Studding your dog

We have had many emails asking us what makes a suitable stud dog?What health testing is needed when studding a stafford? Are there any changes to the stud dogs character or temperament ? General advise on handling your stud while mating, we hope the following points answer the most commom question asked about studding your dog.

We can answer from our own view point and share the things we have done , we are not experts ,each dog is different,but we will list the route we have followed.

Levi is our first stud dog,we had used an outside stud until we decided we would like to breed the blue stafford,We like the boys but our last male was castrated at a young age to avoid unwanted litters.

We looked around for a blue stud in our area,as we were looking to get our first blue bitch,we found there were not many good blue stafford examples available for stud,so we decided we need our own,its very hard to choose a pup that you are hoping will grow into a good example of the breed and make a suitable stud dog,we looked at many blue litters and found many were being breed just for colour,the parents were not good examples in our eyes. we wanted to see both parents,when selecting a pup, we found this almost imposible! we knew what we were looking for but just couldnt find it

So if we brought a male that was not a good example,we decided not to get a bitch to forfil our dreams of breeding the blue stafford,he would be just a pet,at this point we decided to take a chance . We found a litter 9 weeks old, with 3 boys to choose from ,the colour was the strongest blue we had seen,both parents were the best we had seen ,there was one pup that stood out from the rest, but the owner wanted him, we were about to walk away,when they changed their mind and agreed to sell Levi to us. He was a funny looking little pup ,with one puppy ear that flopped forward,we just hoped he would be the start of blue stafford,there was some very good examples in his pedigree, Ch valgo lancer, Ch lethal weapon of crashkon(twice), ch valgo corolla CH debrella scotch on the rocks of dumbriton, Ch maradin master mariner, ch fulfin black eagle(twice) ,CH lawbury spikerjoe, but only time would tell

See pictures of Levi as he grew on the gallery page by the age of ten months we could see he was every thing we were hoping for

We entered him into a puppy class at a stafford show ,he came third out of twenty five ,this was very pleasing to us ,we loved him but it's nice to get an experts opionion We had him independently looked at by a cruffs judge ,she checked his teeth and movement ,the results were that he was a good repersentive of the breed meeting the breed standard So we have a blue stafford suitable as a stud ?

The next hurdle was health testing L2/GHA & HC this is done by a blood sample taken by the vet and sent to the animal health trust (down load the forms required on our matting tips page)

Both tests came back clear,The tests results needed to be photo copied and sent to

Health &information department of the kennel club
1-5 Clarges street
Piccadilly
London
W1j8ab
Phone 0207 5181040
The other test required is phpv eye testing,

This needs to be done by an eye specialist

We found it hard to find out where to get this testing done

(here is the contact details of the people we used They will be able to put you incontact with a specialist in your area )

MR Mason
Seadown Veterinary Group
Frost Lane
Hythe
Southampton
Hampshire
SO45 3NG
023 8084 2237
so we now have a fully health checked dog suitable as a stud as Levi holds a current eye certificate Phpv Another big consideration is temprement Levi is good with other dogs and children (in answer to the question is my dog suitable for stud ,we would answer , has the dog had health testing ? is the temprament good ? is your dog a good reperasentive of the breed that meets the breed standards?)

Levi sired his first litter to Magic when he was a year old

We had a problem getting Levi to mate to strange bitch's to begin with he didnt like strange dogs in our garden

We asked advise from other breeders ,we have found a routine that has been very sucessful

Are routine is we meet the bitch and owner outside on the road ,we walk the dogs together on lead for a short distance This lets the dogs get used to each other,if the bitch is ready and giving off the right smell, as soon as we get into our front garden Levi will mount the bitch as soon as he can! The dogs stay on lead and a tie is very quickly acheived ,Levi is not an over sexed dog if the bitch isn't ovulating he is not interested every mating so far has produced a litter,the mating takes place calmly and quickly ,we use the holding method and have found this our prefered method

What is the holding method? The owner of the bitch holds the bitch by her collar while levi mounts her and soon as possible we turn the dogs, some bitches after a tie will try to get away ,both dogs are held in place, so no injury to either dogs occur

Levi is very laid back,and remains very still when tied to a bitch, its normally a bitch that needs holding still

Levi needs a sleep after work ,he has a smile on his face!

This next section is to answer some questions we have been asked

(Q)I think my dog needs to be used as a stud because he mounts my friends, shaggs my cushions if we use him for stud work will this stop?

(A)Mounting is a dominace problem , teach your dog this is not exceptable behavior! If your dog is over sexed get it castrated

(Q)If we use our dog for stud will this change his charatcter or temperament and show sexual interest in all dogs as a result?

(A)A dog that is used as a stud will only show interest in a bitch in season no changes in the personality other than more laid back and content, we have found living with a stud dog no different than living with any other male dog .

(Q)Does studding your dog cause agression problems?

(A)The only time this could be a problem is if two males were in the same place as a bitch in heat.

(Q)Will my dog mark my home when used as a stud?

(A)Levi will mark much more out side when a bitch is in heat but he has not done it inside.

(Q)At what age does a male become sexually mature?

(A)Even a young pup of 5/6 months should be kept away from a bitch in heat to avoid an unplanned litter,we found with Levi he really got the hang of things at around 18mnths .

(Q)If my dog is castrated will he no longer show interest in my bitch when she is in heat?

(A)My 11 year old castrated bulldog, shows more interest in my bitches in heat than Levi our stud,he mounts and is still very intersted. Our first male was castrated at 6mnths old ,he still managed to tie with his mother! so we would defently say the only real difference is it stops unwanted litters .

(Q)I dont think my dog will make a good stud as he has never shown any interest in mounting or show any sexual interest in bitch's.

(A)When a bitch is ovulating and ready to except a dog its the smell that attracts the dog ,This triggers the sexual behavior

(Q)we have tried to mate my bitch on her first mating with a dog that had never mated before,with no luck.

(A)Its best if one or the other has mated before,then at least one or the other knows what to do!

(Q)Is there a risk of injury when mating my dog?

(A)When mating two staffords if the bitch is a madien or isn't quite ready she may well be agressive, an untrainned stud could retaliate and a fight could break out! Or if the dogs are runnung free while mating there is a risk to both getting injured if the bitch tries to get free after a tie has taken place! by using the holding method/ & using a soft muzzle on the bitch this can be avoided not all studs will mate on lead a dog needs to be trainned to do it,we feel it is well worth the effort

(Q)Is it eaiser to own your own stud dog

(A)When you need a stud it is convient , however when a bitch is in heat and you do not wish for a litter it is very difficult to be sure they are kept apart

(Q)How can I be sure a stud dog has had the testing for L2/GHA / HC & phpv eye testing has been done

(A)The kennel club has a web site if you know the kc name of the dog you can check your self on line

The kc will have recived photo copys of the test results and cheked that they are geniune

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