Breeding Information

It has become obvious in the last six months that many breeders are cutting corners on animal welfare.  No-one who buys a puppy really knows what you are allowed to do when breeding dogs.  

A female dog can have 1-4 litters in her lifetime. 
A female dog should have a gap of 12 months between litters.
Depending on breed their is an age where you are allowed to breed from.  The Pug is 18 months or the 3rd season.  A Vizsla is the age of 2.  A bracco is the age of 2. The Weimaraner is the age of 2.  The French bulldog Ive not seen a guideline but I do believe nearer the age of 2. 
Their is an age limit also. The Kennel club will not register a litter at 8 years of age.  But for my own dogs I would say 7 would be the maximum age, but this is our choice.  In many cases retired totally at 6!! 

In the UK our breeding rules are very different to Europe or other countries.  
Who determines the rules? Defra, Kennel club, and breed clubs get a say in it too.

To have a license and stars you must not breed more than 4 litters.  But if you do not go for stars then you can let your dog have a 6th litter under our council.  But we do not advise it. The Kennel club will not register a 5th litter from a bitch, this is why you will see unregistered puppies available, or in fact they bred it every season so no papers.  

By law dogs can be bred from 18 months, which conflicts with breed clubs of HPR breeds.


So why are bitches not bred every season?  Condition is the answer.  A bitch doesn't regain her pre-pregnancy body.  She will be stripped from calcium from her body and other nutrients which she may not regain. If she is bred young this can cause a bitch to not create milk for her puppies, or cause HD as she grows up. Or other bone problems.   Ladies just imagine being pregnant the whole of your life, it wouldn't be fun would it.  So this is why the rules come in to help a dog recover between litters.  To help the bitch regain strength.  A bitch that is weakened will gradually produce poor puppies. Poor puppies means sick puppies, or puppies that will go on to have immune issues.  Which in turns means big bills for you.  

If you purchase from these breeders to satisfy your own needs, this practise will continue. So lets think for one moment.  We could in a heart beat eradicate bad breeding practises if we had patience.  If we could just wait a few more months until the right litter came up.  Im not talking about our litters, as their are plenty of excellent Vizsla breeders in the UK. Im talking of animal welfare.

Can you be one of those people that care for dogs enough to say NO and walk away ?