I have always thought breeding once a year was the reputable thing to do. My vet just brought to my attention that they are now saying it is better to breed every heat cycle until you decide the dog is done and then stop breeding. She said it has to do with the uterus shrinking - that the body is normally very healthy pregnant. I searched online to find proof of this and I found a few links. Just wanted experienced breeders input on this..

http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&A=1224

Question: Is is safe to breed a bitch the next season after stopping the Cheque?

DrHutch: Absolutely. It's suggested not to skip a season, because we have been preserving the uterus from the effects of progesterone; what would be the benefit of exposing her uterus to two monts of progesterone?
Progesterone's effect on the uterine lining is the reason why bitches six and over have a 33.3 percent less chance of conceiving than bitches under 6 years of age.
Back to the case study.... neutering does not cause prostatic cancer....but it does not prevent it.

A woman that breeds shihtzus stated this:
I recently read on The American Shih-tzu Club website some mis-information. I have the deepest respect for these people, but they sometimes misrepresent issues that are fiction. One of these issues is a breeder should not breed a dog every heat. Dr. Robert Hutchinson, DVM of Cleveland, Ohio, one of the TOP Artificial Insemination Veterinarians in the USA, recently spoke at another seminar I attended on this topic. FACT is IF you don't breed the Bitch EVERY heat, her uterus is actually more unhealthy NOT pregnant. The endometrial lining builds up and is at more risk for disease than when pregnant. Dogs fertility drops at age 6 and therefore the dog does not have many years to reproduce, especially if you skip heats. He states this is a misconception and an outrageously wrong practice for a breeder. If the Bitch is in good health, there is NO reason NOT to breed her EVERY HEAT. I have personally found nature skips conception of heats it deems unlikely for pregnancy and I don't have to do it. Judging a breeder by skipping heats tells me, if anything, the breeder is uneducated to the latest veterinary medical knowledge.

Thoughts??

I'm not a breeder, so I have no first hand experience... and as much sense as that makes to me, I just can't see it being healthy for the bitch.

I know women's body take a full 3 years to recover from childbirth. If you're not fully recovered, internally as well as externally, why stress the body more with another pregnancy? The large majority of women start cycling 3 months-1yr after giving birth, but I highly doubt many feel ready to start all over right away. (I do know some gals that have though, I think they are NUTS!)

I have NO idea if this carries over to dogs as well. Just my thoughts. I should go to bed now so I stop rambling.

I also have no first hand experience but from the breeders I know not one does this or recommends this they all seem to agree the bitch needs time to recuperate and regain her health. Hopefully the experienced breeders here can give more insight!

A lot of breeders are using this to justify more back to back breedings.

In my mind reproductive health and general health are two different things. And while it may be keep the reproductive organs healthier/younger it does not follow that it will keep the girl healthier generally.

I have considered a back to back breeding and would probably do one sometime in the future under certain circumstances. A lot of my decision would be based on how fast the momma bounced back. I'm just not totally comfortable with them. I like my dogs to have time to be dogs.

Just my opinion.

I'm not a breeder but those that I know and respect will occasionally do back to back breedings IF the bitch is healthy as determined by a vet they trust. But, in general they do not breed every heat and often not even every year. Their breedings are determined based on the age and health of the bitch, the demand for their puppies, their finances, and sometimes unavoidable environmental concerns (such as Katrina in one case).

 Quote: elaine haynes

I'm not a breeder but those that I know and respect will occasionally do back to back breedings IF the bitch is healthy as determined by a vet they trust. But, in general they do not breed every heat and often not even every year. Their breedings are determined based on the age and health of the bitch, the demand for their puppies, their finances, and sometimes unavoidable environmental concerns (such as Katrina in one case).

("their finances")IMO a litter should Never be bred because someone needs the money - dogs are not meant to be a cash crop. To me, that's irresposible. As proof take a trip to rescues, pounds, humane societies and see how many of those :breeders" dogs wind up there.

If max pup out put is the goal, breeding every heat cycle is probably
the most efficient. That's how you maximize # piglets, etc. But for most people, the dogs value is not how many pups she can turn out. It's a lot of work to raise a litter; the drain on the bitch can be seen in her weight loss and her blown coat. In addition, litter size probably should be considered -a big dog who weans 4 or 5 pups might be a better candidate for re-breeding that one who raised 11.

 Quote: lynne peck

 Quote: elaine haynes

I'm not a breeder but those that I know and respect will occasionally do back to back breedings IF the bitch is healthy as determined by a vet they trust. But, in general they do not breed every heat and often not even every year. Their breedings are determined based on the age and health of the bitch, the demand for their puppies, their finances, and sometimes unavoidable environmental concerns (such as Katrina in one case).

("their finances")IMO a litter should Never be bred because someone needs the money - dogs are not meant to be a cash crop. To me, that's irresposible. As proof take a trip to rescues, pounds, humane societies and see how many of those :breeders" dogs wind up there.

When I read this, I thought "finances" meant they had to make sure they could afford to whelp the litter. Meaning they had enough money to cover health testing, stud fee, regular vet checks, possible birthing emergencies, extra food....well I could go on, but you know what I mean.

Can we get some clarification on this? Please....

I think the question is interesting on a purely physical nature as opposed to whether or not it is the right thing from a moral or ethical stance.
Since prgenancy is a natural state for a dog to be in, perhaps it is less stressful over the life of a bitch to have her litters in a row - in other words if you were going to breed your bitch 4 times in her lifetime anyway, to have them in a row and then stop as opposed to spread out over 4,5 or 6 years.

I thought this quote interesting (from the link Julie provided):

"When a bitch ovulates, whether we breed her, don't breed her, or pretend she's not in season, the progesterone HAMMERS the uterine lining for sixty-plus days.

Even though the bitch's body produces the progesterone, the progesterone is inflammatory to the uterine lining, so that after a heat cycle, the bitch's uterus is never as healthy as it was before the heat cycle. So we go from a normal uterus... and this start's with the first cycle of her life...to an endometritis to endometrial hyperplasia, which some of you have been asking about - this is when the uterus starts to thicken and we start to get bubbles in the lining of the uterus - these changes affect the uterine lining so much so that eventually the uterus cannot control the bacteria, and the ultimate end stage is pyometritis."