Mating my labrador bitch

Question
I want to mate my black lab bitch, i have a dog to mate her with but they didn't really get what they were supposed to do! I held her and he seemed to start off ok but wasn't mounting her, can you give me any tips on how to help them along?

Answer
You didn't say what day she was in her heat cycle. It may be either too early, or too late, in the cycle for breeding to take place. If she's in the proper time of the cycle, you may want to use a teaser male. Get another experienced male dog, put him on a leash. Put the intended stud dog where he can see what's happening, but can get to the dogs. Let the teaser dog sniff, and mount the bitch. But don't let them actually breed. That's all it usually takes, is for the male dog to see another male trying to get business done. That will most likely straighten him up really fast. That's IF the female is in the right part of her cycle. A good experienced stud dog known when the right time is, even if the female is standing for him. Good luck!