As you begin to breed, you are going to need to have a breeding plan. This might sound ridiculous, but in reality, it is very important. A breeding plan is something that you should have before you even get the dogs that you are planning on breeding.
A breeding plan should be comprised of several different things. First of all, you need to have an idea of the type of dog that you are going to be breeding. This includes the information that you have already learned about the breed that you have chosen.
Next, you want to look at the breeding standards for that type of dog, and figure out which of the standards you are going to be breeding for with the dogs that you are breeding. A good breeder strives to maintain the breeding standards and will try to breed those elements into his or her dogs.
Next, you will want to have a breeding plan that explores the various ways that the breeding program is going to be set up. Include information about making sure that you have a good questionnaire and a waiting list program, and information about how you plan on screening applications for your puppies to choose good homes.
Your breeding plan should then go into detail about how many dogs you plan on having and where you plan on keeping them. If the idea of putting dogs in your backyard, or having a shed to hold your dogs even crosses your mind, get out of breeding right away. Your dogs should be in your home and should be a part of your family. This is how you produce good puppies.
Your breeding plan should include the ways in which you are going to manage the dogs that you have in your program. It should have information about how many dogs you’ll have in your home, and how those dogs will be trained and maintained.
Then, include information in your breeding plan about roughly how many litters you plan on having with the dogs. Keep in mind that you should not breed a female dog each time she goes into season, which means that you will only have one litter a year, at most, for each female dog that you have in your program. A good breeding outfit will pay attention to this and will not breed females in back to back heat cycles.
Your breeding plan also has to have information about how you intend on keeping your dogs up to date on their shots, and the specific training you want to do with them. Don’t forget to add information about how you plan on socializing your dogs to make sure that they are prime examples of the way that your dogs should be.
You will want to be sure that you provide enough information in your breeding plan so that you can look back on the plan at a later date and answer any questions that you might have about the way that your breeding program should be working.
There are some things that you should include in your breeding plan so that you know you are going to be successful at breeding.
1. The breed of dogs you are going to own
2. The number of dogs you think you would be able to handle
3. Where your dogs will stay, and what type of accommodations you will offer them
4. The vet you will use
5. The amount of money you have to spend on dog care, vet care, and all of the expenses, and where that money will come from.
6. How many years you plan on breeding dogs
7. Whether you plan on continuing your breeding program with dogs that you breed yourself, or whether you plan on bringing in new dogs to continue your program
8. What you will do with dogs when they can no longer breed for you.
9. How you will deal with complications in pregnancy and with puppies that don’t make it.
10. How you will know when you can breed your dogs again
11. How you will know when it is time to stop.
12. Your overall goal for breeding – the types of things that you are looking for in the breed and the types of things that you hope to achieve by breeding the dogs that you have chosen.
If you are able to have a breeding plan that includes these things, you’ll find that you have much more information at your disposal than you thought, and you’ll be able to make a good decision about breeding dogs in general.
Remember, you want to have a breeding plan that you can change as you see fit, and one that is going to allow you to make a good decision about the types of dogs that you are going to be breeding. It is important to have the right type of breeding plan for your needs, and it is very important to make sure that you can follow through with your breeding plan.
Also, your plan should not be set in stone. There might be things that you want to change about your breeding plan as time goes on, and you should be able to easily change these things. It is going to be important for you to be flexible as a dog breeder, so that you can make good decisions about what is right for you and for your dog.
Please note: This article is part of a collection of dog-related content that we purchased the rights to. Opinions expressed may or may not agree with those espoused by Master Dog Trainer Adam G. Katz. When in doubt, please refer to the advice given in Adam’s dog training book. This article is provided for your enjoyment, only. It’s relevance to real world working dog training may be limited.