Why do you find it so hard to predict litters?

This was a question put to me.  I have tried explaining it before and probably failed in my explanations.  It depends firstly which breed we are talking about.  The Bracco for example has seasons super regular. You know when there will be a litter ahead. 
But the Vizsla oh my what a breed they are.  Ive always said if you wanted a business breeding dogs do not have a Vizsla.  Because of their unpredictable nature you just can not call them a business venture like some people think dog breeding is! 

A Vizsla can have a season then five months later have another.   These are rare. 
A Vizsla can have a season then another seven months later.  Most commonly. 
A Vizsla can have a season then not another one for a year. Also quite common. 
A Vizsla can have a season and then have another 18 months later.  Not as common. 

But do I own all those scenarios? Yes I do!  But this is where it gets annoying really for all concerned, if we take Willow.  She had a season, then another seven months later, now she's been 13 months since her last season.  So each dog does not even follow an exact pattern.  

So when asked when will you have a litter, the answer is who ever comes into season and it works right.  Because then we have to look at if they have had a litter before and how long.  A bitch should really have 12 months between a litter.  But in most of our dog's cases it's 14 months and longer in some cases.   A bitch needs a rest between raising one litter to the next.  

We then look at age of bitch.  We like our girls to be around 2 when they have a litter but in some bitches cases we wait until they are 3.  Each dog should be taken on merit and how they are mentally, and can they cope yet.  

We sometimes plan a litter and then another girl comes in, who has shot over her season a long while so if we do not breed that one instead they could be too old for us to breed as we do not like breeding dogs over the age of 6.  We do our breedings when bitches are younger so they can cope much easier. Its a bit like humans there are more risks if you leave dogs to be 4 before a first litter, than if you breed it at 2.  You can liken that to a 20 year old lady having a child, over a 40 year old for first child.  We all know midwifes have you down as a higher risk if you're older having your first baby at 40. 

So does this makes sense to you all ? I hope so.  At the end of the day our breeding has always been in the lap of the Gods! 

I was also asked Recently. Why do you have your own stud dogs?
To answer this one for you.  I love males, and always have done. I prefer males over females and I have always been like this.  Im a boy lover!  You can speak to another breeder and they have the opposite answers.  The reason we have our own stud dogs is mainly because Vizsla are unpredictable, and some bitches do not like going out to stud.  They do not like the males you have chosen.  You may get smaller litter sizes.   Bitches love the dogs they live with. They prefer knowing their chosen mates.  I find it fascinating that females will even choose a dog with in the pack they live with.  They can get a bit miffed if they are told sorry not that boy.  They like the youngest dogs normally.  Thats my honest experience owning dogs and bitches together. 
But we also own our own dogs as it saves travelling.  Travelling is never convenient, it is at a time when it's a weekend, or evening.  Most stud owners are governed by no rules, and do not ever want to give you a receipt for studs, and if you do not have a receipt you can not prove this to the good old tax man.  Also most studs in the Uk are not health tested to my standards.  So you're going backwards instead of forwards in health.  When you own your own studs it's up to you to make sure they are fully health tested.  
Some people let their dogs be used at open stud the whole time and you can bring in lots of health issues.  Let's think if a person was doing this you would understand where im coming from.  Also we know the semen quality is by far better.  Because they have not had five bitches just before yours.  
My dogs are not at open stud.  It's only if someone contacts me and I find we have a mutual beneficial path towards same goal.  It maybe we want a new bloodline back in the future and collab with that person.  We have one collab at the moment in which it will bring a new blood line back in the future.  With out this hobby and collabs going on this would not protect the Silvestre bloodline to be as healthy as it is. 
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So loads of reasons why we have our own stud dogs. 

Now we can not use our own studs forever as we would get inbred.  So this is when we go out and buy another male in, for future stud services but our boys are very much pets.  It takes me a while to find new bloodlines I want here.  So this can start years before I actually do it.   

But yes we love the boys, and we love having our own males.