The American Beagler Forum

I've got a great gundog out of good bred stuff that is a horrible mother. Trying to get opinions here.

Should I SPAY her and just use her for hunting???? Some old guys say raising pups is hereditary and comes from the mother of the dog. If so, I don't want to pass this gene on. What would you do????

Jon

If she is a good dog and you are happy with her why have her spayed. I mean if you plan to keep her just to hunt I wouldn't want the extra cost of the surgery I would just put her up when she comes in and hunt her when she is'nt. If you plan to get rid of her and do not want her to be bred then I could see having her spayed. Just my two cents.

shotgunred wrote:I've got a great gundog out of good bred stuff that is a horrible mother. Trying to get opinions here.

Should I SPAY her and just use her for hunting???? Some old guys say raising pups is hereditary and comes from the mother of the dog. If so, I don't want to pass this gene on. What would you do????

Jon

Jon , I feel your pain. I purchased a 7 year old female years ago with 2 wins and all her points in AKC. My plan was not to champion her but to raise pups off her. She was a horrible mother and in 4 liters lost 24 out of 27 pups. I tried everything but she would not take good care of the pups.

I would Not spend the cash to spay her but would hunt her if you're happy with her in every other way.

thanks Dale and T Lee. I threw in having her spayed because as all of us hunters know the time she will come in will be HUNTING SEASON!!!

Jon

I'm just curious of what you mean by a bad mother. If she is a good hunting dog that I liked, I would not put the undue stress on her in a surgery and just keep her to hunt. If she came in during season I would just put her up, hunt her alone or with females only.

T LEE wrote:
Jon , I feel your pain. I purchased a 7 year old female years ago with 2 wins and all her points in AKC. My plan was not to champion her but to raise pups off her. She was a horrible mother and in 4 liters lost 24 out of 27 pups. I tried everything but she would not take good care of the pups.

Warrdog, bad mother means as T Lee stated above. She won't take care of her pups!!! I run my dogs year round and make it a point to travel and meet new friends while hunting during gun season. To have one of your best hounds not available for a month when you need her just sucks! I don't hunt my females when in heat AT ALL. Some females don't perform well in heat and a dog in heat covering ground while hunting WILL bring a male dog in from a good bit.

Semper Fi,
Jon

shotgunred wrote:I've got a great gundog out of good bred stuff that is a horrible mother. Trying to get opinions here.

Should I SPAY her and just use her for hunting???? Some old guys say raising pups is hereditary and comes from the mother of the dog. If so, I don't want to pass this gene on. What would you do????
Jon

How many times has she been bred for you to come to this conclusion?

Some new mothers can't keep a litter three, others are overwhelmed by more than 6, some manage 10.
I give them at least 2 chances, given they're kenneled and cared for properly...ie. off to their self in a quiet secluded place, warm and free of draft and fed well.

Some bitches are rough with pups, stepping and laying on them. Others lack mothering skills, could be a hormone thing or nervous type.
and, some litters are born weaklings due to numbers, time of gestation period, health/care of the bitch or stress incurred during gestation. Lots of thing to consider before making the final call.
Best of luck.

I didn't see how old she was when bred?

Semper Fi

All of these things are why I asked about what was meant by a bad mother. I'm no breeder by any means but have raised some litters over my years and all these things come to have an impact on a mother.

If you are breeding her to a male you own and there are no stud fees I would breed her whenever I wanted. I would keep trying if you really like the bitch. You would be out no money until the pups got old enough to worm and give them their shots. By that time she would have raised a litter. If you plan on taking her to a stud dog then, no I wouldn't waste my time or money.

Make sure she's comfortable when she has pups. warm and dry in winter,cool and dry in summer. Make sure she's not around a lot of noise and movement. She may not like were you have her.