Breeding Your Chihuahua

Breeding a chihuahua is not an easy task as you may think. Dog Breeding is not something that can’t be done by an inexperienced person. Chihuahuas have a lot of problems and delivery is one of those problems.

Chihuahuas are so fragile that their bones are easily breakable. If an inexperienced person attempts to breed them, so many things can go wrong. Due to his size, breeding a chihuahua differs from breeding other larger dogs. It’s not even the same as breeding other toy dogs like Pomeranians and Toy Poodle.

It’s important that you consult a vet before attempting to breed your chihuahua. The doctor must have given your dog a clean bill of health before you even try breeding it. And it’s important that the vet be accessible whenever you have questions as regards this process.

When it comes to breeding, it’s more than just selecting two purebred dogs to mate. You have to consider extensively their genotype and phenotype to avoid genetic complications. As with humans, dogs that are not compatible genetically can give birth to young ones with very serious illnesses.

The genetic complications that can arise from not checking the genetic compatibility of the two animals are many. Some of them are liver shunts, heart problems, leg Perthes and patellar luxations.

Before you even choose the two animals to breed, you must ensure that you take into account the genotype and phenotype to avoid unnecessary complications.

Breeding Period

When you are ready to breed your chihuahua, your chihuahua may not be ready to breed. Before you breed a female chihuahua, make sure she has a minimum weight of four pounds.

It’s also important that she is at least a year old before you start breeding her or pairing her with a mate. You should not breed a dog during its first, second or third heat because it may lead to complications later.

Pregnancy and Delivery

Chihuahuas. Because of their tiny size, the average litter they can have is two pups. While some can have as many as four, others can only have one.

It’s important that you understand that even though the litters are not big, it’s still possible for a chihuahua to have stillborn births. Sometimes, she may even require a cesarean section to get the litter out. And you have to face the possibility that the mother chihuahua may not make it through surgery.

The heads of some pups are always so large. Their heads may sometimes prove too big to pass through the female birthing canal, so you must monitor the birth. Once you begin to sense a problem, call the vet. Once you begin to see signs of distress or prolonged delivery, call the vet immediately.

Breech Births

Chihuahuas often have breech births. If or when this happens, it will be good to have a vet nearby. A vet can guide you through the process of delivering the pups in worst-case scenarios. You can do this when it has become impossible for the brood bitch to deliver on her own.

Other Complications

There are so many complications that can arise from a brood bitch’s attempt to deliver. Medical complications like an infection of the uterus and a ruptured uterus are real and can happen.

The bacteria in the uterus from that infection can kill both the brood bitch and her pups if it is not noticed and treated on time. If your chihuahua makes discharges of pus mixed with blood before or after delivery, there may be an infection of the uterus. You will have to call on your vet urgently to deal with this.

Other symptoms that your chihuahua has an infection of the uterus are when there is excessive urination, vomiting, or she’s refusing to eat or nurse her young. You’ll do well to invite your vet if you notice these.

Post-Delivery Complications

Hypoglycemia is one of the most common chihuahua diseases, and your dog may suffer from this. Hypoglycemia is when your chihuahua’s blood sugar drops very low. When this happens, your chihuahua can go into shock, have seizures, or worst-case scenario, die. It is possible for her pups to suffer from this as well.

There is also the risk of your dog suffering from hypocalcemia. When she has problems with coordinating herself, or she is panting, she may have this disease. If she is twitching her eye repeatedly or getting severe muscle spasms, she may have the disease. When you see this, contact your vet immediately and schedule a visit for the sake of your beloved chihuahua.

This article is not written to disappoint anyone, But in fact to make sure that the owner knows all the real dangers and the parts involved. 

Controlling Risk

Chihuahuas are not the easiest purebred to breed. Their size can create countless health issues. Being healthy is the main purpose here. Here are four elements to should take into consideration:

1. Age: there is a debate about the age when we should start breeding chihuahuas, some experts claim that the age of 1 or 1.5 years is good, and others say that it is preferable to start breeding at the age of 2 or 3 years. However, we advise you to start breeding at the age of 2 or 3 years because at this age the dog is fully formed and has reached a maximum width. This will help the little chi from carrying extra weight.
2. Female: According to some reputable breeder your chihuahua female should be retired by the age of 6. However, your vet can advise you to stop breeding her before this age. Before any pairing, the owner must do a chihuahua assessment for breeding capability. There are a lot of health reasons why you must stop breeding your female chihuahua before the age of 6 such as pressure and stress on various areas of their body (back, knees, hips..).
3. Males: chihuahua males start producing sperm by the age of 8 months, which means that the perfect age to start planning to mate is the age of 1 year old. At this age, the male can produce strong sperm that can reach and fertilize the female’s eggs. Furthermore, when a chihuahua is between the age of 1.5 and 5 years he is considered in his prime. When the dog matures the sperm will gradually weaken.
4. Size: Before breeding, size plays also a very crucial role. In other words, the female must always be larger than the male. 

Controlling the size of both before mating can lead to good results and will let the chihuahua female have a natural delivery. If not the chihuahua female will need to have a  cesarean section. This is very dangerous for a dog like a chihuahua.

Pre-Breeding Health Tests

According to AKC, there are three critical examinations before planning any breeding. A cardiac exam, an ophthalmologist evaluation, and a patella evaluation.

The female must have a pelvic width examined. 

If the results are not good, for example, if one of the dogs has hereditary diseases or any sort of health problems. In this case, we must avoid breeding. In addition, the female must have a great and healthy body, because pregnancy experience will put her body under huge stress. If you notice that your dog regardless of gender is showing unusual behavior, even if he has received good training, he should not be bred.

Which days are suitable during the heat cycle?

Before breeding, we should know the signs and periods of the heat cycle. Firstly, the duration is 21 days on average. Secondly, its frequency is every 6 months. In addition, the signs are: you will notice a clear fluid for a couple of days, then a cream-colored fluid, then red, and an enlarged vulva. 

Even when the bleeding stops, the heat cycle of your dog may still be for a few days. 

During this period, the chihuahua can be pregnant(ovulation can occur) at this time especially at some point during days 7-11. 

After Breeding

We advise you to spay your chihuahua after breeding, this way you can avoid developing several types of cancer. You should have your chihuahua spayed if you do have not the attention to breed her again.

After delivery, a chihuahua female must not be allowed to be bred again before having approval from the vet. Which can confirm that she is healthy.

As we said before the average age for a female to retire is 6 years old.

FAQs About chihuahua breeding

HOW MUCH SHOULD I SELL A PUREBRED CHIHUAHUA PUPPY FOR?

The answer to this question is hard as the price depends on a lot of things such as pedigree analysis, the defects of your puppy, the color, the demand, your reputation, and the current market price…

In brief, there is not a magic price we can write here.

IS IT WORTH BREEDING TEACUP CHIHUAHUAS?

Chihuahuas are the smallest dog breeds out there, breeding a teacup chi is not allowed as it may lead to some unwanted situations. Unfortunately, there are some people who are encouraging this type of breeding.

What is the future of the chihuahua breed?

Lately, as you can also notice there is a big trend concerning crossing chihuahua with other toy breeds, to have so cute small hybrid dogs like Pomchi. So the future depends on humans’ behaviors.

WHAT’S THE AVERAGE LITTER SIZE OF CHIHUAHUAS?

Normally the average size of a chihuahua’s litter is between one and three whelps. There are some exceptions, but they are rare, for example, A Kansas chihuahua who gave birth to 11 puppies.

The factors that can determine the size o the litter of a chihuahua is The size of the female, her fertility, diet, health state, etc.

Conclusion

In the final analysis, don’t start with a chihuahua if you have never bred dogs before. It can end very badly for the chihuahua, and you will only have yourself to blame.

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