So you want to be
a breeder, do you? Good for you! That's what I am, a breeder. But
before you decide to go ahead and breed dogs, here's a few things you
need to know and a few things you need to have.
1. You'll need to be willing to clean up
vomit, urine, faeces, chewed up couches, ruined shoes, and overturned
garbage cans. Then you'll need to be willing to do it all over again
the next day, and the next, and the next....
2. You'll need a strong stomach, to be
able to stand the stench of rotting fetuses aborted mid term by your
pregnant bitch you've been waiting two years to breed. You'll need
that strong stomach when you look down on the occasional deformed
monster your bitch gives birth to, and you'll need it when you destroy
humanely that same puppy.
3. You'll need a strong heart, to be able
to nurture and love your healthy puppies until they're ready to be
sold into the hands of strangers who may abuse, neglect, starve, beat
or at best ignore them. You'll need that strong heart when even the
puppies that go to good homes end up run over by accident or put down
from illness. You'll need it when the tears of those good owners are
pouring their way into your heart.
5. You'll need lots of room, to be able to
keep bitches in heat away from stud dogs, stud dogs away from each
other, and puppies away from everything. Don't forget about those last
two pups that you just never could find homes for, or the rescue dog
your breed club begged you to take in, or the pup from your last
litter that the owners decided just wasn't right for them.
6.You'll need to be able to stand grief
and loss, like the way you'll feel the first time you lose a bitch
during labour and realise that it was your decision to breed her that
killed her. You'll need it when you explain to your kids why the
miracle of birth has a dark side as well.
7. You'll need an employer that will
understand if you have to take time off work because your bitch died
in labour and you're tube feeding the new puppies.
..........Wait a minute, you're saying by
now! Give me a break! All you breeders are the same. You only ever
tell us the gory stuff, the stuff intended to scare us off breeding
forever. What about the money? I mean, you guys just don't want anyone
else to compete with you for all those big bucks.....
Oh yes, the money. Glad you mentioned it.
8. You'll need money. Lots of it. Probably
lots more than you have, especially if the above mentioned employer
didn't turn out to be so sympathetic after all. Lets do some math,
shall we? Vet bills, Caesarean section, stud fees, registrations,
shots, wormings, puppy check ups, special diets, whelping gear....
Let's say an average of $2500 per litter, if nothing complicated
arises. And all this must be paid out before the first puppy ever
sells (Assuming that they're not all still born, in which case, don't
forget the cost of autopsies). Even if every puppy in the litter is
show quality (we can all dream, after all) and you find each one a
dream home, you might still lose money on every litter.
.........Wait! Where are you going? I
didn't tell you about show fees, or handling, or picking the right
stud dog, or government forms, or Parvo, or AKC registrations, or dog
runs, or irate neighbours, or city licenses...............
I THOUGHT YOU WANTED TO BE A BREEDER!
Article 1994-1999 Carol Taylor E-Mail:
frogdog@frenchbulldog.org
Reproduction prohibited without express
written permission of the author
