breeding time

Question
whaat date do i breed my female in heat now.  She just started to swell, i have picked the stud, so when do i breed her and how long for puppies due.

Answer
Hi, a dog's heat cycle breaks done into 3 segments basically.  The 1st 7-10 days, they tend to bleed heavier and will not except a male, the 2nd 7-10 day segment their vulva will swell and they will be willing to except a male.  This is the time you would want to breed.  Most people with studs will have you do three breedings, a day apart for each breeding, to give him & her a rest.  Puppies arrive normally with 63 days of the breeding, so you want to count 63 days from the first breeding date & 63 days from the last breeding date.  Then you know approx. when the puppies will arrive.  The last segment of the heat also will last approx. 7-10 days and the female will be going out of heat and not except a male.  If she has never been bred before but shows a lot of interest in the male, you may have to hold her up to get them bred as a lot of new females won't accept the weight of the male on them the first time.  By no means should you force them to breed.  if she really freaks about you holding her up, and the male being on her, just let her go.  You can go to the vet and get a smear done on the female to see how far along she is in the heat cycle so you can better estimate when the male should be with her.  Hope this helps, & good luck.

Dawn