So You Want to Breed Your Bulldog
You have just made a life altering decision and purchased a $3,000.00 (+)
bulldog for a pet. Now you have started
toying with the idea of making money or that you want to breed her at least
once when she is old enough. Let’s
take a moment and explore the art of Breeding Bulldogs and why we do it.
The goal of any breeder should be to breed a better, healthier specimen of the animal they are breeding, whether it is a dog, cat, bird, cow etc. So what does that entail, you ask?
Well let’s look at a few of the things you need to know just to make the decision that you want to breed your Bulldog:
1. Why do you want to breed your girl? This should be the first question you ask yourself.
·
Is it because you want to learn to exhibit and
become involved in the clubs, and the breed activities? This is a good reason.
· Is it because you feel she should have at least one litter? – Not a good reason.
· Is it because you have gotten entangled in a pyramid scheme and now you have to breed your girl? That’s too bad. This will most likely cost you.
· Is it because you think it would be fun? Again – not a good reason.
2. Talk to some breeders. Get their opinion of your girl.
3. Enter your girl in some Specialty or All Breed Match Shows and possibly some all breed shows. See how she compares to the other bitches in the ring.
4. The next step would be to start going to dog shows, look at the males that are in the Breed ring and then look at some of their Get. This will give you an idea of the possible outcomes if you were to breed to a certain male.
5. What is her pedigree? Pedigree reading is an art in and of itself which takes years to master. This is the Bully’s blueprint, her family tree, if you will. It can provide quite a bit of information. At first blush you can see the different kennels that have had an impact on how your girl looks today along with how healthy she is. Then if you know anything about each kennel, you can get a good idea of the possible fault’s and values of the dogs in each line of the pedigree. The pedigree is a roadmap, and there are genetics books that can help you understand how placement of each dog from each family can have an overall impact on whether you will get a Champion or a fine pet.
6.
A good mentor is essentail. Talk to your breeder, if he/she is not available, find a mentor who will help you learn the
ropes. Someone who will be honest with
you about your girl. Who will help you
understand the pedigree. Someone who is willing take you step by step
thru the process. (Of course this means
you have to have the desire to want to learn everything you can about your
breed. Do things the right way. Not take short cuts or think you can take the
fast road to win at all costs regardless of the health and wellbeing of your
girl)
7. If you purchased your girl from a pet store. Pet stores receive their stock from puppy mills and commercial breeders. In a lot of the cases there is no breeding plan, so any male could be bred to any female to get puppies. Remember only goal these kind of place is to make money and it is usually at the expense of the quality of breeding stock and overall health. In most cases, you cannot be sure that the dogs in the pedigrees are even the correct dogs. We suggest you spay or neuter and find a good and reputable breeder. Start the process with the right tools and you will be ahead of the game in the end.
8. You
purchased your female from an agent or importer. Again, all the same reasons as #7. There are no guarantees when you go this
route. Maybe you will get lucky and
maybe not.
9.
Now comes
the fun part:
Expenses:
Cost of bitch - $3000.00
Cost of Registration $ 25.00
Cost of dry food over 2 years - $1200.00
Cost of canned food over 2 yrs - $ 691.00
Cost of bedding over 2 yrs - $ 400.00
Cost of toys $ 250.00
Cost of Match Show entries $ 60.00
Cost of Show entries (6mos) $4200.00 (that is assuming 2 shows a weekend x 35 weeks)
Cost of stud fee $ 550.00 (this is an average – depending on the stud)
Cost of blood work $ 375.00
Cost of Whelpwise monitoring $ 400.00
Cost of C-Section $1500.00
(depends on location –
Cost of Food for pups for 8 weeks $ 50.00
Cost of Vet appt for 1st shots $ 150.00
Cost of litter reg $ 25.00
Sub Total: $12,871.00
Extra costs:
Whelping box $ 350.00
Blanketing $ 100.00
Incubator (home made) $ 50.00
Sub Total Extras: $ 500.00
Grand Total first breeding $13,371.00
Income: average 5 pups @ $3000.00 $15,000.00
Subtract the pup you will keep -$ 3,000.00
If you have a breeder contract subtract 2 pups -$ 6,000.00
Total Sales: $ 6,000.00
Net Sales: $ 6,000.00
minus expenses – $13,371.00
Total Profit: -$7,371.00
1. Most likely you bought your girl as a pet. When the breeder sold her as a pet, she/he most likely had a reason why she was a pet and not a show potential specimen. Whether it be a health flaw, a conformation flaw etc. This is one reason why it is key to get to know your breeder. Understand what constitutes a pet vs show potential dog. Understand why, just because she has a uterus, doesn’t necessarily mean she should be bred.
2. Pregnancy is High risk in this breed. Your possible outcomes can be:
a. you have a beautiful litter and all do well
b. you lose your girl to pregnancy complications, heart attack, respiratory failure, etc.
c. you lose your girl because of post whelp complications, hemorrhage, infection, heart attack , respiratory failure etc.
d. you lose the litter because of problems with the pregnancy, infection etc.
e. you lose everything – your baby girl and her litter of pups because of all of the above and you didn’t know what to look for or what to do:
i. Her heart gives out from the stress.
ii. She misses due date due to poor uterine contraction
iii. You don’t realize she is in labor and let her go too long – stress again
iv. She fills up with fluid and drowns in her own fluids.
v. A dead pup poisons her uterus and her circulatory system because you didn’t know there was a problem.
vi. And on and on and on….. I think you get the picture.
That’s the Girl Bulldog side of the story. Let’s talk about breeding a male and making him a stud dog.
What are the reasons that you should even consider, Breeding your Male Bulldog:
1. The breeder has assessed this pup as a good breeding prospect and wishes to be able to use him to breed if the opportunity comes up. There is nothing wrong with this as long as the breeder, who should be your mentor, guides you as to the right and wrong bitches to use him on.
2. You want to become involved in the breed, with the clubs and showing whether it be conformation, Obedience, rally etc. The more educated you are before you make this decision the better off the breed will be for it. When making breeding decisions the general welfare of the breed should be the MOST IMPORTANT consideration before all else.
3. Your boy has some very strong, positive characteristics that will positively impact the breed in general. Again, to determine this you need to get active in the breed and see where we are, in order to change the future. Your mentor can have tremendous input here too.
What are the reasons you shouldn’t breed your male bulldog:
1. Males personalities change when they are used for stud. This is not something that is readily discussed with perspective puppy owners but should be.
a. Your male can sense a bitch in heat a mile away. This can lead to marking behaviors inside as well as outside your home. Your carpet strongly resembles the grass to a male who is looking for that little girl to make his own. Remember, marking is a signal to a bitch in season that the male is there and available for her
b. Some males hump due to excess testosterone and some will do it when there is a bitch in heat in the vicinity. This is an instinctual behavior and tough to break once they get the mojo going.
c. Again, just because the boy can produce sperm, does NOT necessesarily mean he has to be bred.
2. You purchased your boy from a pet store. Pet stores receive their stock from puppy mills and commercial breeders. In a lot of the cases there is no breeding plan, so any male could be bred to any female to get puppies. Remember the only goal/objective of these places only goal is to make money and it is usually at the expense of the quality of breeding stock and overall health. In most cases, you cannot be sure that the dogs in the pedigrees are even the correct dogs. Suggestion is to neuter him and find a mentor.
3. You purchased your male from an agent or importer. Again, all the same reasons as #2. There are no guarantees when you go this route. Maybe you will get lucky and maybe not.
4. You think he is a stud dog and you want to mate him. This is a wrong approach. If you have a male that you think can improve and help the breed’s overall conformation and health then show him in the conformation breed ring. See how he stacks up to the dogs that are currently being shown and used for stud. Talk to your breeder and learn about the breed. Most responsible breeders will NOT breed to a male who has never made an appearance in the ring unless the dog’s breeder is the one who is making the breeding recommendation. Then you should be interested enough to learn and understand why your breeder thinks this male and female make a good breeding pair. The more you educate yourself the better off you are and the better off the breed is.
5. Because you think it’s a cool idea. More males have died at the hands of uneducated owners with regards to breeding them. Why take that chance.
In either case – you purchased your Bulldog puppy as a pet. Spay or neuter it between the ages of 6 months to 1 year. Love them to pieces and next time go to a breeder if you want to get involved in the Sport of Dogs. You will be a lot happier for it.