Getting Ready for Puppies

My Pocket Bully is getting ready to hit her third heat cycle. For those that don’t know, this is the prime time for her to have pups. I’ve had many conversations with my Vet since Atlas was a young pup. I knew that I wanted puppies and the vet has recommended waiting until after her second heat. Now, she’s getting ready for puppies.

I’ve been reading up on Bullies getting ready for puppies for the last year. I want to be sure that my dog is safe and that we are responsible pet owners. I’ve often heard of dog owners leaving their dogs outside during a heat cycle. Females are always looking for males to mate with when they’re in heat.

I’ve taken very serious precautions to avoid this. When she’s in heat, she is confined to being by my side 24 hours a day. She is not allowed around males during this time.   She also has to wear diapers the entire time.  Not only am I cautious because I want only Pocket Bullies; yes, she is pure breed Pocket Bully. But I won’t contribute to more dogs in the Animal Control Center.

Why Only Pure Breed Pocket’s?

I’ve seen some articles that claim that having pure breed dogs is cruel. Not only to the dog, but to the world. Many claim that putting them in show’s is cruelty to animals. Is it really?

Here’s the thing. I’ve had numerous dogs over the last 30 years of my life. Most of my dogs have come from the pound, from the humane society. Were those dogs bad? Absolutely not. I loved those dogs the same as I love Atlas.

Annie was a dog that I adopted from the pound. I had her for fourteen wonderful years. She was my running buddy, she went everywhere with me. She was a great dog, but she passed this year due to old age. I’ve also adopted dogs out of boxes for free in front of shopping centers. Sarah was a great dog. I had her for her short life as well. She passed unfortunately, from eating an aluminum pie pan.

Atlas is the first Pocket Bully I have ever brought into my life. She is, hands down, one of the best dogs I’ve had the pleasure of having. I want another mini Atlas, and I want the puppy to come from Atlas specifically. I also know that I will keep only one female. I’ll let her have babies in her third heat cycle, and keep another female and so on.

I want Atlas to live forever, and because of that, I’ll need to keep her line going. She is beyond special to me. She is the most human dog I’ve ever encountered.

The Pocket Bullies are such a rare breed and extraordinary dog, so I’ll need her to mate with another. If she mated with a mixed dog, other traits would come out.

What Mixed Breeds Bring Us.

Mixed breeds are nothing I frown on, so don’t take this article as that. I’ve had many mixed breeds and all dogs are awesome. Different breeds have different traits though. Labs are notoriously hyper until they reach the age of two years. Male labs are especially difficult until they reach two.

There are a lot of labs mixes out there because labs have a tendency to get loose from yards and run. They love to just run, so often, they mate with females in heat and then again, they’re off! Off to find more trouble to get into.

Pit Bulls are also very hyper dogs. There are a lot of Pit mixes out there because they will often get loose as well. Pits can be diggers, so keeping them fenced up all day; trust me, they’ll find a way out.

Danes are a large breed and while some are extremely smart, some males can be…more difficult. Even though they’re a very large dog, they are often very timid. However, because of their size, it’s very easy for them to jump fences if a female near them is in heat. They will simply jump the fence and mate with the female close by. This is why there are a lot of Dane mixed breeds.

Dogs that are allowed to mate at any given time will usually wind up with their mixed pups going to the pound. The person that had the female and left her unattended, will become pregnant when not under watch. Two months later, mixed puppies are born. While every attempt is made to give them to free homes, many will put a re homing price on their head that’s more than adopting from a shelter.

What Shelters Provide.

Shelters provide several pros along with their cost. It covers the fixing of the dog. Shelters know they can’t handle more dogs, so they fix that before the dog leaves.

It also covers their first shots. The shelters often hope that the person bringing this dog into their life will be responsible and keep up with the shots. Many don’t though.

These puppies that are given away are not fixed. So, the mixed breed continues to mate with other mixed males and soon enough, you have puppies that have 6-7 mixes in them. The world is divided in that 1/4 of the people will adopt from shelters – remember, these dogs are fixed. The other 1/4 will take a puppy with a minimal re homing fee. These dogs are often not fixed. These are the ones that continue to have puppies uncontrolled and the dog population soon is out of hand.

The last half of the people will buy pure breed dogs. Many have their reasons. They had a dog of that breed, fell in love, and so will only buy that breed now. Some will have heard of how great that breed is from friends, and so will buy one. They fall in love, and then only that breed will be their favorite. Whatever the reason, this is why people breed dogs. People want them.

Now, I’m starting to prepare my pure breed. She’s getting ready for puppies.

Starting To Prepare; Getting Ready For Puppies.

There’s a lot that goes into the preparation of getting ready for puppies if you’re doing it the right way. As I said, Atlas is not allowed out of my sight when she’s fertile. She’s basically grounded to Mom – Me. To do my homework, I’ve been watching YouTube videos for the last year.

I’ve watched what other breeders with Pocket Bullies have gone through with puppies. This goes for the good, and the bad. Some puppies don’t make it at birth. Mother’s will suffocate their puppies if left unattended. I’ve even seen mothers that have too many pups versus nipples and the pups have to be rotated.

I’m okay with this. Not okay with losing puppies, but I do have a Vet on speed dial and I’ve been talking to them for the last year to prepare. I know what to do if I think a puppy is stuck. This will warrant an emergency call for a C-Section. This comes with a hefty price tag. Insurance will come in handy for this reason which I have.

I’ve also been practicing what to do if a puppy isn’t breathing when they’re born. I know the right maneuver to try to clear their lungs. A dog pen will be needed so that when she goes into labor, I can have the puppy pads down inside a small child’s swimming pool. Blankets will be lined as well to keep Atlas comfortable.

As you can see, there’s a lot to having puppies when it’s actually planned. I have all the materials I need already, but now she has to get pregnant.

Artificial Insemination.

I’ve decided on AI for Atlas for several reasons. First, the Bully community in my state is very small. The breeder that I got Atlas from (awesome people!) know almost every Bully up here. They have guided me since telling them I want her to have puppies on where to go. Because the population is saturated here, they have stated that I need to get a stud from out of state.

Dogs that mate with their blood line will have puppies with deformities. They may also have mental issues. Incest is the same for dogs as with humans; not good. I’ve seen some Pocket Bullies up here already with deformities, and I can say they most likely did not take the same precautions I am.

We have decided to go with a line from out of state. Because of this, we will either have to bring Atlas to the stud, or, have the sperm shipped. We have decided to have it shipped.

Due to the way we’re doing this, a vet will need to be the one to inseminate her. Progesterone testing will need to be conducted daily to ensure she is at the vet’s office when she is most fertile. This will make sure the pregnancy takes the first time.

This is a very costly way to have puppies and that’s okay. As long as we know the puppies are healthy and Atlas is okay. Taking these precautions also ensures that we have the puppies we want. No unexpected pregnancies and pocket Bully puppies that we know people will jump on, to take home.

After the AI happens, we will also know the exact day to expect puppies.

Days To Gestation.

Once Atlas is inseminated, it will take 63 days to full term. Because her hormones will be tested, the vet will be able to nail down the exact day she will give birth. The vet office that is 3 minutes from my house will be expecting a phone call from me. They know Atlas very well, and always look forward to her routine check ups.

The vet has stated that the day she is going into labor, they will be able to have more vet’s on hand. Ensuring staffing is full, they will be able to do an emergency C Section if anything goes wrong. If Atlas goes into labor at night, then I have the two Emergency Vet clinics on speed dial as well.

I’m hopeful she goes into labor during the day, so she can see her normal doctor. Well, hopefully nothing goes wrong period. But I always have plan B and C. If she goes into labor at night, then I would have to call each ER clinic and see which can do an emergency C section first.

I hope dog parents can see that planning and preparation should go into this. Not simply allowing your female to be unattended while she’s in heat. There’s so much to getting ready for puppies, just like with children.

I know many people don’t plan well for children either, but we should.

Some states have a lot of dogs in the population, but simply keeping watch could prevent all that.  I’m planning on puppies because I want them.  So I’m taking all the necessary measures to be sure it’s on our watch.  It’s all in how you plan on getting ready for puppies!

What did you experience during your dogs pregnancy? Heat cycle? Comment below for others as well!