Mating
Dogs reach puberty at about 6-9 months of
age and learn the behaviour needed to mate (eg mounting) through play. Dogs are great individuals so bringing
a bitch to a dog is probably the best way to do things. Then it saves the time the dog will
waste establishing himself in a new territory by cocking his leg on everything
in sight.
The female "presents" by showing
a receptive posture while the male smells and licks her genital area. She may run a short distance and
present again to excite the dog.
When in standing oestrus, the dog will mount and gain entry by trial and
error. He will then thrust vigorously
stepping from one leg to the other.
During this time ejaculation occurs.
The dog's penis engorges for about 15-30
seconds in the vagina locking the pair together. The bitch may twist and turn and the pair may end up
pointing in different directions for about 10-30 minutes. Throwing water over them will do no
good at all! During this locked
position a second ejaculation occurs when most of the prostate fluid is
expelled.
Great damage can occur by pulling mating
dogs apart. So if it's an unplanned
mating - be patient. Spend the time placating the bitch’s owner! The deed has been done so contact your
veterinarian about an early abortion.
Pregnancy
A bitch will reach puberty and come into
heat first from 6-18 months of age.
If not pregnant. she will return to heat every 6-9 months. Bitches spend a long time in
"pro-oestrus" or coming into heat. This is annoying as all the dogs in the area think they
should stay around, and wait for the great moment when she will stand.
While coming on heat, her vulva will become
red and swollen and she passes a sticky mucous. As heat continues she will stand to be mounted before racing
away to tease the male.
“Standing heat” occurs about 10 days after
the start of coming into season, and lasts anything from 5-12 days. At this most receptive stage the vulval
discharge changes to a pale straw colour which will bring dogs for miles
away. She also urinates regularly
to spread the news and mark her territory. A good sign that she is "right on" is when she urinates
in the presence of a male, usually when he smells her genitals. If he doesn't get the message then, he
never will!
There are problems with inexperienced males
who in all the excitement get things wrong. To avoid this, mate a young dog first to an old bitch, and
vice versa. Some of the finer
points of sexual behaviour have to be learned. Pregnancy in a bitch lasts from 58-63 days.
Pseudo
pregnancy (false pregnancy)
This is an annoying condition as a bitch
may appear to be pregnant for 30-90 days.
She will show all the signs of a normal pregnancy, make a nest in
preparation for birth and even produce milk for up to 60 days. This can be very handy to rear
orphan pups but a nuisance if you want to mate her as she may not come in heat
again for 3-4 months.
Birth
A working bitch will still want to work
right up the time before birth, so watch her carefully to make sure she's not
injured as she slows up with her extra load! About 12-24 hours before birth she will make a bed of
anything around. Make sure she has
some straw or rags to chew up, and don't be surprised if she doesn't want to
whelp in her kennel. She may sneak
off to a hole in the ground somewhere.
You'll have to lock her up if you want to dictate the maternity
quarters.
She'll become restless and have a reduced
appetite prior to birth. Frequent
urination and defaecation as well as heavy panting are also good signs of
action to come. Labour can last
from 2-3 hours up to 12 hours depending on the litter size and any
complications. Seek veterinary
help at the first sign of problems.
As each pup is born the bitch will chew the
birth sac, biting through the umbilical cord in the process. The arrival of the afterbirth is a sign
that all the pups have arrived and the bitch will probably eat it too.
The bitch then spends a lot of time licking
the pups, especially their lower abdomen and area around the genitals ingesting
their faeces and urine. This keeps
the nest clean and dry - two important aspects.
Don't disturb the bitch during whelping and
keep strangers away. If you need
the vet, then make sure you are there to reassure the bitch and stay near her
head comforting her.
Pups
after birth
Pups are born blind and deaf, and the world
of sight and sound only opens up to them at about three weeks of age. So they are very "touch"
conscious animals at birth, and this "contact comfort" stays with
them for the rest of their lives.
This is why the greatest reward you can give a working dog is a
reassuring pat!
Pups are quite active soon after birth, but
stay near each other and seek out warm surfaces because near these, teats and
milk can usually be found. The
side-to-side movements of very young pups as they move short distances, show how
they are looking for those teats.
The bitch often encourages them towards her teats by licking.
If you have an inexperienced bitch, it may
be useful to fit a rail around the whelping area as used for sows. to prevent
her lying on pups. Strong pups
usually get out of the way or make such a noise that she will investigate their
cries. Smaller weaker pups may be
ignored and squashed.
Rearing
Just before 4 weeks old, a pup begins to
react to its litter mates and its mother.
At this stage the pup can see and hear. Play, tail-wagging, barking and other traits of the adult
dog are seen now.
For bitches with large litters, make sure
they can get away from the pups for short periods, especially as they get
older. A shelf to lie on above the
pups is ideal. But watch a
lactating bitch for roaming in search of food. At this stage she’ll have an enormous appetite when
she's milking heavily.
Once the bitch has discouraged the pups
from sucking, the focus is shifted from her teats to her muzzle. This is because the primitive dog fed
her pups by regurgitating food she brought back to the den. The pup licks the muzzle with a
crouching posture of a low-ranking pack member. So when a dog licks your face, remember it’s asking you to
regurgitate your last meal for it!
Socialisation
From 5 weeks of age pups will avoid
strangers and this peaks at about 8 weeks. It's an “anxiety” period that nature has designed to protect
them from predators. So anything
that a pup has not experienced before about 12 weeks will be avoided later with
some fear.
So 4 - 12 weeks of age is the most
important time in a pup's life.
This is the "socialisation" stage when it learns to interact
with other dogs, people and anything else it will meet later on. Let the pup experience noises,
strangers, children, cats, cars and so on, if you want a happy well-adjusted
dog. There is no truth in the
belief of some trainers that children can spoil pups - let them play with the
kids as much as they want without getting hurt or abused.
Building
the bond
Establishing yourself as a pup's pack
leader is vital, and it needs to be done before 12 weeks of age. A method used by some dog
handlers is simply to lay the pup flat on the ground and hold it down with both
hands. If it struggles, shake it
(which is what a bitch does) and growl or raise your voice. Then when it settles speak quietly to
it and calm it by rubbing your hands all over it, including putting your
fingers in its mouth.
Actions used by successful
handlers:
·
Feed the pup yourself, so you
and food become associated.
·
Occasionally interrupt the
pup's feeding for a few seconds, praise it then let it feed again. If it resists, use the shake-praise
technique.
·
Never call the dog to you just
before disciplining it.
·
Don't leave the pup alone for
long periods. Take it with you wherever you go.
·
Introduce it carefully to
frightening experiences where it can get hurt - eg. trampling by sheep.
·
Be consistent and don't change
the rules. Give plenty of
praise. Make sure everyone else
near the pup understands the rules and is not breaking them and confusing the
pup.
·
If a pup shows signs of
dominance or develops bad habits, use the “shake-praise” routine.
·
Eye contact is very
dominating. Hold the pup up to
your eye level for periods of 30-90 seconds and stare it out. If it struggles shake-praise it. Praise it softly until it settles. Repeat the exercise often in different
places.
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| Gentle dominance of a pup by handler |
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