Ovulation timing is the foundation of nearly everything else in a breeding. Get the date right and the rest becomes manageable; get it wrong and no technique, semen quality or good intention will rescue the cycle. We run progesterone in-house by ELFA, so a morning sample gives you a value and a decision the same day rather than tomorrow.
How the timing works
Testing usually begins early in the season and repeats every one to two days as values rise, so ovulation is pinpointed rather than estimated. From that date we can plan the breeding itself, choose between vaginal, transcervical or surgical insemination, and set an accurate due date should a planned cesarean be needed.
How tight the schedule needs to be depends on what you are breeding with. Fresh semen is forgiving. Chilled semen is less so. Frozen semen has a fertile life measured in hours once thawed, and there timing is the entire game.
What we ask before we time a cycle
These apply to every breeding program we work with. They are not paperwork for its own sake — each one exists because reproductive work goes badly without it, and because we would rather be clear up front than turn someone away at the worst possible moment.
A current annual examination with us
Every breeding dog in our care needs a current annual exam here. This is what lets us treat a progesterone request as urgent when a cycle starts unexpectedly — we already know the dog, and her file is live rather than historical.
A breeding soundness examination for each cycle you breed on
Not once a year — each cycle you intend to breed. A bitch may cycle more than once in a year, and each breeding is its own decision with its own risks. The examination is how we confirm she is fit to carry a litter this time, rather than assuming that what was true in the spring is still true in the autumn.
Vaccines and parasite screening up to date
Current vaccination and parasite screening for any dog in a breeding program. Pregnancy is immunologically demanding, and parasites pass to puppies.
Health testing appropriate to the breed
What that means varies — hips and elbows, eyes, cardiac, thyroid, patellas, and the genetic panels relevant to the breed. We can perform most of these here. Your breed club and the OFA both publish what is expected for your breed, and we are glad to talk through it before you plan a mating.
If your dog is not there yet, that is a starting point rather than a refusal. Most of it can be done here, and there is usually time if you begin before the season rather than during it.
On last-minute requests
We know breeding does not run to a convenient schedule, and that a season can start when nobody expected it. We are aware of how time-sensitive this work is, and we will do our best to accommodate last-minute needs for patients who are current with us.
What we cannot do is promise a same-day slot for a dog we have never examined. That is the practical reason the annual exam matters: it is what allows us to treat your call as urgent rather than as a new-client enquiry. If you intend to breed this year, come and see us before her season, not during it.
How we think about breeding
We are glad to work with breeders, and we would rather say plainly what we stand for than discover a mismatch halfway through a cycle. Three ideas shape how we approach this work.
Purpose bred
A breeding should have a reason behind it that you could explain to another breeder without flinching. Breeding for a specific purpose — working ability, conformation, temperament, a line worth continuing — is a different exercise from producing a litter because the opportunity was there.
Breed to improve
The point of a mating is that the puppies should be better than the parents in some respect that matters. That requires looking at your own dog with a more critical eye than anyone else will, and being honest with yourself about what you see. It is the hardest part of breeding well.
Health, temperament and longevity
These are the things that decide whether a puppy has a good life, and they are what we weigh when we help you plan. A dog can be much loved and still not be the right dog to breed — those are separate questions, and keeping them separate is what responsible breeding asks of you.
We would love to help you better your program and your lines. Partnering with a canine reproductive practice is a real resource for an elite breeding program — a second set of eyes on the decisions, and the diagnostics to support them. So wherever you are in your journey, we are here to help: with breedings, with progesterone testing, with health testing, and with the overall success of your program.
Common questions
What is progesterone testing for?
It pinpoints ovulation. Serum progesterone rises in a predictable pattern through the fertile period, so serial testing identifies the day of ovulation rather than estimating it from behavior or from the calendar. That date is what every other decision hangs on — when to breed, which technique to use, and the due date for a planned cesarean.
How often will she need to be tested?
Testing usually begins early in the heat cycle and repeats every one to two days as values rise. The exact schedule depends on the individual bitch and on what semen you are using, because the fertile window is much narrower with frozen semen than with a natural mating.
How quickly do you get results?
Same day. We run progesterone in-house by ELFA rather than sending it to an outside laboratory, so a morning sample gives a value and a decision the same day. With chilled or frozen semen, where the window is measured in hours, that is the difference between a breeding and a missed cycle.
Can you take me on mid-cycle if my bitch has already started?
We understand that breeding is time-sensitive, and we do our best to accommodate last-minute needs for patients who are current with us. We cannot promise a slot for a dog we have never examined. If you are planning to breed this year, the time to establish care is before her season starts, not during it.
Why do you require a breeding soundness examination every cycle?
Because a bitch’s fitness to carry a litter is not a permanent state. Body condition, reproductive tract health, and general health all change between seasons, and a bitch who was an appropriate candidate last cycle may not be this one. Examining her each time she is bred is how that decision gets made on current information rather than an old assumption.
Do I have to bring my dog here for routine care as well?
We would like to be your dog’s veterinarian, not just her reproductive one. Continuity is genuinely better for a breeding program — we hold the whole history, we know what is normal for each dog, and nothing falls between two practices at the point where it matters. Talk to us about moving her care across.
What if my dog does not meet the requirements yet?
Then let us help you get there. Most of what is needed can be done here, and there is usually time if you start before the season rather than during it. Tell us where you are and we will tell you honestly what is outstanding.
Start the conversation before you need us
If you are planning to breed, tell us about the dog now rather than when the season starts. There is no obligation, and it means that when timing matters we already know who you are.