Deb.
Don't know if I have welcomed you yet or not, but just in case,
welcome to
the group. I hope you find the group nicer than the other you
were in. We
have had a few problems on here in the past, but nothing that
isn't
overcome after a bit if you be patient and wait for things to blow
over.
Ok, you want to ask questions...that is great. We should all
feel we can
ask questions without being bashed. So, my question is...can
you deal with
contructive criticism? I am the type of person that feel
everyone does not
have to agree with everyone else. People should be able
to say, "you know,
I disagree," and do so in a humane and decent manner. Do
you agree?
I will try to answer a few of your questions. However, I
would feel
dishonest if I didn't first point out that I do not think you
should be
breeding this dog. I will not go into all the reasons why, since
I am sure
you have already heard them. However, since you have already made
the
determination to go ahead and breed, I think it is best that you do
have
as much info as possible, therefore, anyone that knows should be
willing
to help you.
Registration......unless the parents of
this dog are AKC and you have AKC
registration papers, you can not register
the dog AKC. There are other
groups that you can register her with. I am
sure others can throw out a
few names....APRI I think is what one is
called. There is the CKC
(Contintal, not Canadian, which is the equivalent
of the AKC) A fwe
others. I know with the CKC, all that is realy required
is a few pics of
the dog submitted with a noterized statement from yourself
and a witness
that the dog truly is full blooded. Don't ask me what is
suppose to
prevent fraud here.
Eating....Personally, I free
feed. Most people do not. I would find a good
quality dog food, which is
nutritionally balanced for a small breed that
is young and healthy. I would
avoid human food. (unless you choose to go
the raw diet rout....which I
can't comment on due to lack of knowledge) If
you do not free feed, I would
follow the dog food and vet recommendations
on proper amount to feed.
Experment a bit, adjusting as needed. Dog A may
not eat the same amount as
Dog B even if they are the same size, age,
weight, ect. Like humans,
matabolism differs.
Breeding: If you are determined you are going to
breed this dog, my first
recommendation to you is RESEARCH! Ask questions,
speak to breeders, talk
to your vet, ect and so on. Get as much info as you
possibly can on the
whole process including the many things that can go
wrong with a pregnant
chi and/or her pups. INFORMATION is your best weapon.
Wait until she is at
least a year and at least 2 heat. I wait till third
heat. I do not know of
any pros to waiting till a dog has had a litter of
pups before spaying. I
have heard that all my life, but best I can tell, it
is a simple wives
tale. Unless a dog is part of a well rounded breeding
program, they should
be spayed/neutered as soon as the vet thinks it is
safe. With chis, a lot
of people do decide to wait to see if any puppy
teeth will need to be
removed and if so, do both procedures at once so
there is only a one time
anethesia. This is normally a good idea and the
timing still remains good
for spaying/neutering.
As for the cons of
waiting....that is the pregnancy itself. Of course,
things could go
wonderful and you could have a cute litter of pups that
emmediately find
great forever homes. That is the goal. That is the best
possible outcome.
Unfortunately, too often, there are complications which
could lead to the
death of either the pups or the mom or both. Chis are
pretty notorious for
hard deliveries simply due to their small size. Then
of course, the genetic
problems that chis are prone to such as hip/leg
difficulties, heart
problems ect. And lets not forget low sugar that is
REALLY dangerous for a
chi pup. Way to much to go into here. So I am back
to my original statement
of RESEARCH ang get as much INFO as possible.
I will again encourage
you to reconsider, but I hope I have answered some
of your questions and
provided you with some info in a decent manner.
Marsha
.
