The American Beagler Forum

How old is to old to breed a female? i have a 9 year old female, but she acts like she is 2 or 3, is she to old???

the reason im asking is she has come up with a lump on her upper back and the vet bill will be over a1000 bucks.

I have never had a problem breeding a 9-11 year old female the only problem i have had is i have found the older they get the smaller the litter I knw some will not agree but thats my experiance i bred 1 that was 12 once as long as ther in good health do it prob take little more TLC They will usally quit comin into heat when ther done

i bred a 10 y/o that was in great health even looked like a 4 y/o and would out hunt most dogs ive been around she had 10 pups but only one lived n she was a good one too if yours is in good health n good condition i say go for it

If she has had pups before go for it..If never been bred before I wouldn't bred that older dog...

Dogs will let you know when they are too old.
If they come in heat and will stand to be bred, they are not too old.

As a side note, the pups she has when old are usually different than ones she had when young.

Alabama John wrote:Dogs will let you know when they are too old.
If they come in heat and will stand to be bred, they are not too old.

As a side note, the pups she has when old are usually different than ones she had when young.

Thats the way i look at they will quit comin in when they are done

Alabama John,

What are some of the pup differences that you have noticed?

BiL

Colors, running styles, mouth, size, etc. more like the dogs further back in the lineage. Some call it THROWBACKS!
Old time sayings and beliefs, but do turn out true.

I've opened myself to the educated folks now!

Well over the years I've kind of heard the same thing, but it was more in relation to the vigor and health of the pups. I think the reasoning was, the older the dam the older her eggs which gives you more of a chance for an offspring with health issues (some which may not be obvious or easily measured). Kinda like a woman in her 40's having a greater chance of having a child with down syndrome than a woman in her twenties. Probably some truth in that with dogs as well, just not real easy to figure how much or in what ways the older genetic material will affect things.

BiL

my females dam was 13 when she was bred