what to ask stud owners

[cledussnow]

Hi! We will be breeding our bitch preferably with her next heat (she's 5). But, we are in no way experienced and thus, don't really know how to pick a good stud. All the info on how to pick we basically have from people who want to use our bitch for breeding, so I don't trust them to be 100 percent honest with us. Even if they love the breed and their dogs.

Our bitch hasn't had all her health checks yet, but we'll be doing those soon.

What should we look out for when looking for a stud? What are potential pitfalls? What should we definitely check for our bitch's health? (Other than joints)
The stud we are looking at atm has a hip joint score of B/A (I don't know what this means) and an elbow joint score of 0/0 (I figure this is good?)

We don't have that many options for studs since most in our region are to closely related to our bitch (not the stud we're looking at). Still, I want to make sure the pups are as healthy as possible.

Looks and temperament wise the stud is exactly what we need (even if I'm not a huge fan of his looks, he fits the breed description)

Any and all advise on dog breeding is welcome!

 

[imagebeastmarkbeast]

@cledussnow Read the Wiki in r/dogs on Responsible Breeders https://www.reddit.com/r/dogs/wiki/identifying_a_responsible_breeder/. Then try to do as much as you can to be a responsible breeder. Here's a link to OFA to see what Health Clearance testing should.be done and passed by sire and dam. https://ofa.org/chic-programs/browse-by-breed/ Read the links on the Responsible Dog breeding wiki to prepare yourself for what can go wrong and the commitment it takes to breed a litter. Then using the Responsible Dog Breeding wiki to find a great stud as it lays out what good breeding looks like. Join a local specialty club to meet other breeders of your breed so you can network to find an appropriate stud. Ask or search for OFA health testing: here is a link to verify health clearance testing on OFA. Note you can check out a breeder by using the advanced search and putting in the breeder's kennel name (check of any part of name) and selecting poodle for breed. It will give you a list of dogs with the kennel prefix. https://ofa.org/advanced-search/ I stress that DNA testing is not health clearance testing both should be done, DNA testing is a breeder tool to make sure carriers and not bred to carriers. Health Clearance testing is what reputable breeders do to try and ensure the best chances for healthy puppies. It is normal to ask about stud agreement and fee. If the litter doesn't take, is a repeat breeding included. Do they require progesterone testing for a repeat breeding. Has the dog been used and has he produced Champion or titled dogs. What have the litter sizes been.

 

[cledussnow]

@imagebeastmarkbeast Thank you for the links! They're a huge help!
I'll definilty look into the DNA tests. At the moment the stud's owner has expressed wanting one pup as compensation, which I think is normal.
Sadly there isn't a huge scene for my dog's breed where I'm from, so not really any specialty clubs or many breeders.
The stud's owner was in contact with the breeder from who we got our bitch, which is how we know them. Seems like the only other way to find studs is Facebook groups which I'm not a fan of, but seems to be the only way...

 

[imagebeastmarkbeast]

@cledussnow It's not just DNA testing that is to ensure you don't Breed carrier to carrier. It is health clearance testing such as hips, eyes. Thyroid, elbows, patellas, cardiac, etc. If you are only going to fo DNA testing, please do not breed. There are more than enough poorly bred dogs that we do not need more. Look at the link for chic testing by breed and do that before even approaching a potential stud dog owner.

 

[cledussnow]

@imagebeastmarkbeast Sorry if that gave the wrong impression, I'll be pushing to get everything checked out that might need to be checked out. But was still clueless about what DNA tests that need to be done, which is why I specified.

About the approaching a stud it's a little late, I'm aware that's we're doing things a bit out of order... But it'll be rectified

 

[mygisfy]

@cledussnow A little sus they want to use your dog without her having health testing. Of course, you're getting that done, but in my mind it's odd to commit without seeing those results.

 

[cledussnow]

@mygisfy I suspect it's because the stud owner has several related dogs to my bitch, so they probably have a pretty good idea what the health of her bloodline looks like.
The reason they seem so keen on our bitch is because she's more what they're looking for in character and build than their own dogs.

 

[mygisfy]

@cledussnow Ah, that would make sense. I'd say wait till health checks to make a decision. I'm curious, why don't you like the stud's appearance? Even though he's within standard, that doesn't mean you have to use him.

 

[cledussnow]

@mygisfy The breed has a lot of variety, my bitch is rather slim with a long back and legs, the stud is... Well, more sturdy. Has a thicker head and overall just more bulky. Handsome boy, I just prefere the slimmer look.