out, they are in affect offering a service to another owners with a female - it doesnt stop at letting the dogs mate, you need to be able to offer a advice in all areas!


haha - often it doesn't start at 'letting the dogs mate' either - as very many of them need more than a little help in that department requiring the need to get *very *intimate with your dog  people wrongly assume they will do what nature intended - when of course, very many don't.

As the others have said, you need to know your breed, you need to be able to advise bitch owners on keeping a pregnant bitch, whelping and raising a litter and often, particularly in the current climate, assist with finding homes for the pup.

If your dog isn't shown, where would he be seen? Even pet owners have their pick of the dogs, so why would they use yours?

You need to know what health tests are required for the breed, some of these have age limits on when they can be done - and you need to understand if the results are acceptable.


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## canuckjill (Jun 25, 2008)

very good informative answers.......jill


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## leoti (Dec 9, 2007)

Hope you will be looking at getting your boy health tested as French Bulldogs suffer from a few health problems such as Cleft palate/hare lips - The combination of brachycephalic head, short body and screw tailed nature of the breed makes the incidence of midline defects more frequent. Cleft palates and hare lips are the most common defect seen. Anasarca (walrus/fluid) puppies are seen but are infrequent, the incidence of spina bifida is very low. Hemivertebrae  various congenital abnormalities of the vertebrae are seen in short backed brachycephalic screw tailed breeds. These are more commonly seen affecting the thoracic (chest) vertebrae and generally do not result in severe spinal cord deviation or narrowing, nor appear to be a cause of major problems in later life. 
The defects in the lumbar area where there is a definite kinking or twisting on the spine, these defects are much more likely to have detrimental effects on the caudal spinal cord of the puppy as it develops.
Excessively short bodied puppies tend to have more defects of the spine than the longer bodied puppy. Severe deviations as a result of the hemivertebrae will cause problems, but these are of relatively low incidence. Where they occur, these individuals should ideally not be bred from.
Ideally , one would be advised to X ray the spines of French Bulldogs prior to breeding to at least know what level of hemivertbrae is present and to screen out those dogs with severe defects. Puppies can be checked from a young age (6-8 weeks ) if a severe defect is suspected. For breeding purposes, an X ray around 12-15 months would be a good time to check the dogs  need a lateral view and a DV view (down through the middle - one can usually get the hips on the same view if needed) to get a clear pictureHip Dysplasia  the breed is generally fairly sound in this area if the ligaments are tight. If concerned, creen hips prior to breeding (over 12 months). Excessively loose and or shallow hips should ideally not be bred from. 
Back problems  not uncommon in the older Frenchie (5-6 years and up). This is most commonly as the result of intervertebral disc problems, which can cause hindquarter paresis (incoordination, scraping of the hindfeet), to severe cases where the hindquarters are totally paralysed. X rays are usually required and most respond well to ongoing anti-inflammatory treatment. There is a suspected inherited component to this problem in the breed. Most dogs respond well to rest and arthritis medication without requiring surgery.
Spondalytis  not uncommon to see degenerative changes along the spines of the older dogs. These respond well to treatment.
Brachycephalic Airway syndrome 
This is a syndrome with a combination of a long soft palate, narrow nostrils, everted laryngeal saccules and under development and narrowing of the trachea. The most common finding in all cases is the long soft palate.
Signs of respiratory distress, very noisy breathing, decreased exercise tolerance and heavy snoring are all common symptoms. Warm/hot/humid conditions, increased weight, exercise, excitement, allergic reactions - all of these are added risk factors that can result in severe respiratory distress and possibly death if not treated. 
Treatment of affected dogs usually involves removing part of the soft palate, allowing a freer passage of air into the lungs. This operation will usually improve the airway flow by at least 60%, care should still be given with these dogs in regards to weight, exercise, hot weather etc.
The percentage of French Bulldogs affected with this condition varies according to the bloodlines involved. Overall percentage seen that are severely affected would in my estimation be around 10%. The majority of the severe cases are seen under 1-2 years of age. The odd older dog that is diagnosed as having significant obstruction of the airways often was marginally affected as a youngster and may have developed secondary problems such as obesity and/or hypothyroidism (which can also cause obesity). 
Severely affected dogs should ideally, not bred from.
Whelping 
There are often problems associated with whelping which results in a significant proportion of bitches requiring caesarians. This is comes predominantly from having large head and shoulder size in the puppies, combined with a tapering body shape of the bitch. Narrow pelvis shape then further compromises the situation. The relatively large size of puppies, particularly in smaller litters can again increase the incidence of caesarians.


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## Sleeping_Lion (Mar 19, 2009)

swarthy said:


> haha - often it doesn't start at 'letting the dogs mate' either - as very many of them need more than a little help in that department requiring the need to get *very *intimate with your dog  people wrongly assume they will do what nature intended - when of course, very many don't.
> 
> As the others have said, you need to know your breed, you need to be able to advise bitch owners on keeping a pregnant bitch, whelping and raising a litter and often, particularly in the current climate, assist with finding homes for the pup.
> 
> ...


And don't forget possibly with the bitch too, any stud dog owner should have in depth knowledge of the dogs reproductive system, and be able to carry out a basic internal examination of a bitch if/when required. Owning a stud dog is a much greater responsibility, a good stud dog owner has to advise others on their breeding decision, and will often cop for it if things go wrong.


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## Cockerpoo lover (Oct 15, 2009)

Lots of good advice given 

and well done guys for doing so in a calm manner especially after SL's other thread


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## mysticmel (Jun 27, 2011)

ok i know nothing about breeding, haven't done it never will but i just wanted to comment. 
You have only had your pup for about a month that isn't long enough to tell if he is suitable stud.
You say your not sure if you would buy a French Bulldog bitch or not? What other breeds would you cross him with?
Your parents don't want another rescue dog in their house, how are they about having a litter of pups there?
imho keep your pup as a pet and get your own place first. 
If not others have given you good advice x


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## PennyGC (Sep 24, 2011)

You've had some excellent advice so far. You could also read the 'Book of the Bitch' as a good foundation for your search for knowledge. You should discuss your plans with your dog's breeder to see what she says and get her advice on breeding. Visit the shows. Show your dog. Talk to people who have dogs at stud (it's not studding your dog so I wouldn't use that phrase or you'll just get told to go away!). There is such a lot you need to know. Are you prepared to help pups sired by your dog a home? Will you offer advice to new owners? They do approach the dog's owner as well as the bitches. Importantly and already mentioned - why should bitches come to your dog? What can you offer them? Will you show him and do well? If not, why would they come to you?

Have to be honest that it does sound like you've bought a dog and just want to make money out of him which isn't what breeding should be about. You should have a desire to improve your breed, to produce high quality pups (rather than lots of poor quality pups), you should be choosy over which bitches so that they complement your dog's lines - do you know enough about lineage to do this? Do you know about every dog in his pedigree, what their faults are, what their qualities are, what their temperament was like? Do you know enough about other lines to know the answers to these questions so you can make good choices? I suspect not, so the first thing to do before you consider using your dog is to find out as much about your breed and the lines in it as possible - meet the dogs that are still around, get to know owners and talk dogs, dogs and more dogs. Be willing to learn from them.

Your dog is a pet, not to be seen as a money maker, enjoy him and do your research.


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