Breeding Bitches

When I was a youngster I knew for sure that one of the most important functions of a woman is to produce at least one baby, preferably by the time she was 20.  In fact, the subject was not up for discussion until I was in my teens and the pill was invented, giving women a choice in the matter. In those days, if a young woman announced that she had decided not to have children, you could read the thoughts going through the mind of whoever she was speaking to as plainly as if they were written on that person’s forehead:

“Not having any children?  I feel something wrong and she too shame to say, so she just playing brave.  But I always thought she was kinda selfish, you know.  Only thinking about herself all the time – what about the husband?  What about the grandparents – they going to be too sad about this foolishness. So what she get married for in the first place?  These young people ain’t play they could make you feel shame, nuh.”

Then in the late 60s and early 70s a new movement came into being in the midst of much ridicule and resistance.  It was called the Women’s Liberation Movement and one of the things that it said was, “I am a woman.  This is my body. I can do whatever the hell I want with it.  And if you don’t like it, you can kiss my rosy red cheeks!”  Now, more than four decades later, only people who were born before 1940 would think twice about an announcement from a woman that she had decided to remain childless.  And even they probably won’t say anything other than “Oh.”  (Perhaps if they are friendly with either of the couple’s parents they might also console them by assuring them that their children will change their minds in time. But that would be about it – no gossip, no stigmatization, no judgements.) We’ve come a long way, baby!

 However, although this change has come surprisingly quickly, it is not universal.  In some countries, particularly Eastern countries, a woman is still expected to present her husband with at least one child.  The child is usually considered the husband’s property, but the care of it remains with the woman until the (girl)child is married or the (boy)child becomes old enough to fend for himself. 

 The change has not come to the canine world either.  It is still accepted by almost everyone that if you have a female dog, then she should produce at least one litter of puppies.  If you ask the reason for this, you will find there is usually no particular reason – it’s just because the dog is a female.  As with women of a generation ago, it is simply expected.

 I know some people will find it strange to compare human female issues with canine female issues, but I have personally found a strange similarity between the two.  Both dogs and women are admired mostly for their beauty and conformity to what society has decided is beautiful.  Both female dogs and women are expected to be docile, obedient and loyal – not to mention self sacrificing if necessary.  Both female dogs and women are called bitches – albeit not with the same meaning (leaving me to wonder if calling a female dog a bitch is not meant as an insult as well).

I even find a correlation in the whole issue of birth control.  The Catholic Church, and many men from male-dominated cultures, are totally against a woman preventing pregnancy. Likewise, whenever you tell someone that you are going to spay your dog, they usually try to talk you out of it, saying in consternation “But whyyyyy?”

I don’t know if medicine had already found a way to neuter dogs when I was a child – if they did I had never heard of it, and everyone I knew who had a dog, sooner or later had at least three or four puppies rolling around their yards. Although neutering has been available for several years, I meet an astonishing number of people who still don’t know that it can be done. Or more frequently, they  see it as an unnecessary expense when it is much easier and cheaper just to let the dog have her pups.

And why not? Everybody likes puppies.  They are adorable, they smell nice, they lick your faces with their little tongues and suck on your fingers, they feel good to hold and tickling their small, round tummies is one of life’s purest pleasures.  When they get a little older, watching them gambolling, tumbling head over heel in pursuit of a child or a butterfly, could bring a smile to the face of Scrooge himself. In a world that is already so hard, where all of life’s simple pleasures seem to be slipping away every day, why can’t we indulge ourselves in the unadulterated joy of watching a mother dog feeding and grooming her fat little babies?

And there is also the issue of monetary rewards.  After all, purebred dogs and even crosses between purebred dogs are very expensive to buy and maintain.  If you can get back some of your investment in your dog by selling the pups from the female dog, why shouldn’t you?  You could have the best of both worlds – a dog that is a beloved family pet, as well as a source of income, and you don’t have to get up in the morning and face traffic to go to the office to do it either!

The answer is that you shouldn’t breed for lots of reasons.  But they all boil down to one reason – for the good of the dog.  By ‘the dog’ I mean dogs all over the country, and by extension all over the world.  Think globally, act locally.  People who are asked to spay and neuter, are being asked to be selfless – to put aside their own desires and to think of an entire species of animal.  To think of its health, to think of its welfare, to think of its impact on the earth we live in, to think (dare I say it?) of its happiness.

If you breed your dog you need to understand that you might become one of those people who are responsible for canine cruelty.  There are hundreds of dogs on the streets of this country and in shelters.  Almost all of them were once owned by a human.  Before coming to the shelters, these dogs were neglected, beaten, starved, burned with cigarettes, hot oil, hot water and fire.  Their flesh was cut into by collars that were too tight and sometimes made of wire; their wounds and illnesses were left untreated and their fur left unwashed and un-groomed.  They were driven insane by isolation and lack of socialization and they were forced to fight or work at jobs for which they are not suited and under appalling conditions. They were abandoned by people they trusted and rejected and hurt by people they didn’t even know. Many dogs live like this in their own homes. And all of this has happened because somebody decided to breed their dog.

Before you breed your dog, you should be able to answer yes to all of the following questions:

1.               Can you afford the cost of proper (health and nutrition) pre-natal care for the mother dog?

2.               Do you have a vet whom you can depend on to give emergency as well as normal attention to your dogs?

3.               Do you have an area where the mother and her pups can be safe, warm and clean for at least 7-9 weeks after birth?  Most people in this country sell their pups at 5-6 weeks.  This is wrong, wrong, wrong.

4.               Can you afford the cost of post-natal care for the mother and the puppies, including food, vitamins, inoculations and any unforeseen expenses that might arise?

5.               Can you devote the time necessary to begin the socialization process for the puppies?

6.               Do you have the will to closely question any prospective buyer and do follow up visits and investigations to ensure that the puppy will be going to a safe and loving environment?

7.               If you can not get homes for all of the pups, can you afford to keep them permanently?  And by “afford” I mean both financially and physically – do you have sufficient space and are you patient enough to deal with the needs of a multitude of dogs?

8.               Are you chiefly concerned about the improvement of the breed if your dogs are purebred, and do you know enough about the breed to educate any prospective buyers on it?

Unless you can answer yes to all of these questions, you should not breed.

 People often feel pressured to breed their dog if it is purebred and registered.  But being purebred and registered simply means that the owner can trace his dog’s ancestry – somewhat like royal families.  And just like many members of royal families, it does not necessarily mean that the dogs should reproduce. Yes, it is flattering to have lots of people begging you to use your male dog to impregnate their female, or bugging you to use their male dog to impregnate your female so they can get a puppy.  But responsible dog ownership is not about satisfying your ego.  It is about doing the right thing by your specific dog, and all dogs in general, whenever possible.