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| How to Breed English Bulldogs |
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Last Updated
20th of July, 2010
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1 Count 59-63 days
before the puppies are likely to be born. Make sure everything
necessary for their arrival will be in order by that time. Note; semen
can hold in the girl dog for up to 7 days, so be careful not to expect
them too early. Example: If she has passed 63 days and you have no
puppies she may have not "taken" the day you thought she did. It could
be a few more days. A bitch is not considered "overdue" until 70 days
after the first mating.2 Alert your
veterinarian a week before the puppies are due and start observing
the girl dog for signs of labor. She will generally stop eating 24
hours before whelping.3 Remember that as much
as a week before, she will begin "nesting". The girl dog should
be given a whelping box with layers of newspaper (black and white only)
to make her nest. She will dig more and more as birth approaches.
Temperatures can also be taken often but are not always reliable. Don't
be lead into a false security with that alone. Even with a C-Section
planned it is a good thing to let her nest!4 Remember that sudden
gush of green fluid from the girl dog indicates the water
surrounding the pups has "broken". When the water breaks, birth of
the first puppy is imminent. The first puppies are usually born within
minutes to half an hour of each other, but a couple of hours is not
uncommon. If you notice the girl dog straining constantly without
producing a puppy, it is cause for concern.5 Set up your C-Section
with your vet well in advance of delivery. It may be best to
allow the girl dog to start or get real close to going into labor before
doing this to avoid a C-Section too early which can have dangerous
complications. This will also depend on your vet and how close his
office is to you as well as if he is able to do a 3 AM C-Section. If you
do a C-Section just because the Bulldog has reached her 62-63 day, the
puppies could still be a few days early as semen can live in the dog for
up to 7 days before it takes sometimes. If the girl dog should go on
into labor on her own even if she is planned for a C-Section, get her to
the vet right away. Her cervix may fail to dilate or there may be
torsion of the uterus. A dead puppy, water puppy or a sideways puppy
could be blocking the cervix. No matter what the cause, get the dog to
the vet immediately.6 Remember that tests
can also be done to get a date for C-Section in advance and during a
safe and normal hour so chances of problems will be reduced.7 Keep in mind that
after the surgery, when the dog is home in her whelping box, she may
nurse the pups under your supervision. Bulldogs are commonly
C-Sectioned (about 95%) due to their size (head and shoulders),
exhaustion, failure to progress in labor, over-heating, and other
reasons. Plan on visiting with your vet about when you will likely do a
C-Section well in advance of delivery!!! Puppies should be allowed to
nurse on bitch the first couple of days at all costs, as this is very
important in their development unless she is running a fever. Milk will
usually come down within 2 days of birth, real true milk.8 Remember that
free-whelping Bulldogsis starting to be more common than it used to
be, however free-whelping is a very tricky situation even for those with
a great deal of experience in doing it. Never should you attempt a
free-whelp without a great deal of experience, a good vet, the ability
to understand when a problem may be starting, and a backup plan to aid
you if needed. Be safe, not sorry!9 Acknowledge that
C-Sections for Bulldogs are very common. The reasons for
C-Sections were discussed earlier. In recent years, more Bulldogs are
free-whelping and it is improving the breed (anything that could be done
without surgery is a major improvement). However C-Sections are still
common and done far more than free-whelps, like 95% of the time. You
should plan on a c-section for your bitch unless she has been cleared by
a vet for free-whelping, then plan on letting her deliver at the vet
clinic. This is one reason breeding Bulldogs should be left to those
with a great deal of experience. (Extreme caution must be taken when a
Bulldog is free-welping, even under perfect conditions.). C-Section of a
Bulldog is the most preferred way and the safest! Do NOT attempt a
free-whelp.10 Breed the best to
the best - only healthy, well adjusted females that have been in
heat at least twice, are at least 18 months old, and are descended from
dogs free of major defects should be considered for breeding. The
bitch descended from the rare free-whelp mother (i.e., one who can
deliver puppies on her own) is an especially prime candidate for
breeding.11 Do not breed unless
you have plans that will include the proper long term commitment to
the breed, the health and safety of the bitch and puppies, and the
ability to completely understand the Bulldog and its needs. There
are too many backyard breeders trying to jump in and breed dogs with
almost no experience or understanding of this unique breed. They see the
prices they sell for and try to get in and fill their pockets with
money. The sad part about that is the end result is not good for the
Bulldog.12 Remember that this
is not a breed that you just put two dogs together and forget, let
the mother deliver and forget, let the mother raise solely the litter
and forget. In the mean time the breed suffers. It can take many
years for responsible breeders to correct the damage done by a few
backyard breeders. If you really want to breed Bulldogs, take some time
to understand the breed, do research, attend shows, talk with breeders,
judges, and those who have spent years with this breed. Once you have
decided you still want to breed, get help. Find someone who has a great
deal of experience to mentor you, teach you, and give you the advise you
need. You should own Bulldogs for many years before breeding them in
the best conditions.13 Compliment the breed
by breeding to improve it. Find the proper mating pair.
Breeding out faults and improving the breed is what it's about. You will
not make any money from breeding Bulldogs if you do it the right and
the only way it should be done. You do it for the love of the breed and
to try to improve it. And the first rule is first of all do no harm.
Breeding Bulldogs is very difficult at best, very expensive, and time
consuming. It is a 24 hour a day commitment. Once you have decided this
is still what you want and you have done all this the right way, then
decide why you are breeding. You will be improving the breed through
what method? What is your plan? This is a loving breed that needs the
respect and care of those willing to provide it for years to come.14 Remember that there
is no shortage of good pets in this country and the animal shelters
are full of pets needing good homes. Many dogs who come from puppy
mills, backyard breeders, and farm operations have health problems that
will be passed on to their future litters by breeding them. Most of
these people will not do any pedigree research as well. Over 75% of the
reasons a Bulldog ends up in a rescue or animal shelter is health
related problems which were likely genetic. Good breeders look to
compliment the breed through careful breeding and improvement.15 Be cautious and
understand fully what risk may be involved. There are many cases
where a Bulldog and the litter have died from, during, or after a
delivery, or during pregnancy from some sort of complication. You must
be aware of your dates as there have been several cases where puppies
was taken to early and the litter dies since the lungs is the last thing
to mature.16 Remember that the
best days to palpate (feel for) puppies are about day 28 to day 35
of the pregnancy. Usually it is best to count from the last breeding
day as most dogs actually ovulate shortly before they quit standing for
the male.17 Keep in mind that
X-rays can confirm pregnancy after 45 days. Sometimes it is
worthwhile to take X-rays to get an idea of the number of puppies --
usually done if your vet suspects that there are problems or if the
bitch has had trouble delivering puppies previously, or for C-section
reasons.18 Try to gradually
change the bitch to a puppy formula dog food at about the 35th day
of the pregnancy (take about a week to slowly make the change, mixing in
small amounts of puppy food with normal food the first day and
gradually increasing the amount). Most bitches require about 1.5
times the normal amount of food for their maintenance at the time of
birth. As the puppies grow, she may require as much as 3 times normal
amounts of food to support lactation. You should continue to keep her on
a puppy formula until the puppies are weaned. Do not supplement calcium
during the pregnancy. This seems to lead to problems with uterine
inertia. It may also contribute to the frequency of seizure problems
associated with low blood calcium levels during lactation (milk
tetanus).19 Know your
veterinarian's emergency procedures before the delivery. If your
vet refers emergencies to an emergency clinic, make sure you know where
it is and how to call if you need help. If your veterinary hospital
staff covers its own emergencies it is still important to know the
procedure for contacting someone before the need arises. Ask about this.
Write the phone numbers down where you can easily find them. Providing a
safe environment for the puppies is important. More puppies die from
hypothermia than anything else. Making arrangements to ensure the
puppies will stay warm is important. The puppy heating pads are nice and
sometimes other arrangements can be made to safely supply a warm spot
for the puppies without making it too hot for the mother. Breeders are a
good source of information in most cases and it would be a good idea to
continue to try to talk to yours. They often have practical information
that vets don't have experience with.20 Remember that false
pregnancy symptoms are normal in dogs that have an estrus and do not
get bred, due to the way in which they cycle. It is not usually
necessary to treat for symptoms of false pregnancy but they can be so
close to those of a real pregnancy that the two can be very confusing.
It is usually possible to feel distinct lumps in the uterus representing
individual embryos from about the 28th day of pregnancy to about the
35th day of pregnancy. Before and after that it can be hard to identify a
pregnant uterus easily. After 45 days or so when the skeletons begin to
calcify it is often possible to feel the distinct hardness of a puppy
skull when palpating the abdomen or to identify the puppies on an X-ray,
if you wish to take her to the vet's office prior to the home visit, or
if your vet has a portable X-ray machine. By now, if your dog is NOT
pregnant, your vet will probably be able to tell you that, since she
should be pretty far into the pregnancy and at least uterine enlargement
should be palpable.21 Keep in mind that
the average heat cycle for a dog is approximately 3 weeks and since
this an an average, some heats are shorter (as little as 7-10 days),
others are longer (4 weeks or more). Average times between heat
periods is seven months but some dogs can cycle as early as every 4
months, some once a year. Lengths of heat cycles and intervals between
cycles are different for each dog but most dogs hit somewhere close to
the averages.22 Keep a close eye on
your dog. The first part of heat you will notice bleeding from
the vulva, swelling of the vulva, possible increase in urination and the
most noticeable, male dogs hanging around the house. During this period
(proestrus), females will not allow the males to breed with them
although the males will be very persistent. The second part or estrus is
the time in which the female will allow the male to breed her and this
can last anywhere from 4-10 days. A female, most of the time, will allow
most any male to breed during this time. As the female starts to go out
of heat or enter distress, she will be less willing to breed. Again
this stage can last 4-11 days but averages approximately 7 days. The
next cycle usually begins about 7 months from the start of the last heat
cycle, not the end of that cycle but again this varies from dog to dog.
The interval stays the same even if she becomes pregnant.23 Consider spaying your bitchif you do not intend to breed
her. There are many health benefits associated with spaying such as
decreased chance of mammary tumors and you will not have to worry about
pyometra, metritis or unwanted litters (overpopulation is a big problem
- just take a trip to a humane shelter). If you elect to spay her, this
should not be done during her heat cycle because of the risk of
excessive bleeding and other complications. The best idea is to wait
until she has been out of heat for a few weeks.
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