or seven months old, his owners discovered he had a quick temper and was sensitive to being touched by anyone other than his family. He did not aggressively attack strangers, and he tolerated household visitors very well as long as they kept a respectable distance. When touched by them, however, his immediate response was to snap. Because he had never actually attacked or bitten anyone, his owners accepted what they considered to be a minor character quirk.
One day, when the dog was about four years old and weighed over 85 pounds, a tragedy occurred. A six-year-old girl, who lived next door and regularly visited the family, put her arm around the dog’s neck as the children sat on the floor watching TV. He responded by ripping her face and ear, leaving her scarred for life.
The consequences of that incident were far reaching. They included several years of terribly painful, modestly successful but very expensive plastic surgery, a divorce, the sale of a home, and long, spiteful litigation between former friends and neighbors.
Between two and four years of age, after winning his championship in the show ring, the dog sired several litters of beautifully marked, excellent conformation puppies, many of whom displayed the same untrustworthy characteristic as adults. Consequently, at least three or four of the puppies were euthanized over the next few years.
The moral of the story is simple. Personality traits are important and, to some degree, hereditary. Dams and sires must be evaluated for more than their conformity to breed standards. When choosing a pup as a breeding animal, handle both its sire and dam. If possible, meet and handle dogs produced previously from both the sire and dam.
A dog breeder should always try to improve the breed. To include animals with personality faults in your breeding program is just as dangerous as including animals known to have hip dysplasia or hereditary eye problems.
Nutrition of Breeding Animals
Choosing a female to breed must include careful consideration of her condition. A brood bitch’s nutrition should be an extension of her nutrition as a puppy. As a youngster she should be fed a diet that allows her physical growth and development to proceed at a regular, average rate. When she reaches adulthood, her maintenance diet, exercise, and eating habits should assure that she does not become obese, and that she displays firm musculature.
A proud Weimaraner dam and the only puppy remaining from her litter.
It is a mistake to try to reduce or fatten up animals at breeding time. Obesity favors erratic reproductive behavior. Skinny, undernourished bitches may not cycle normally, and if successfully bred, the stress of pregnancy and lactation will cause further trouble.
Breeding bitches should be in lean and gaining condition when they begin their estrus cycles. Their regular maintenance diets should be increased about 5 percent when they show the first signs of proestrus bleeding. Diets are then reduced to maintenance levels following breeding, and gradually increased again one month into gestation (see Pregnancy Nutrition, page 69).
The following general nutritional comments apply equally to breeding, pregnancy, and lactation diets. Specific recommendations relative to those reproductive phases are found in other sections of this book.
Food Storage
Don’t buy excessive quantities of dry dog food at one time. Storage takes its toll on nutrients—fats may become rancid, vitamins A, D, E, K, and some B complex may be lost. Beware of buying dry dog food from stores that have low product inventory turnover.
Four brindle pups eating a nutritional meal.
Preservatives and additives help maintain palatability of dry foods, and will help protect them from early oxidation. In large kennel situations, when hundreds of pounds of food are purchased at one time, storage problems may be even worse. Sometimes the food is subjected to high temperatures, especially on the bottom of the stack. Deterioration is enhanced by elevated temperature.
Except for quantities fed, it isn’t necessary to change a bitch’s diet during her reproductive cycle, providing she is in excellent nutritional condition, being fed a complete, balanced, premium-quality dog food. It is an established fact that poor reproductive function is associated with marginal nutrition. Considering that your bitch has only two estrus cycles per year, if she misses the desired breeding time, the planned puppies will be at least six months late in arriving.
There are many premium foods available in pet supply stores, some supermarkets, and from veterinarians. Those products provide the type of nutrition that will enhance reproductive success if fed according to directions. Some premium brands formulate special diets for breeding animals during gestation and lactation. Nutritional information on the package will specify whether the product provides optimum nutrients for growth in puppies, brood bitches, lactating dams, or adult maintenance.
Dog Foods
The nutrient composition of your brood bitch’s food must be known in order to evaluate its nutritional balance and caloric intake. Sometimes that information is not easily accessible.
A word of advice: If the package of dog food you are planning to feed does not plainly display its composition and ingredients, buy another food. There is sufficient competition in the dog food industry today to allow intelligent dog breeders to shop for the best-quality products. Products containing the best ingredients and balanced compositions will proudly and prominently display that information.
Know what you are feeding! All dog foods are not alike. Read package labels, call, or write to manufacturers. Products are not identical simply because their fat contents are the same, or their protein levels have the same numbers. It is a serious mistake to buy dog food based on price or total protein quantity. It makes no more sense than choosing the food by the picture on a bag. The sources of protein, carbohydrate, and fat are equally as important as the quantities. Think of ingredient quality as well as quantity.
Dog Food Labels
Some labels state that the foods meet or exceed recommendations of the NRC (National Research Council). That statement may apply only to canine maintenance requirements and may not consider the increased energy demands of breeding, pregnancy, or lactation.
TIP
When purchasing dog food, be selective! Don’t fall for TV ads showing a beautiful litter of puppies or a happy bitch. Those are paid actors; they are marketing tools.
Labels may specify the quantities of available nutrients, not the bioavailable nutrients. If an essential element is fed to a dog in a form that is not bioavailable (that is, the amount that is assimilated and metabolized by the animal), it might as well be left in the bag. Always look for the source of protein. The ingredient list should give you that information. Vegetable protein sources such as corn or soy flour may provide an excellent analysis on the package, but that may be misleading.
Labels stating that a food meets or exceeds requirements for growth and maintenance mean just what they say. Such products should not be fed during breeding, gestation, or lactation.
Foods labeled with statements that they meet or exceed NRC recommendations for all stages of life are what you want, right? Getting
