Large or Small~ Which would you prefer?

Question

This question is directed more towards breeders...
As a breeder.. I breed for quality! I research..do health testing..and try my best to do things the right way...
When I breed.. I do not just turn them loose together and let them go at it like rabbits.. I want to know when they bred and how many times

When they are pregnant.. I hope for a small healthy litter (4-6)... enough for me to make my choices and place the remaining in homes...
it makes it easier on the mom...they normally have enough milk with smaller litters... and it is easier to spend time working with your puppies and making sure they are developing properly... and..the most important thing..you do not have tiny sickly babies
I know even with one breeding you can have 14 pups...but with more breedings you are more likely to have more pups.

So do you prefer a small litter or a large litter?


so far I have had 3 litters
litter 1 had 1 puppy
litter 2 had 4 puppies
and my current litter..5 puppies

JB~~ I kinda thought that too after I posted it... SORRY

Floopy~
Thank you..That's our boy Chevy... he is a good boy!
I love Ibizan Hounds..they are not only unique in appearance but also personality

Answer 1

Not a breeder but I definitely see your point with the small litters.

The dog in your profile pic is absolutely gorgeous--Ibizan hounds are so unique!

Answer 2

I have never bred a dog and therefore have no breeding experience, but your logic with wanting small litters holds plenty of water and makes a lot of sense. If I were a breeder, I'd want a smaller litter too; less overpopulation, less puppies to find new homes for, less pups to take back if the owners are dissatisfied.

What breed of dog do you produce? I know smaller dogs tend to have smaller litters than dogs like golden retrievers and Labs.

Answer 3

You know, we bred doxies for a bit.. and both our girls threw big litters for mini doxies.. (3 litters of 6 and 1 litter of 5!) and taking care of all them, and seeing how much stresss atleast our one girl went though... (She had flippin 5+oz puppies! we treid her 2x, after the 2nd and still big we fixed her as we were doing the c-section. so as not to stress her more...) but i would ask for a smaller litter then that.. but at the same time... Usuallly the smaller the litter, the biger the puppies.. which with some breeds mean a c-section because the ma cant push them out... lol mabye between 4 and 6? Grr yoru making me think!

Answer 4

Medium: I prefer a litter of 7-8 pups. Whether I have 4 or 8 I spend nearly every moment of 6 weeks with them... then I start letting them learn to be dogs without QUITE as much human interaction (I'm so bad and have extremely people oriented pups). 7 or 8 gives me more pups to choose from. Having had one litter of 3... I'll agree, it is tremendously easier, though.

I live in fear of a really BIG litter. My girl's mother (a Bernese Mtn Dog) had 3 litters of 13... 2 or 3 died out of every litter simply from being squished... this is not something *I* can deal with so I would spend every moment with the pups/dam.

Answer 5

Definitely small. Id love to breed English Bulldogs (usually single birth by C-section). The overhead is high on a per pup basis, but still relatively low compared to some litters.
Less pups is less chance that you'll make a mistake on an owner and have to take them back.
It also means its easier to have at least a casual relationship with the owners.

I havent done any breeding, but we looked into it for awhile. Decided against it for now, but maybe once we're on more stable financial footing we'll consider it again.

Answer 6

As I've said in other posts on the subject, I would be thrilled if I could order a single puppy to be delivered by stork. Let me pick a few things I really want, throw in a fault or two if you have to, wrap it up in a blanket and strap it to the bird.

So it should be no surprise that I prefer small litters. 4 is a nice number...I have choices, but the ones who don't stay are easy to place.

Answer 7

I'm with Loki, I've often said that I'd be happy with a "litter" of one high-quality puppy for me to keep.

I find it stressful to screen homes and interview people, trying to determine if they will be the right home for my pups.

OTOH, with a larger litter I have more to choose from, and I have made some wonderful friends from people who have bought my pups. I love to hear about how they are doing.

Answer 8

Stop breeding now unless you are doing for business purpose.It's better to have less number at a time to have healthy and cute ones.....as you have said and I am sure , your experience in this field is a testimony of the better breeding and better growth of the litters.

Answer 9

i love Huge and big dogs. Like pitbulls and rottweilers you can wrestle with them plus if a little dog gets bit by a snake: it's dead in a second. my Pit Bulls have been bit by a poisonous snake and it took us an hour to get to a vet and they are still alive. so for me the bigger the better.

Answer 10

Depends what the breed is. If it's a large breed then I would want the largest, if it's a small breed the smallest are worth more.
I want more puppies! Don't make me think of more puppies I already have 2 itty bitty Chis at home.