We tried to breed Terra in April, and we were unsuccessful. We planned to breed her so soon after her last litter, in order to move her annual schedule to a warmer period. Our Vet gave a full check up to Terra - to make sure she was still in excellent health - and gave us full permission/approval for a "back to back" breeding cycle.
Dogs, generally, have 2 heat cycles (times they could get pregnant) per year. Responsible breeders typically would only breed once per year, but many acclaimed canine reproduction studies suggest that "back to back", when the dog is still young, could be better for a dog - especially if you then take a full year off. Since we only want to operate in the best interests of our dogs, we sought Veterinarian advice and were told it would be safe to try.
Unfortunately, our ultrasound shows that Terra did not get pregnant. This does not imply that Terra has a health issue; this just means we missed the prime pregnancy cycle. We'll try again in the Fall and see what happens!
We also hope to breed Terra's younger sister, Gemma, this year, so we might have 2 litters of Bernedoodles this year, but none right now.
What is the timing for a dog pregnancy, from start to finish?
- The (potential) mom-to-be lets us know she is entering a semi-annual heat cycle.
- We begin to test her for a spiking of the hormone Progesterone.
- This usually occurs about 11 days after first sign of heat cycle.
- This spike suggests she is now ready for breeding and receptive to the process.
- Approximately 25 days after breeding, we take her to our Vet for an ultrasound appointment
- This will show puppy embryos, thus confirming a viable pregnancy.
- At this point, the puppy embryos are no bigger than an adult thumbnail.
- Approximately 7 1/2 -8 weeks after breeding - if we have proof of pregnancy - we take her in to our Vet for a radiogram of her "belly".
- This gives us an idea of how many puppies we are expecting.
- Mom dogs can sometimes take 45 - 60 minutes between each puppy delivery, so this count is very important
- Puppies are born about 63 days (9 weeks) after a successful breeding.
- Puppies are generally mature enough by 8 weeks of age to go to their new homes after a Vet check up.
- In summary, this means that from the first sign of a heat cycle, to having puppies in their new homes, is approximately 17 weeks - or about 4 1/2 months.
If you have any questions or comments, or puppy desires, please let us know with the contact info on our site, or email: Info@SherwoodFarms.dog or Info@CuteGoldendoodles.com
Thanks!
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| Terra, hanging off the end of the bed, taking the news of her non-pregnancy in stride. In front of Terra is our non-breeding family-dog Berner "Vesper". Behind Terra is our little poodle Penny, and in the near front are my wife's feet - which she told me NOT to post! |
