I just want to breed one time…
Lately, the train of thought from customers of breeding their beloved pet one time has become more popular. Should you do it? Check the article below on reasons why this is NOT a good idea:
Safety
Your beloved pet’s life is risked when you breed once. That first litter is the most risky health wise to your female, and fatalities can happen. Why risk your little girl’s life? Some have stated that they owe their pet the ability to have puppies once. This is attributing human feelings to an animal. They do not have regret and cannot reflect on past ‘what ifs’, and do not have the baby timer emotional mentality that people can have.
Costs
Breeding is expensive! Breeders do not make a profit until the 2nd year of starting their breeding program. When a customer who has a female wants to breed once, breeders shake their heads because of the initial cost involvement. The cost of raising a first-time litter is $2000+, according to a 2021 poll of our breeders. Litter related vet bills, whelping supplies, pee pads, whelping pads, deworming supplies, whelping pen, exercise pen, puppy safe toys/chews and all of the other basic items required to safely raise a litter of puppies adds up quickly. (This amount does not include the cost of the dogs, and is based on a normal birthing, not one with complications. Emergency C-sections normally average $2500-4000, and any emergency puppy health issues are also pricey.)
Health Tests
Breeding just once also means that the pet owners don’t understand the purpose of the DNA tests or other health tests like OFA Hips and Patellas. So the puppies resulting from these “1 litter only” puppies is a much higher risk of health issues, and chances of the very expensive patella surgery which runs $1500-$3000 per knee. If you produce a litter that has this, you may be financially responsible to the new pet owner or may be at risk for a lawsuit.
DNA test runs $200 per adult dog.
OFA Hips/Elbows/Patellas runs $300-$1000 depending on location and vet per adult dog.
Personality Changes
After your female has had puppies, she may experience a personality change. This may be for the better or for the worse, some females become more loving after a litter of puppies. Other females become more possessive, aggressive, and less tolerant of other animals. There’s no way to determine which way a female may swing. Also, fights may break out when your animals normally get along - and sometimes you get in the way or have to break up a fight, resulting in injuries to yourself or your loved ones.
During the Pregnancy and Whelping
A female’s pregnancy is full of things that may be difficult. After mating, dogs experience morning sickness as their hormone levels change. They often will vomit during this stage with their nausea. They will experience vaginal discharge as the embryo embeds, which gets on carpets, rugs, and furniture. Because they do not feel well, they may be snippy and less tolerant of other animals in the household, especially other dogs. Towards the latter part of the pregnancy with the surge of their need of calories, they may counter surf or become what we fondly call ‘alligator stage’. Their gentle taking of offered treats may now include your entire hand.
During the labor process, they are scared and unsure of what is happening. The birthing process is messy and stinky. There are countless stories of mothers having the puppies in the middle of their owner’s beds, thus ruining the mattress.
Raising puppies in the home often results in baseboards, wall trim, drywall, door frames, etc being chewed on. Urine smells embedded into the flooring unless special measures are taken, and more.
Rehoming the Puppies
When you’re considering it to begin with, there will be friends and family members that say they want a puppy. Then, when it comes time, they have to back out, due to financial or life/time obligations. Selling Pomskies for first timers is difficult because shoppers find it difficult to distinguish new breeders from scammers. It takes 2-3 times the amount of time to do so.
Scammers
Scammers often target new/inexperienced breeders, cheating them out of money and still getting the puppy by using a PayPal charge back option. Or they will say that the puppy died and the breeder has to replace the puppy or refund the money.
Breeding dogs has a huge learning curve. Breeding for just 1 time means that not only do you have to quickly learn this, but also have to stay away from additional pitfalls, just for the one litter. If you were to ask any reputable breeder if they would breed, if it was just for one litter, you can expect a unanimous and resounding “NO” for that answer, and the above items detail the reason why.
