Читать книгу The Complete Book of Dog Breeding - Dan Rice - Страница 31

A bitch’s sexual maturity relates to puberty, ovulation, acceptance of a male, and conception. If a capable male is present, she will stand and can be bred for several consecutive days during the estrus stage of any normal heat.

Our discussion of the best time to breed your bitch should include more than her willingness or ability to be bred. Unfortunately, bitches that are not confined behind a dogproof fence are sometimes mismated on their first heat. No matter how well trained she is, when left to her own devices, the influence of hormones and inherent desire to perpetuate the species take precedence over all else.

At what age should a bitch be bred? All generalities are dangerous. One often hears that no dog should be bred until her second heat, or until she is one year old. That implies that all dogs mature at the same rate and by the same age. Alas, that is not the case at all. Sometimes individuals of all breeds are very immature at one year of age, and should not be bred until they are much older. Others may not reach puberty until long past one year of age. Large and giant breeds may be physically mature by the time they experience their first heat when they are 18 or 20 months old. Toys may cycle twice by one year of age. Experts state that full sexual maturity relates to the attainment of maximum capacity for reproductive performance, and that is no sooner than the second or third estrus period.

Pembroke Welsh Corgi dam with three precious puppies.

I suggest there is yet another important factor in the equation—the owner’s readiness to accept the responsibility of bringing a litter of puppies into the world.