Hi all

question - mum wants me to stud her yorkie once before we get him done, how do i go about doing this?

"Ben has a lot to offer as a stud dog and it would be good for him to mate" -Has he? Would it?

What does he have to offer that is so special that it cannot be found in any of the top stud dogs of his breed? The owners of good bitches can pick and choose the best stud for their bitches from among the cream of the studs anywhere in the country. When they can select from sires that have proven their ability to pass on their good qualities to their offspring why would they want to use Ben? The only way to get good bitches is for Ben to prove himself an outstanding example of his breed in the show ring or at working trials. Of course, you can always let him mate the second, third, fourth rate bitch belonging to your neighbour, which will no doubt result in second, third, fourth rate puppies.

And what about those puppies? You, as stud owner, have no rights over their welfare or future. Will it not bother you if the puppies that your dog was instrumental in producing do not find good homes, or end up in rescue, or passed from owner to owner, or are used as breeding machines, or join the legion of strays foraging for a living, or are picked up and used as bait for fighting dogs, or are destroyed simply because no-one wants them?

Once a male dog has covered a bitch then it is quite likely that he may start to exhibit undesirable behaviours. Aggression towards other males is a real possibility. He may become far more territorial. His sense of his own importance may become inflated making him less amenable to commands and more difficult to control. When he scents a bitch in season he will be even more likely to whine, howl, go off his food, become moody and irritable, and seek to escape. He will be inclined to mark inappropriately, and the smell of stud urine is rather powerful to say the least.

If you are worried about his frustrations then have him castrated. This will remove the hormone-driven urges but will not alter his personality.

sorry for the delay in my reply.

i will have to have a look at the pics when i am at my mums on her pc as i cant view them in work. how old is she now?

no news as of yet wont find out until the end of august as it is a council run scheme we have to submit an application but i did get the mortgage accepted.