# first time breeding need some info please



## kirsty1 (May 6, 2009)

i am wondwring if some1 could help me i have a female german shepard shepard she is 21 months very friendly, she is due into her second season soon, is there a right age to breed them at, and where am i best going to find a male german shepard. thankyou


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## Chris Wild (Dec 14, 2001)

The right age to breed them is after they have health testing, hip and elbow certifications, and have been temperament tested or titled in some way. Once the dog has proven physically and mentally suitable for breeding, the owner needs to do research into the pedigree to learn about the traits that run in the family in order to find a male that is complimentary.

All of this takes a significant period of time.

If she's 21 months old now, she is not yet old enough for hip/elbow certifications. They must be 24 months to get those from OFA. So your first course of action should be to locate a radiologist in your area who is good at taking x-rays for OFA and set up an appointment to have her hips and elbows x-rayed after she turns 24 months old, and send those to OFA to make sure she is free of hip and elbow dysplasia. Then find a training club in your area and start pursuing titles. If you start all that now, she may have her breeding credentials by the time she's 3-3.5 years old.


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## WiscTiger (Sep 25, 2002)

First welcome to the board. There is an Intro Section near the Top of the Forum, Introduce yourself and tell people a little about you and you GSD.

On the breeding situation, you don't have to breed your female, just get her spayed. Unless you female is something absolutly correct in structure, temperament, health checks and pedigree there is no reason to breed her. You will get other posts about showing and trailing and getting titles. 

I have a German Showline Female with a nice pedigree, has titled parents, granparents, etc. She is a pretty female with the deep red and the black, has good structure and OK nerve. I will not be breeding her. 

Not all females need to be bred.

Val


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## kirsty1 (May 6, 2009)

thanks for the reply will do that


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## kirsty1 (May 6, 2009)

thanks for your reply, i would like to give her a litter and then get her spayed i want to do it all properly though


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## Branca's Mom (Mar 26, 2003)

> Originally Posted By: kirsty1 i would like to give her a litter and then get her spayed i want to do it all properly though


To do it <u>properly</u>, you are looking at spending thousands and thousands of dollars to get her health tested and titled. That is a heck of a lot of money to spend to "give her a litter"









What is your real motivation for having a litter???


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## Winkin (Feb 21, 2007)

> Originally Posted By: kirsty1i would like to give her a litter


Why?


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## SunCzarina (Nov 24, 2000)

Not to be mean or anything but if you're thinking about breeding your dog, it might help to start by learning the proper spelling of the breed. 

Do I see a bridge with a little person coming out to ask me riddles?


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## pupresq (Dec 2, 2005)

In addition to all the excellent information about the importance of health screenings and independent breed worthiness evaluations - there's the issue of the dog. if you are feeling like your dog needs to have a litter to be fufilled emotionally, don't worry - they don't! Dogs are very different from people and don't have the same sort of psychological responses to things. While some dogs make great moms, many do not, and first time moms are often scared, confused, and upset. We routinely see moms who won't nurse, don't clean the puppies, and want nothing to do with them. And at the extreme end, are moms who try to kill their puppies. In those situations you can find yourself bottle feeding an entire litter, which can be a nightmare! 

Another thing to consider is that the demand for large breed puppies has never been lower. We're seeing partial and even whole litters of GSDs being surrendered by breeders who couldn't find buyers for all their pups, or who still have puppies unsold at 5,6, or 10 months. And then of course, there are record number of returns coming in as people cut back economically and feeding a large breed dog is something they decide they can no longer do. So, that's something to consider. Are you prepared to keep some or all of the puppies if they don't sell or are returned later? GSDs can have litters of 8-10 pups. 

So anyway, I think there are a number of reasons to reconsider your plan. It is not in the best interest of your dog or her possible puppies. But welcome to the board! There's a lot of great info here and fun ways that you can enjoy and care for your dog totally aside from breeding.


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## pupresq (Dec 2, 2005)

> Quote: Do I see a bridge with a little person coming out to ask me riddles?


I was wondering that myself. But, on the offchance...


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## Winkin (Feb 21, 2007)

> Originally Posted By: SunCzarinaDo I see a bridge with a little person coming out to ask me riddles?


Sadly, I don't believe that to be the case


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## scannergirl (Feb 17, 2008)

Kirsty, I would urge you to hang around here and learn all about breeding, what makes a good breeder and why we as a rule are not encouraging anyone but the best breeders to breed. It seems at first glance to be a bit elitist, like they are somehow the only ones who should be doing it, but after you learn a lot about it you will see the wisdom behind it.
One of the most important things I learned here was about what makes an tempermentally stable dog. It's GENETICS! I thought all dogs were born equal and that the way they are brought up is responsible for the difference in temperment. Sure, environment plays a large role, but if you have a dog that has bad genetics it will take a really experienced person to be able to bring out the best in that dog and help him to live a happy life. If you have a German Shepherd with a bad temperment, and there is a lot more to it than just "bad temperment" you can really have a dangerous situation unless that dog is handled by experts. This has become all too common because of people do not understand the lines they are breeding- usually because they do not know better, not out of callous disregard for the puppies they are responsible for. They think if they have a nice dog and they find another nice dog they will get a litter of nice puppies. This is very unlikely without extensive testing of the breeding stock as well as knowledge of the family traits of the lines from which the parents come. The research, work and knowledge required to REDUCE the chance of temperment problems as well as physical problems which our breed is susceptable to is measured in years, probably decades. 
I would urge you to learn more because in my opinion it would be a mistake for you to breed your dog at this stage, and I think you will quickly come to that conclusion yourself as you learn.


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

> Originally Posted By: SunCzarinaNot to be mean or anything but if you're thinking about breeding your dog, it might help to start by learning the proper spelling of the breed.


Not to pick on you Kirsty, but the same thought occurred to me when I read your post. It's shep*herd*, as they are a herding breed. 

I don't expect everyone to be able to correctly spell the name of every dog breed out there, but anyone who owns and is thinking about breeding a dog should at least know how to spell the name of their own breed, and also know a little something about it.


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## windwalker718 (Oct 9, 2008)

*chuckle* the question of breeding/ not breeding a dog (male or female) always starts the discussion of "when" "why" and what is needed, or desirable to qualify them as a breed worthy animal... All excellent points, and important to consider.

There's another point also in favor of spaying before breeding, and that is the reduction in tumors as an older dog. Mammary tumors are more common in older bred females than in dogs who are spayed younger. It doesn't benefit a dog to have "just one litter". So unless the dog meets breeding criteria as others have outlined, and you have at buyers waiting for the litter, and/or are keeping one yourself... it's better for the dog to be spayed before rather than after.


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## littledmc17 (Apr 9, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: SunCzarinaNot to be mean or anything but if you're thinking about breeding your dog, it might help to start by learning the proper spelling of the breed.
> 
> Do I see a bridge with a little person coming out to ask me riddles?











You took the words right out of my mouth!!!


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