…..STILL WAITING….

We wait 5 weeks for her heat to begin and, having planned for an earlier time slot, suspect that Mum and Sarah’s break in Edinburgh now overlaps the Puppies.   What is best to do?   Perhaps we should wait until 2014.    Apparently cold slows things down; what sensible Mum chooses to have puppies in the 2nd coldest March in the UK for 100 years? Not Nina!

JUST BEFORE NINA COMES INTO SEASON….

We have given Nina her last flea treatment until the pups are born.   We will have to keep a sharp eye out for fleas – the Spot-on treatments are supposed to safe but I am not going to risk it.   She has already had her routine worming treatments.   We took her to her hairdresser for  a last good cut too.   The grooming isn’t bad for a pregnant bitch but why subject her to unnecessary stress?   Mum runs a shaver over her back every couple of weeks so we can keep her fairly respectable ourselves.   

We talk to the vet about what we need to do for Nina, ready for the pregnancy.   I must admit that they are oddly detached and are slow to offer advice.   However I find out about whether we should test for infection or give antibiotics – answer no, as its better to let nature do its work.   However I read in the information provided about Canine Herpes Vaccine.   This is the leading cause for “fading puppy syndrome” apparently a majority of dogs carry it but it is a threat to the vulnerable pups.   Its expensive but we take the decision to have Nina vaccinated at the time of mating and in the weeks before whelping.    We want the strongest puppies ever seen.  We also find out from the vet about the costs of things like ultrasound or palpation to confirm the pregnancy and also rule out doing an x-ray in the week before the birth as it wouldn’t be good for the puppies.   I reckon like hospital being bad for ill people,  Vets won’t be the best place for pregnant bitches so I am not sorry to minimise Nina’s visits around the time of the whelping

CONCENTRATING ON THE IMPORTANT THINGS IN BREEDING

Second item on the shopping list has arrived.   Its an ovulation microscope!   Not strictly necessary but if it works it will allow us to predict the best day of mating and apparently one can predict whelping to 67 days.   Apparently oestrogen peaks just before ovulation and extra oestrogen causes the saliva to become salty.  So if you collect saliva and let it dry if there are high levels of oestrogen there is a crystalline pattern under the microscope.   It works on women too;  So we are testing it on my sister before we try it out on Nina.

I’ve done the first shopping for the puppies.   This is part of the fun.  Ebay, of course.  I have read about a method of potty-training on a website by MIsty Trails who are Havanese dog breeders.   All will be revealed in the newer parts of the blog.   What I have bought is a set of squares of metal grid and connexions – 49 squares which will allow us to make a modular pen that grows with the puppies’ needs.   Of course most people can just have the puppies in the kitchen under their feet but my situation is different;  Remember I can’t chase around under furniture or grab a circling puppy and put him on a puppy pad.   So this Misty Trails method looks to be the answer.

LOOKING FOR PRINCE CHARMING

So we have read the books and have to make a decision about the best father for the pups.   We know of a lovely boy schnauzer nearby but he is unproven; we are unproven; in fact Nina is the only one who knows what should happen.   We like the idea of keeping it local and sharing the fun with our friends but don’t know whether going with an experienced breeder will increase the chances of success.   We also have to factor in the risks of inbreeding and Nina is pretty aristocratic with lots of Risepark (a very successful UK breeder of mini-schnauzers over decades).   So we send out the servants with glass slipper to our local lad and sadly his feet are too small; he was neutered before Christmas.   So that’s that decision made.

Mum and Dad will have to travel twice in 3 days to the studdog so it makes sense to search nearer to us for a suitable dog.   I use the Kennel Club lists and also Champdogs and Pets4Homes.   One breeder I talk about has postponed her breeding plans until the genetic tests for inherited disease are available.  They will tell owners if their miniature schnauzer is carrying the gene for the eye defects.   I do some research and find out that it isn’t yet available;   I decided that my responsibilities are only with doing the best I can with whats possible now.  I am influenced by my experience with ME; for 22 years I have been hearing of possible treatments for them never to be heard of again.   So Nina is already tested as being unaffected with hereditary problems and none show in her family tree either, so as long as the Dad and his family are unaffected we have done our best for the puppies.

I have had a lovely doggy chat with a breeder in Suffolk.   I am sending copies of Nina’s pedigree and we will see if this dog’s feet are the right size…..   Noooo – his feet are a little too similar as they have an ancestor in common,   Nina has been dumped a week before Valentine’s day.   Men!

I have had 2 recommendations of the Deansgate stud – they are very well regarded – will they be interested in Nina?   I have a nice doggy chat with Pamela McClaren and her dogs feet sound like they are the perfect size!   We talk about using flea treatments and I am interested in the “raw food and bone” diet.  Some of her dogs live till 22 years old on it.   Food for thought! (sorry)

 

 

WILL WE OR WON’T WE

Its January and we have to make a serious decision about whether we really are going ahead with the puppies.   It is a serious undertaking and takes time, money and energy and you have to anticipate that things might go wrong with both Mum and pups.   Mum, Dad and I decide it is something we want to do.

READ ALL ABOUT IT

I am bopping around lots of websites and blogs and photos.   We also have 3 books.   There is a lot to learn.   First about about a bitches hormones and cycles;  Secondly about genes;  Thirdly about mating.   Fourthly about pregnancy  Fifthly about whelping.   Sixthly about caring for puppies Seventhly about finding good homes for the family.   There’s a lot of contradictory opinion out there.   This breeding business is not for the faint-hearted.

Long long ago in 2012

We rehomed a young miniature schnauzer on the 9th of April 2012.    Mum and I decided we wanted to try for puppies so we looked for a young bitch and found in Leicestershire Minimoll Chocolate Chip Cookie,  a much-loved dog from a family who breed miniature schnauzers.   After hearing about our need, they offered us Cookie and she went on the longest journey of her life all the way to Norfolk where she became Nina.   The photo is the one of the early ones I took.    Having a new dog is like inviting a stranger into your house that doesn’t speak English or understand what you want.   Expect to take time adjusting.    Nina’s idea of a safe hiding place was draped over my arm facing the corner which is most endearing.   But she is an optimist and enjoyed her new life.k