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My personal experience with breeding,
whelping and pregnancy of English Bulldogs
By: Dr. Margie Ong of IDEAL BULLDOGS
English bulldogs are certainly not for the faint hearted!
This breed has proven to be so much more than their loud
snores or cute and cuddly faces. Owning bulldogs, more
so breeding them, was something I did not take on lightly!
Through the many years of owning this breed, I have found
joy in studying in depth about them and through self study
and personal experiences in dog shows and such. I have
had my share of disappointments and heartbreaks. Yet for
me, the most important thing was to breed for the love
of bulldogs, certainly not for money, fame or fortune.
To breed or not to breed?
In your desire to breed bulldogs, there is so much one
has to consider. But in a nutshell, here are a few areas
to think of before breeding….
First, you must consider whether you can devote your
time and effort in rearing the puppies. That includes
feeding them religiously every two hours for the first
two weeks of puppy life.
Second, are you ready to set additional budget for regular
check ups and veterinary fees (caesarian operation almost
always recommended in bulldogs), puppy milk formula,
supplements and/ or hiring an extra hand to help with
the work? Coz believe me, you’ll be needing all
the help you can get!
Third, is your home ready for them? Yes, you may wish
to keep them all and have them stay with you forever.
But you know this may not be practical, especially with
large litters. So will you be ready to let them go and
place them in new homes, making sure they go to responsible
homes where they will be cared for and loved? Because
after all, we are responsible for these lovely creatures,
right?
If all these areas garner a positive answer from you,
then you just might be ready to breed your bulldog.
Are you In or Out of Line?
To decide whether to line breed, in-breed or out-cross
is a matter of personal choice. Line breeding or in-breeding
is breeding dogs of close relationships. So if you breed
bulldogs with the same grandparents, that is what we call
line breeding. But when you mate dogs which are brother-sister,
mother-son or father-daughter, that is what we call in-breeding.
Out-Crossing on the other hand is breeding dogs of completely
different ancestors. Though each has its own advantages
and disadvantages, what’s important is that we try
to breed according to the breed standard, our goal being
to improve our stocks and quality of the breed.
The numbers game
A bulldog bitch usually has her first season at 7-10
months old and approximately 6-8 months thereafter.
However, there are some that have their first season
as early as 6 months old or as late as 14-15 months.
For me, I would recommend that you only start breeding
bitches on their 2nd season and stop breeding them before
they reach 6 yrs of age since there have been many cases
of complications when bulldogs were bred at this age.
Although I have no personal experience of this with
my dogs, I take account histories of reputable breeders
in this matters.
A litter of 4 to 5 puppies is manageable for me. But
I have heard of a litter of 11 here in the Philippines
and even a litter of 16 in England. I have had the experience
of rearing and taking care of 9 puppies at one given
time, 4 of which were out my bitch, Philippine HOF Kelloe
locket, while the other 5 puppies were from a friend
‘s bitch named “sweet “. Although
the first week proved to be very tiring, both physically
and mentally, it was a great and fulfilling experience
none the less. One I’ll always find worthy of
doing again and again..
Infanticipation
When your dam is suspected to be pregnant, extra care
should be given to make the pregnancy a safe and easy
one. Her routine and diet may not have to change dramatically,
although additional protein and calcium may have to
be given. Food itself should be administered in small
but frequent feedings. Physical activity and her daily
routine exercise should continue at a minimum, just
so as to keep her in good firm shape and form. Such
activities may relieve her from undue stress on her
joints, muscles and organs (lungs and heart) brought
about by the changes of pregnancy. But certainly, jumping
from couches or strenuous activities such as rough play
and games should be avoided.
When the day of birth nears, signs of labor may include
vomiting, food avoidance, scratching, spinning, panting
and a drop in temperature from 38.5C to 36.5C. Being
aware and keen to her attitudes and symptoms is always
beneficial. Difficult labor imposed to bitches brought
about by cephalo-pelvic disproportion are harmful for
both mother and puppies. In this case, I avoid the option
of labor by vaginal delivery and always opt for cesarean
section operation done by a trusted veterinarian.
BABY OUT !
Choose a whelping area in your home, a place somewhere
quiet, secure and safe. Keep its temperature at an optimum
of 24-26C. The whelping box should have enough space
for the bitch to comfortably lie while nursing her puppies.
A drop light or lamp must also hang over it to provide
light and heat.
At last, the fuss of wanting and waiting is over! When
the pups are out, introduce puppies immediately to their
mother and let the sucking induce milk let down. It
is important that puppies get the first milk or collostrum
as this contains protein, carbohydrate and antibodies.
These antibodies protect the puppies during the first
few weeks of life and establish beneficial bacteria
in the gastrointestinal tract.
From then, feed them every two hours for 2 weeks. Then
change to 3 to 4 hours interval thereafter. Hold the
puppy in front of the bitch to facilitate licking and
cleaning. This will stimulate the puppy to empty their
bladder and bowels. Another option would be to use cotton
buds and gently rub the genitals to facilitate bowel
movement and urination. Ideally, this is done after
every feeding.
Note the puppies urine and stool’s frequency and
consistency. Weigh them regularly and religiously take
note of weight differences and discrepancy from previous
weights. However, such weight variations often even
out when puppies are feeding regularly.
Puppies start to open their eyes on their tenth day,
and will be up on the fore quarters at 4 weeks. At this
age, I slowly wean them off their mother, gradually
introducing them to baby food and porridges, being extra
careful not to introduce them to so much food all at
the same time. I start with minced puppy dog food at
the age of six months and give them milk alternately.
To satisfy the hunger pangs of growing puppies, 5- 6
meals a day may be enough.
At twelve weeks old, I reduce the amount of feedings
to 2-3 daily meals. I’ve had experiences where
my puppies would bark incessantly to catch my attention
just to let me know that they were still very hungry!
This has led me to the conclusion that puppies simply
never tire of eating, just as long as food is presented
to them. So be careful of overfeeding! Yet make sure
they get enough and are not underfed.
Leaving on a jet plane
When having to part with my puppies, whether they leave
my home by car, ship or plane, I always make it a point
to interrogate prospective owners, making sure I exhaust
all efforts in ensuring they go to good and loving homes.
I also make sure to accommodate buyers with their queries
and concerns, whilst giving them all information pertinent
to caring for my bulldogs. This I do with a passion
for I believe there’s no greater joy than to know
that your puppies will be in good hands….for me
that is far more important than anything else!
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