How do I get into breeding huskies?

Question

I want to become a CERTIFIED breeder, but I'm not sure where to start. Does anybody have any recommendations? I know I have to register through AKC, but how do you run the kennels? How many does do you start out with? Can somebody give me the "dummies" version so I can understand how to start?

(I don't want to be a "hobby breeder", I want to do this RIGHT for the love of the breed and not the money.)

Thanks! :)

Answer 1

As has been answered, CERTIFIED breeders are not someone you strive to be, if you love the breed. Certified breeders have to register with the USDA as an agriculture breeder, like someone who raises chickens or cows for consumption. Someone who produces mass quantities of animals.

AKC doesn't register breeders. They register some kennel names, but basically, AKC is just a registration organization, a facility that maintains records of dogs. (In addition to holding shows and performance trials.)

If you are planning on making a profit, you aren't in it for the 'love of the breed'.

Hobby breeders, to me, are the people who ARE in it for the love of the breed. They are the people who spend lots of money on their hobby, their dogs. Some money is recouped on pups, but the money from litters almost never covers the cost of attaining titles for the parents of the litter. (In response to a question on a Malamute list, I totalled up the costs of attaining the titles on one of my boys...his 7 titles cost me just over $10,000.)

Now, backyard breeders is another term that you want to avoid being labeled, along with puppy miller (aka 'certified' breeder).

Backyard breeders have a female or five, and a male (or their neighbor/brother/friend has the male) and these people put the dogs together and produce pups. No medical checks, no proving the parents are worthy of reproducing by attaining titles, no temperament tests (often the parents never leave the property).

Puppy millers just breed litter after litter with the parents having none of the above mentioned tests/checks done.

How do you start out?

First step is to contact Husky Rescue. See just how many hundreds of pure-bred, wonderful, gorgeous Huskies are sitting in foster homes, shelters, boarding kennels this very minute, waiting for a home. Huskies are NOT an easy breed to own. Offer to foster for Rescue. Offer to transport dogs, to groom dogs, to make shelter runs to verify breed and take dogs out of shelters and deliver them to Rescue. Donate time and money, learning the reasons WHY people dump Huskies.

Go to shows. See prime specimens of the breed in the ring. Study breed standards. Be able to spot a badly sloped shoulder at 100 yards. Learn proper gait.

Go to Husky working events. Weight pulls, sled races. See what it takes to make it in the 'field' with Huskies. See how badly a dog with cow hocks performs.

Study all the inherited problems Huskies have. Learn about hip displasia, cataracts, etc.

Finally, talk with several established breeders. Find two or three you 'click' with. Get a nice pup from one of them. Work him. Show him. Live with him (her, sex isn't important yet). Get titles on the dog.

Then, finally, in about 4 - 5, maybe 10 years, get a sound female, preferably a pup, who you will get titles on. (You can 'cheat' and get an already titled female, if one becomes available.) Do all the required genetic testing and certify she is clear. Search for a male who compliments her, who is strong in areas she is weak.

Then, you spend at least a year learning as much as you can about whelping a litter. Discovering what Brucellosis, mastitis, oxytocin are. Learning how to revive a pup who isn't breathing after delivery. How long a female is in season and the prime breeding days. How long a female carries a litter, what to expect at labor. What to feed the expectant female, the lactating female, the pups. How to find good homes for the pups. What your contract should read.

Most of all, you should feel confident that a small percentage of the pups you bring into the world will ever lose the home you place them in. AND, you should be able to take these pups back should they lose their home for whatever reason, until you can find them a second home.

Or else these pups you 'create' will end up in the first place I suggested you look...at an animal shelter or in Rescue.

If you are doing things RIGHT...you don't want this!

Answer 2

I have NO idea what a "certified" breeder even is. I have been breeding and showing for years and I am not "certified".

All you need to do is love a breed, get a show puppy, and start showing. The rest is down the road. You need QUALITY first. While you are showing....you will meet people, learn things you need to know, and decide if it is something you want to do.

I feel a "hobby breeder" is what most good breeders are. As opposed to people who make a living off breeding..those are puppy mills. A hobby breeder is just that. We do it for the love of the breed and like most hobbies, it costs us a FOUTUNE!!!!!!!!!

You do not need to worry about kennels when you are starting with ONE dog. All in good time.

Answer 3

Go to the akc website and look at the breed temperament and their characteristics. Start out with 2 or 3 bitches of EXCELLENT quality, and disposition. You don't need to have a male, but you could get one if you'd like. Some people inbreed but I feel that is unethical and I suggest checking out the dogs lineage at least 5 or 6 generations to make sure they are unrelated. Do not breed a male with a female that have the same faults, you will just accentuate the fault. Get in contact with local breeders, ethical breeders who take good care of their animals. Check out books from your library, they are a wealth of information. Make sure your kennels are always clean have a run outside for them. They need to be warm in the winter and kept cool in the summer. I would have the kennels heated personally even though huskies are meant for cold weather. A good idea is to have people walking in and out to bleach their shoes before entering to prevent the spread of disease. Be sure to vaccinate and worm your puppies per your vet's schedule. Also you can e-mail the akc website if you have questions about registering the puppies and what not but remember it may take up to a few weeks to get an answer.

Answer 4

Start by getting a show quality dog and finishing that dogs CH title with AKC.
Then either stud that dog out or breed the female.
Make sure you do all the correct genetic and health testing for hte breed before breeding and be sure you are breeding to high quality stock.
Then keep a pup from the litter and show it to finish it's CH title.
You keep breeding and showing. Out cross your dogs with other breeders dogs to get better and better quality dogs.
Being certified means nothing as there is not really any certification for breeding. The USDA inspects some kennels but the puppy mills can pass those inspections so that means nothing.
By showing and develpoing a name for your self and your kennel is the only way to become a "real breeder"
It is going to cost you a lot of money to get a dog and show the dog to finish it's title and for the stud fee. Be prepeared. It is very costly to show dogs to finish their tiltes. Lots of travel and time.

Answer 5

Certified can mean nothing. It's frequently a USDA status for puppy mills that lures uneducated buyers into thinking that they are a humane breeder. Most smaller kennels and breeders do not need USDA certification.

Where to start?

Start going to dog shows. Approach a few breeders and speak with them about your desires. If you find a person that you can relate to best, use them as your breeder mentor. This way you won't be back on here asking questions like "How long is a dogs (sic) period?" and "When will my doggie have her puppys (sic)?" All basic information will be taught to you and all deeper questions can be directly to him/her.

Your next step will be to acquire a show quality dog. This is WAAAAY different than a pet quality dog or simply an AKC registered dog. This dog will have been cared for fully and have been from Champion (CH) parents with little to no defects and deviations from the breed standard. The owner of these dogs should be able to tell you *why* this stud was selected for this 8itch and what 'faults' are hoped to be improved on with the offspring.

From there, start getting the dog involved in local and AKC confirmation shows and seen by people. And once the dog is old enough, have it OFA and CERF certified. Join your national breed club and be active in it and join your local breed club and be active in it as well.

I'll give you a few resources to read and general google searches for 'how to become a responsible dog breeder' should yield even more info. Don't forget to thoroughly read your dog club's code of ethics, code of conduct, and breeder responsibilities. If you find them lacking, lobby to have them strengthened.

And don't forget, that as a breeder, you are responsible for any dogs you create for the rest of their lives. You'll also have to acknowledge that breeders *do* contribute to overpopulation and work hard to make that contribution as little as possible.

I commend you for being interested on learning how do to this responsibly, but I urge you to join some husky groups rather than frequent this site for answers. Unfortunately, it's full of people who think that breeding only requires 2 dogs of different sexes, and even more who think that each and every AKC dog should be bred. You can help educate by responding to these people. : )

Answer 6

I would start out with a breeder. I would start with the female to become your dam as you can always pay the stud fee but with such a large breed starting with the one will be easier. Anyways....buy from a breeder who will sell you a good puppy. They should tell you everything they like about this pup. Go with a breeder that does contracts and will give you a deal so you can breed.

I would show this puppy in actual shows. If good enough she should actually place or at least do quite well (no last or near last place)

check AKC.com for more info.


Good luck!

Answer 7

Hopefully, you have done alot of research on this breed. If you have, you will undoubtedly know that this breed has certain personality traits that make them very susceptible to being abused and/or abandoned i.e. they can be stubborn, they shed constantly, they need a very secure yard, as they are capable of escaping through the smallest of openings, they love to dig and chew. Don't get me wrong - I absolutely LOVE this breed of dog; I own two huskies myself. If you really want to "do this right for the love of the breed and not the money" as you say you do, then instead of breeding and creating more huskies that could be potentially abandoned/abused, why not consider adopting a couple of huskies and establishing a husky rescue site? This way you could carry on with your love of the breed, assuming you are not in it for the money.

Answer 8

You should start by contacting some local vets. they will be able to point you in the right direction.

Answer 9

you get your license first and then you have to purchase the dogs and get the dogs with papers that prove they are full breed. if you cant prove their full breed you wont get much money for them.

Answer 10

First you get two dogs of the opposite sex or just one and pay out a stud fee.Its that easy