Chihuahua Puppies

LovPetz

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#1
First off I want you all to know that I have not bred any Chihuahuas, there is no pregnant mother, and there are no Chihuahua puppies. Yes, I have a male Chihuahua, Caden, but he is neutered. I am not irresponsible and am going to college to become a veterinarian.

I am looking into breeding Chihuahuas. I am not taking this lightly. I am looking into everything before even thinking of buying a female and male to breed. I'm making sure I know all the pros and cons before starting: how to do the breeding, how to choose both a good mother and father, how to help with having the puppies unless there has to be a c-section, how to properly raise the little puppies especially if the mother doesn't make it, what to screen mom and dad for, and more. I am not looking for any random dogs I can find either. I am reading alot of different books about Chihuahuas along with getting any information I can acquire from experienced breeders.

I have a vague idea of when to breed the female. I know that it is best to start breeding her when she is 2 years old. I was thinking of breeding again when she is 4, but I was told not to wait two years between pregnancies because of the risk of pyometra. I was told to breed at age 2 and 3. I only plan on breeding her twice (when she is 2 then again at 3) then get her spayed. I will not give her up; I will keep her as my own loving pet/show dog.

I plan on showing these dogs. So I need to find a reputable breeder of Chihuahuas that I can talk to about owning one without having to spay or neuter (or someone told me about co-owning, but I’m not sure what this is. Can someone explain this?).

Since I do not have a male I am also looking into getting a male Chihuahua. I was told that using a stud would probably be better since I will be conducting a small scale breeding practice; however, I would rather have him with me at all times, so I would rather own him.

I don’t plan on breeding for a couple years and I don’t plan on buying either Chihuahua for at least another year. Since I want to buy these Chihuahuas in a year or so how seriously are reputable breeders going to take me?

Also, if any of you are from Texas and know of any dog shows happening soon or if any of you are Chihuahua breeders who show their little ones I would love any comments or advice you could give me.

If you have any questions about what I plan on doing don’t hesitate to ask.

Thank you.
 

borzoimom

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#2
"I have a vague idea of when to breed the female. I know that it is best to start breeding her when she is 2 years old. I was thinking of breeding again when she is 4, but I was told not to wait two years between pregnancies because of the risk of pyometra. I was told to breed at age 2 and 3. I only plan on breeding her twice (when she is 2 then again at 3) then get her spayed. I will not give her up; I will keep her as my own loving pet/show dog.

I plan on showing these dogs. So I need to find a reputable breeder of Chihuahuas that I can talk to about owning one without having to spay or neuter (or someone told me about co-owning, but I’m not sure what this is. Can someone explain this?)."
Okay for of all, obviously since you are working towards the veternary field, pyometra is an infection. It can occur in any pregnancy, or after delivery. Treated with antibiotics but best is surgery/spay. I am taking the idea that you mean- have one litter, skip the next heat, and then second litter. Since you have been studying chihuahuas, I am sure you already know the risks with toy dogs and C sections. You want the male smaller than the female seems to help.
A co-own I never had a problem with- until the last one.. If you co-own- get everything in writing. You may think you can trust that person to follow through with their demands, but get it in writing! I have a seriously strained relationship now with a person I have known for over 7 years because of a co own. Up until this situation, I never had a problem. Just always get everything in writing- who is expecting what, who has the medical power to do things etc etc etc..
 

Dakotah

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#3
I have no advice on the breeding part of this but what I will say is...

Congrats on taking this VERY seriously. I know lots of people don't and they rush into it.
Also Chis are adorable little dogs, and I would LOVE to own a little female chi sometime in the future.
 

Paige

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#4
I will leave the advice up to the wonderful breeders who have tons of experience under their belts. Take what they say and think it over. They're brilliant!

I want to say this is awesome you are putting thought into it. Chihuahuas are so poorly and overbred as is that it's nice to see someone who is taking the breed and breeding seriously.
 

Maxy24

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#5
Hello! (I'm the one who saw Lovpetz on another forum and told her about here hoping that some of our breeders could help her out). I hope I got the pyo info right, especially considering she will spay after the two breeding I thought it would be safest to breed her early and spay her while the uterus is still nice and healthy. Check out this thread (read through the whole page) http://www.chazhound.com/forums/showthread.php?t=27644

Of course if for some reason you cannot afford or support a litter that soon after the first waiting would be a better option.

I hope you get all the information you need here and continue to stick around, It's really a great place, welcome to the forum :D
 
R

RedyreRottweilers

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#7
First of all, forget about breeding for now. Responsible breeders know and understand that only the best of the BEST should be used for breeding, in particular with male dogs.

IMO, as a breeder, there is no reason to keep a male dog for breeding unless you plan to stand him to outside bitches. With today's technology and advances in frozen and chilled semen, and artificial insemination, you have access to any dog on the PLANET.

Before you become a breeder, you need to become a FANCIER. This means getting to know breeders who have been successful in your breed, beginning to learn your breed (this can take YEARS of self education, and careful mentoring by experienced people), attending and learning about dog shows, and learning about the mechanics and whyfores of breeding and whelping.

With all bitches breeding carries a risk, but with the tiny toys like Chis, the risk is even greater. Realize from the start that breeding, while it can be a wonderful experience with the miracle of life, it almost always includes the miracle of death as well. I have not had the tragic experience of losing a bitch in whelp, but it happens.

I would recommend if you want to really get involved in your breed, that you join breed specific mailing lists (you can do a search at Yahoo Groups), and try to find someone in your area who can mentor you, and help you eventually find a nice puppy to start with.

If you will PM me, I can put you in touch with a person I know who is well versed in the breed, has bred numerous CHs, and who I am sure would take the time to help you.

Good luck, and welcome to Chaz. :D
 

bubbatd

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#8
Agree....take lots of time before heading into this . Serious breeders grow into this . Don't just buy with planning to breed . Get your female from a serious breeder , show , test , and then decide after 2 years or more .
 

mrose_s

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#10
I agree with the don't think abotu breeding yet.
I am not a breeder but I read about it like crazy and what I've learnt it that there is no point in breeding unless you know your breed back to fornt and inside out, what genetic disorders you shoudl be testing for, what exactly the standard is and what is in standard, how to find a stud that complements your female.

I am looking at getting an Aussie shepherd in the next 18months - 2 years, it will be my first sport dog and my first show dog, I won't be breeding. First thing I've done is talk to Aussie owners and printed the standar and I carry it everywhere and read it every chance I get, on the train, before bed, when I'm bored etc and I've been looking at pics of Grand Champs and comparing them to the standard and other champs.
I'm looking at breeders and reading everything I can about the breed, but still, before I even take one on I will be meeting a lot of them if I can, I havn;t got the chance to see a lot of shows atm but I'm going to whatever I can and watching the breeds I'minterested in.

Just remember to love the breed and don't love to breed.

Good luck and its so nice to hear about someone actually taking breeding seriously though :)
 
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#11
First if you go to a responsible breeder with the thoughts of getting a dog to breed they wont give you one.(At least I wouldn't) Best thing for you to do is buy a good quality bitch and show her. Then think about breeding.
Most will probably want to co own with you. What that means is if you breed the bitch you cant register the puppies without the co owners signature.
And then there is a contract too.
I know a breeder in Texas, she is a nice person and has some nice chihuahua's.
 
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#12
Actually, I *WOULD* get a boy. I'd get a male first, and put the breeding on ohld, at least for a bit.

First of all, it's easier as a new fancier to get a breeder to trust you with a male pup. You'll probably still end up co-owning him at least until he finishes, but you'll get a better male pup than you will a female, as a general rule.

Here's a great article - it's about Poms, but most of the same stuff applies.
http://www.showcasepoms.com/foundation_article.htm

I wouldn't worry about the whens yet. Get a nice male puppy, show him, finish him, and then see what happens. Prove you're serious, and people will start offering you dogs to show or co-own, or even own outright. If he's decent and you've worked with your mentor? There's a good chance you'll be able to lease a bitch to breed to him, or get a stud fee puppy back if she breeds one of her bitches to him. If he's just 'okay'- and a lot of first show dogs are finishable but not necessarily worth breeding to- that's okay too- you've proven that you're serious and you're going to hang in there and not disappear when it gets tough.

Breeding will come- but the showing's going to need to come first.
 

bubbatd

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#14
Keep this in mind too . It's easier to find a good stud for a female than a female to to breed your stud to .
 

corgi_love

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#15
Also keep in mind that the bitch or dog that you get, might not be show quality, let alone breeding quality. Even more so, some dogs that are Champions, shouldn't even be bred.

You can buy a show prospect puppy, but you won't always get a show dog. There is no such thing as a "show puppy", only "show prospects". If a breeder tells you it's a show puppy, you're being fooled. I think it's from about 6 months to 12 months before you will know for a fact your dog is good enough for the ring.

A dog with hip or elbow problems can be shown and finished, but shouldn't be bred. Show fanciers seem to have trouble realizing when their dog shouldn't be bred, and we end up with even more dogs with problems. It takes a good breeder to sit down a realize their dog isn't up to bar to be bred because it just won't contribute to the gene pool. Health testing and x-rays are a good thing to do, but you need to not just do the tests, you need to sit down and be able to say to yourself, "Fluffy isn't good enough". Even if you've spent xxxx amount of money on her, and even if she's a Ch. titled dog.

While it's great to have goals and try to find your foundation dog, you have to be ready to realize your dog isn't good enough.
 
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#16
Im so happy to see you putting thought into this. I cannot help you with breeding advice, but I wish you luck on everything. I live in Texas, and I could help you out with upcoming shows. The last show I know was the one in Houston, I haven't heard of anything else. You can also goto the AKC website akc.org and they usually have a list of nearby shows, if any. Good luck!
 
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#17
Longview is this weekend, and Corpus Christi the weekend after that. After that... I'm not sure- I'm done till the fall so haven't been paying attention. :p 99.9% of the dog shows (all-breed, anyway) in Texas are run by Onofrio - www.onofrio.com will have a schedule and all the judging programs.
 
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#18
Hi LovPets, I tried to respond to your private email but it wouldn't go through so here is my response to you:

I went to the link you have provided and read the gist of what you are looking to do. I would be more then willing to help you!! First, I would honestly forget about breeding at this point. If you plan on eventually breeding Chihuahuas that conform to the AKC standard and want to get your dogs from reputable breeders, they won't give you a second look if you don't show your dogs. Showing tells your peers that you care about what you are doing and shows your commitment to the breed. Showing your dogs and finishing them will give you an idea of the quality you have (mind you, there are plenty of dogs that finish everyday that should not) and what you should aim for. My suggestion to you would be this: if you are honest in a commitment of exhibiting and breeding only the best specimens of the breed, attend the National Specialty. It is the first weeeknd on October in Chicago every year. Plan to go for the weekend (including Friday because that is the day for Sweepstakes (all puppies 6-12 months old). Buy a catalog ( a book that lists all the names of the dogs/breeders in each class) and sit ringside and watch the classes. Make notes in oyur catalog on the dogs you like and the dogs that do not appeal to you. Contact the breeders of the dogs you like, ask them questions, and tell them that you are eventually looking for a dog to show. Be warned, not all breeders are kind to new people. Why?? Alot of them have been burned by new people telling them one thing and doing another. Don't take it personal. I will be going to Nationals. You can visit my website below. Find a Chihuahua Specialty in your area (where do you live??) and go to it. Do the same, get a catalog. Find out about dog shows in your area and go to them as a spectator. Puppyfind and most Yahoolists (or the like) are not good places to get a puppy from. Most reputable breeders do not advertise on lists or places like Puppyfind. Be prepared to wait (I know you said you were going to look in a year), a well bred puppy will be worth the wait. Let me know if I can be of any assistance or if you have any other questions.......
 

LovPetz

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#19
You can visit my website below. Find a Chihuahua Specialty in your area (where do you live??) and go to it.
I'm not sure what website you are talking about. I did not see one. I live in Amarillo, Texas. Its located in the northern part of Texas.

Thank you for your fast reply.

Also, in the e-mail I mentioned that I am forgetting breeding for now. I don't want to start breeding until I show the breed and get to know it better.

If you plan on eventually breeding Chihuahuas that conform to the AKC standard and want to get your dogs from reputable breeders, they won't give you a second look if you don't show your dogs.
I do plan to show all of my dogs.
 

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