breeding yorkies

Question
QUESTION: My 2 year old yorkie is in her 3rd heat, which started July 2nd.  Yesterday she started showing signs of wanting our 2 year old male to mount her.  The problem is, he is smaller and having a hard time getting a good footing on her backside.  It's comical to watch him with one foot on the ground working so hard.  My concern is that he's too short and they will not be successful in a lock.  Is there anything I could do to help the situation?  I'm afraid he will loose interest, they try for about 5-10 minutes and both drop exhausted and give up.

ANSWER: Hi Regina:

Awww, poor little guy, trying so hard! If your little girl began her cycle on July 2nd, it's likely she's either just entering or about to enter the estrus (fertile) portion of the cycle. It's only at this point when she'll allow & encourage mating to occur. Try getting both dogs to a quiet, undisturbed, comfortable area where the footing is secure, such as carpeting or a rubber flooring so the male won't slip & will be able to get some traction. It might be best to illicit an extra pair of hands to hold the female still, which will leave you free to assist him. Sometimes you can use a small elevated device, like several folded towels or you may try stapling a piece of rubber flooring onto an overturned wooden box to elevate him. No doubt he'll need some time to become accustomed to this & you may have to try several things before finding something that he's comfortable with & that works. You can also try assisting him by placing your hand under his tail area when he's mounting her & gently pushing him up & forward, which may help him to achieve penetration & hopefully a tie. Once he's in & locked hopefully all you'll need to do is keep your girl quiet & still, encouraging her with your voice. He'll be in his own little world once a tie is made. She may feel some pain so it's important to keep her as calm as possible throughout the duration. On average the estrus portion of the heat cycle lasts from 5 to 12 days so you should still have some time to work out a solution. I'd recommend once you have a successful breeding skip a day & repeat the breeding every other day for two to three matings. Usually one is sufficient but you'll have better odds of a positive pregnancy if you manage several. Any more than three isn't necessary.
I hope this helps & please let me know if all goes well. I wish you the very best!

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Denise,
Thank you so much for the information.
I did find another response you gave someone with a similar problem.  Yesterday I tried approaching them when they were busy TRYING, but as soon as they saw me, they both quit what they were doing and ran to me for my attention.  Will I always be a distraction to them since I'm their primary care taker?  
I'll try putting a small rug in their kennal and leaving them in there for a couple hours at a time to see if that helps.
Thanks Again!
Regina

Answer
Hi Regina:

Some dogs really resist any assistance tried when mating. It's like they have an innate sense that they're doing something "naughty" & feel very uncomfortable having their people nearby. Often I've heard people with this problem tell me in the past they've scolded the male when mounting so he may associate this with doing something of which you disapprove. You might try having someone else known to him try to assist. It's probably a long shot but may be worth a try. Otherwise, about all you can do is provide them with secure flooring & hope for the best or go the AI route. One other possibility is have you considered using another stud? Although I know it's certainly not preferable, it might be the only way to impregnate your female & not miss this cycle. I wish I had a magic formula for you but other than as I've stated, I don't know of anything else to try. It's possible that given time he may be able to accomplish mating at a future date. One last idea, although it might sound a little crazy -- a friend of mine is a breeder of Yorkies & she has a small male yet I knew she's had several litters by him. I asked her if she has similar problems to yours & she said she used to but then began to confine the dogs to a room & placed a few of her kid's old toys with them. They were of varying sizes & shapes but all had an area that was elevated & her male soon learned to utilize them to his advantage. She said his favorite was a small plastic child's slide, over which she had stapled a length of carpeting. Her male would coax the female to it & he'd back up the slide & therefore have a fairly easy time achieving the correct height to get the job done! It's a thought, anyway, although I'm not sure it's something that would be successful for all. But I wanted to mention it as a last resort.