There are really not many dog breeds out there as strikingly elegant and majestic as the ”king of dogs”, the Great Dane. If you are enamored of this breed and have a strong passion for bettering it, you will need to understand what it takes to breed these dogs and how to avoid potential problems often encountered by novice breeders. Questions to ask yourself before breeding are:
- Can you financially afford raising a litter? Do you have money for testing your Great Dane for hereditary disorders? Can you afford a cesarean section? Can you afford having all the puppies vaccinated and dewormed? Consider that breeders rarely make a profit and only sometimes may break even.
- Do you have the time to bottle feed the puppies if necessary? Will you have enough room for them? Will you be capable of providing them with the socialization they will need before going to good homes?
- Will you screen potential buyers to ensure your puppies go the the right homes? Will you take back a puppy in the eventuality the owner is no longer willing to keep it or if it develops behavioral problems? Will you offer spay and neuter agreements?
Important Considerations for Serious Breeders
If you are seriously considering breeding, you are strongly encouraged to talk to some reputable breeders and attend some dog shows. Your first step therefore would be determining if your Great Dane is of breeding quality. As much as you love your dog and find him or her to be nothing short of majestic, you need to familiarize yourself with the breed standards and recognize if your dog conforms to them or if he or she has any faults.
The goal of breeding responsibly should be to understand the field of genetics and eliminate any hereditary defects from the breed so to improve it. This often involves having stud dogs and dams x-rayed prior to breeding to ensure they are free of hip dysplasia or elbow problems which are quite common in this breed. The Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) evaluates the x-rays and gives a value to the status of hips and elbows.
Other recommended tests are blood work to test for hypothyroidism, a cardiac check since this breed has a high incidence of heart disease and a certification from the Canine Eye Registration Foundation (CERF) to rule out any eye disorders that can be passed on to future litters.
It is imperative to also check your Great Dane’s pedigree and trace down your dog’s parents, grandparents and great grandparents to see if any of them had any hereditary problems. You may need to have to contact the breeder you purchased your dog from to get a hold of these records or you may do a pedigree search on the American Kennel Club website.
While you are at it, it is also very important to check with your breeder if your dog can actually be bred, since at times the breeder puts a clause on the sales contract prohibiting owners from breeding the dog if he or she believes they are not of breeding quality. Now, once you have determined that your stud or dam qualifies for breeding, you are not even halfway done.
Your next step is to do some homework on researching a potential mate that is AKC registered and comes free of hereditary disorders or conformation flaws. And don’ t forget about temperament: only Great Danes with a stable, friendly and dependable temperament should be bred. Stay away from timid or aggressive specimens!
Also, consider that dams and studs must be of the right age. According to the Great Dane Club of America, a stud dog should be at least one year old and a dam should not be younger than 18 months. Once a good match is made, both dogs need to be tested a few days ahead for brucellosis, a sexually transmitted disease in dogs that can lead to a miscarriage and infertility. Testing negative for this test will finally give you the green light for breeding your Great Dane.
How to Successfully Breed Great Danes
In order to heighten the chances of a successful breeding, timing is of the essence. According to Beth J. Finder, a breeder, exhibitor, obedience trainer and author of the book ”Breeding a Litter”, most breedings fail because of poor timing than anything else. Therefore it is imperative to monitor the heat cycle of female to determine when the right time has come. Following is a step by step guide to Great Dane breeding.
Tools needed:
- Non-slip surface
- Beach towel
- Helpers
- Determine when the dam is in standing heat. Often vaginal smears done by a veterinarian may help indicate the optimal time for breeding, but there are no guarantees. Owners generally recognize a dog is in heat due to the enlargement of the vulva and exudation of a bloody discharge. While males interested in a female may suggest she is in heat, the female will generally not allow them to mount until she is at the peak of her fertility. According to veterinarian Margaret V. Root Kustritz with the University of Minnesota, dams are most fertile between the 8th and 15th day of heat, counting from the the first day the bleeding was first noticed.
- Take the female to the stud’s home. Males perform better when they are in their own environment. Provide a quiet area offering a non-slip surface. The dam will usually engage the male in some foreplay, flirting and occasionally ”flagging” with her tail. When she is ready, she will flip the tail to the side and stand still (hence the term, ”standing heat”) allowing the male to mount. Some inexperienced dams may slip from under the stud, requiring some intervention. A trick of the trade in this case is to roll a beach towel under her belly with two people on each side holding it to prevent her from sagging. The tail may need to be pulled aside if she is not keeping it far to the side. At times, the intervention of three or four people is needed to allow the dam and stud to successfully mate.
- Ensure a tie takes place. Once the stud has mounted, his penis will engorge and the female’s vaginal wall will contract causing the male to be stuck inside the female. This is a ”tie” and it is important to be there when this occurs since some dogs may feel nervous and panic. On average a tie lasts anywhere between 10 to 45 minutes. It is important to keep the dogs calm during this time.Preventing an outside tie is important. This takes place when the swollen glans is visible, when it should not be because it should be inside the female. This can be prevented by encircling the rear quarters of both dogs with both arms to keep them pressed together and ensure an ”inside ‘tie” .
- Watch for the male stopping the trusting. At this point, he is ready to be turned. Some males will instinctively turn over by rotating a rear leg over the female’s hindquarters and then ending in a back-to-back position with the female. If the male does not turn, the female may get restless from him resting on her. It can therefore be beneficial at times turning the male manually. Once the dogs are rump-to-rump, the breeder may again encircle the dog’s hindquarters with his arms. Being tall dogs, some breeders find it more comfortable to sit on a stool while holding the dogs together to prevent strain on the back. It is important to keep both dogs calm during this time. Separating the dogs at this point, may cause serious injuries to the male. As the swelling subsides, the male will separate on his own.
- In order to heighten the chances of pregnancy, more than one mating is often needed. It helps to breed when the female has been in heat for about seven days, and allowing breeding every other day, up until when the female allows it, recommends veterinarian Margaret V. Root Kustritz. The day in between the matings helps the male’s sperm to rebuild.
If all goes well, puppies may be on the way. A Great Dane’s pregnancy lasts an average of 58 to 63 days. If you plan on future breeding you must skip a heat cycle. Please, before breeding think it over carefully. A Great Dane should never be bred to make money or show the kid’s the miracle of birth. If you do decide to breed, breed responsibly and remember that when you produce a litter of puppies they are your responsibility for the rest of their lives!
