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Tuesday 10 February 2015

Puppies Due April 4th!!!

FINALLY!  Cruz came into heat on January 20th.  She and Merlin were put together on Jan. 26 and again Jan 29th but it just wasn't quite time yet.  Jan 30, Feb 1 & Feb 3 were successful matings.  Usually I breed only twice but I wanted to be absolutely sure of the timing so this time she was bred a third time. 


There are two scientific ways that I use to determine when the female is ovulating.  One is to collect saliva and let it dry without disturbing it.  After it dries, it will have a crystalline look thru the microscope.  It is called "ferning".  If there is no ferning yet, there is no point in breeding.  (This works for people to by the way!)


The other way I use, is to collect swabs off the vaginal wall.  By staining the blood cells on a microscope slide you can see if the cells are "cornified".  When they become flattened and jagged, and you can no longer see the nucleus, the female is ovulating. 


I collect samples both in the morning and evening to see how far things have progressed. It takes about an hour each time. I try to leave nothing to chance.  According to both tests, she was ovulating on all the days she was bred.  The sperm can last 2-3 days inside the body so essentially she had viable sperm from Jan 30 all the way thru until Feb.5.  That should cover all of our bases!


It will be 30-35 days at the earliest before we know if she caught.  I'm not going to bother ultrasounding her again because last time it was a waste of $150.  They told me they saw puppies and in hind sight I really wonder if they saw anything at all.  I think maybe they just wanted to see puppies.  Whatever the case, I will take her in to be palpated at 30-35 days and even then, it may be hard to tell. 


So wish us luck.  Pray for us.  Whatever your lifestyle is.  Please send your good thoughts to Cruz to have a healthy litter and a successful birthing process.  Maybe my dog building will have finished being constructed by then!  It's hard to find the time to work on it.


So after death, comes life.  Kahlua was Cruz's mother so she would have been a Grandma again.  I miss my old girl terribly but time marches on.  Hopefully I can spend my time with her Grandpuppies in a few months from now. 


PUPPIES DUE APRIL 4, 2015!



2 comments:

  1. Congratulations Mary Ann. I know how long you and your puppy parents to be have been waiting. Glad you have some good news. Once again, my condolences on Kahlua.

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  2. Yay for puppies!
    I had sent you an email with some questions, but I just saw your previous post, and I realize I sent it the day before (or possibly night of) the cougar incident. So I completely understand why I hadn't gotten a reply. (and if you're still having computer problems, that could have played into it as well)

    So, I saw on the website now that this litter is spoken for, as well as 80% of the next litter. I was curious what happens if you end up with more puppies than you took deposits for? People on the wait list for the next one, presumably get one from this litter?
    I really need to get my act together, and get on a wait list! LOL

    -Julie F.

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