Launching the Next Generation

By Pilar Kuhn

The other day while watching our young Scottie bitch enjoy time frolicking in the front yard and taking a well-deserved break from tending to her first litter, I thought, “My ‘baby’ is a mommy.” It’s part of what we plan as breeders, but it seems like it was only a short time ago my husband and I set forth the plans that ultimately brought this young girl and her littermate sister into the world. It was a little over two years ago.

We knew we were expecting three puppies from our three-and-a-half-year-old grand champion Scottie bitch when I got a call asking if I could be available to work an event out of town that spanned possible due dates. I asked my husband if it would be okay with him and his question back, “Can you afford to pass up this work? It’s a great gig,” settled it. I tried to get as prepared as possible so my husband could be ready for any issues that may arise and I left town knowing our bitch was in the best hands. After all, my husband was quite experienced with whelping Scottie puppies with no one else around. But Mother Nature loves to throw curve balls regardless of experience. When he called to let me know our bitch’s temperature started dropping, we discussed the various options at hand. Could she go into labor in the middle of the night? Of course she could (and probably would). Was this really the real temperature drop or would it keep going down over the next day or so? Did we think he should take her in that afternoon and have a C-section? We prefer for our bitches to be in stage one labor prior to doing a C-section if at all necessary, but our bitches historically have one large puppy that invariably gets stuck. We knew a C-section was a very realistic possibility. Did we have a clinic we could trust in the middle of the night? Unfortunately, we lived in an area that had anti-breeding laws and most clinics that might have agreed to perform a C-section were also required to spay the bitch at the same time.

I got the call at 2:30 am. Our girl was in labor. After two more hours, she still did not have a puppy out. Given the time frame, she most likely wasn’t going to deliver any puppies on her own and the question then became, “Do we go to the one emergency clinic we know won’t spay her, or do we wait until normal office hours at our regular clinic? One will be closing when the other is opening.” My husband went to our regular clinic and I stayed on the phone as much as I could while I listened to the series of events transpire.  Our regular vet performed the C-section. We lost the first puppy, a boy, but I teared up when I heard the newborn cries of two little girls.

More planning ahead for future generations, a little over a year ago we imported a young male for our breeding program. We thought our older brood bitch would have her last litter prior to her daughter. But Mother Nature, once again, had different plans for us. After all the trouble we had with one of our Bouvier bitches getting pregnant and carrying a litter to term coupled with insightful conversations with other breeders, we chose to breed our young champion bitch on her season following her second birthday. I admit I had a few moments wondering if this plan would really be best for her and for us. After all, we had planned this breeding for over a year. We knew we were breeding her at a healthy young age and it would enable us to launch our next generation if all went well. So we did breed her. She did get pregnant. And her own whelping scenario reads very similarly to her dam’s experience, but she now has four beautiful and healthy babies and her litter puts four living generations under our roof.

Thinking back over those words, “My ‘baby’ is a mommy,” I realized that it isn’t really about their age. I worry no matter what their age. I get excited to have our beloved girls challenged with nature’s task of carrying a litter and being our partners in preserving their breeds. Every time we have newborn puppies, I am freshly amazed at the miracle of life. My heart swells with happiness and we watch closely over the little ones for weeks, hoping and praying they survive.

Once the first two weeks pass and eyes start to open, we feel ourselves breathe a tad easier. We enjoy watching little personalities emerge. We give thanks for the opportunity to be the first impact on these little lives that will grace our home or other homes that eagerly await their puppies. And above all else, it is a great honor to help our girls launch the next generation.

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Posted by chesliepickett on Mar 23 2015. Filed under Current Articles, Featured. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.