I bought a female boxer just 5 days ago. The people I got her from have had her since birth, and said she was the runt, and the other pups did not let her eat too often. She is over 2 years, and they said she has never come into heat. She is not a normal size for a boxer, only about 35 to 40 pounds. Two days after I got her, she began to bleed. I was wondering if this could be because she is around my male. They had males, but they were all pinned up, and she was kept away from them, mostly in a kennel.
I plan to take her to the vet this week, on my day off work, but I am wondering if, because of her size, would it be okay to breed her. I plan to ask the vet, but I wanted to see what I could find out here. We just figured we would ask the vet, and if he said okay, then we would if she ever came into heat. And if she didn't, oh well, we would just keep her as a pet, because we love boxers.

Dawn,
Trust me the burning question here from everyone before they even answer that question is, "WHY" do you want to breed. No one here is against breeding, but what are your motivations for breeding, what do you intend to accomplish by breeding. Answer that question and I gaurantee you will get all the answers and help you need.

PS: What is the background on your dog? What do you do with your dog? What are your dogs qualities I guess is what I'm asking?
~CHRIS DUHON

my personal opinion is that a purebred dog should not be bred unless it has something valuable to offer the future of the breed. if the dog is healthy, sound, fits the standard, has a good temperament, and has proven itself in either work or show, and has the titles to prove it, then *maybe* the dog has something to offer the breed.

otherwise, my opinion is that this is how good breeds get ruined, is by breeding unsuitable specimens.

assuming your dog meets all the requirements, then you have to very carefully match her to the right male. you can only do that if you know her pedigree and know the dogs in that pedigree, and that they also meet the same above standards. then you have to find a dog to breed her to that will bring out her best traits and compensate for her less desireable traits. which means you have to also know the dogs in his pedigree.

then you have to be willing to risk her life, and spend a near-fortune to save her and the puppies, should disaster strike. it is also important to have a mentor who is an experienced breeder.

if you love boxers, do the right thing by boxers, and don't breed a dog unless that dog *deserves* to be bred, and the breed will be improved by that dog's offspring.

from your post, it would appear that you don't have either the experience or knowledge necessary to breed this dog. find a good boxer breeder to mentor you, and get their advice.

I agree, but to go a step further, you should not breed if the pups will just be put in the local paper or sold in front of Petsmart. You should already have a consumer base before you breed. For instance. I have a female that has shown me great things, her pedigree and the dogs in it have proven to consistantly throw excellent working traits into their lines and also ALL within the last 4 generations have X-rayed Excellent hips & elbows. There also is no history of genetic illness based on her pedigree. I have tested many dogs from her litter. She is now approaching 2yrs old and has titled in ASR protection program and is ready to advance to the next level in ASR. I have only recently made up my mind I will breed her provided her 24mo old Xray comes back showing good hips and elbows and have found a suitable male I plan to breed her to who also has likewise credentials. I will be keeping most of the pups, and the few I do sell, I already have buyers. Several "credible" folks have expressed great intrest in getting a pup out of the planned breeding. The planned breeding and all it's ingredients WILL add positive value to the breed, and the pups already have prospective WORKING homes (Their bred purpose). These are guidlines you should follow before EVER thinking of breeding, not saying you haven't and aren't qualified, but simply the question does lend way to suggesting that you are inexperienced. We don't wish to beat you up about this, only educate you on the importance of breeding and not breeding.

I dont know if I could ever breed Bane even if he passes his tests.(unless they went to friends I trusted and could check up on) Like these two said make sure you have good homes for them. The last thing we need is more dogs in the pound or worse yet bad homes.

On a side note if she is so small and does not fit the breed standard why breed her?

Hi guys,
I AM a breeder(Doberman Pinchers)and I'm in agreement with most of what has been said so far, but would like to take it even further. Not only do both parents have to be exemplary specimens of their breed, but the risks and expenses involved are huge. Be ready to deal with still-born puppies, emergency surgery, tube-feeding, etc. It happens; not a lot, but it does. If you're using a stud-dog belonging to someone else, make sure to see a recent brucilosis test result. I don't recommend keeping any puppies unless you have a kennel, and you intend to keep a pup or two for your breeding program. It takes a lot of experience to determine which pups are of breeding quality. We have had pet-quality pups born in the same litter as our top-of-the line dogs. There are just no gaurantees. When you start with great dogs and experience you tip the scale in your favor, but there are NO sure things. We won't breed a litter until we have deposits on pups; and before we'll even take deposits, we screen the hell out of potential new-owners. We spent so much time with some of them beforehand that they ended up being friends as a result. A good breeder takes responsibility for every life they bring into the world, and none of our dogs end up in shelters. We have a buy-back policy (though to date nobody has taken advantage of it). We sell our pups from $1200-$1500 each, and we don't make any money; something to keep in mind. It's very expensive to do it right; very time consuming as well. All that being said it can be pretty rewarding too. I just can't imagine diving into it without knowing what I was getting into. I worked for a breeder before I ever considered doing it myself, so I went into it with my eyes wide open. I think it's the safest way to go.

Dawn, aren't you nursing an orphaned litter? Your pet died having puppies?

YES, Dawn has already had one breeding disaster & would only be courting another one with this poor Boxer bitch <:-( She needs to get out of the breeding business ASAP.

Dawn,
I am probably the only person who voted "Yes", but that is because of the phasing of the question ("Can I breed ..."). You can do anything you want-it's a free county.

I was in the market for a GSD puppy this year - just a pet, nothing too special. I absolutely appalled at the number of people who just put together two dogs without any idea of what constitutes a good dog. As a result, I have spent several months looking at puppies from nervous, overweight parents without an ounce of drive that will likely die with HD or in a dog pound. I am not an expert in dog breeding, and I have never bred a litter, but it would seem to me the first question that should be asked is "what will this dog's progeny add to the breed", not "can I breed this dog"

why do people feel the need to breed simply because they can or have the opportunity. Obviously it can be no other motivation but to try to $ell $ome pup$. <img src="http://www.leerburg.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif" alt="" />