Responsible dog breeding

Breeding a litter of puppies can be very rewarding, but if you are new to dog breeding, you should remember that it can also be a costly and time consuming experience. The dog breeding section is full of useful information if you are considering becoming a breeder and we hope established dog breeders will use it as a reference tool.  Please click on the links to the right to find out more.

The full range of Kennel Club Registration Formsare available to download from this site, please use this section to access the full range of up to date registration forms.

Whether you are already an experienced dog breeder, or perhaps you are just starting out and want to breed in a responsible manner, then the Kennel Club Accredited Breeder Scheme may be of interest to you. The aim of the Scheme is to provide a framework to encourage the breeding of healthy, well-adjusted puppies. It lays down a series of requirements that breeders must follow in order to participate in the scheme. Once accepted onto the Scheme, Kennel Club Accredited Breeders may use the scheme literature and, if they use the Kennel Club Find a Puppy service, their litters will be highlighted to show that a Kennel Club Accredited Breeder has posted them and much more.

If you are contemplating dog breeding, there are certain questions that you will need to ask yourself before proceeding: 

• Have I the time to devote to a litter until the puppies are old enough to go to their new homes, which is usually around eight weeks?
• Am I knowledgeable enough to advise new owners about the various aspects of caring for their puppies, including rearing, diet, training and health problems? Can I afford to pay for the recommended health tests for the bitch prior to mating her and, where necessary, her litter?
• Do I know enough to help the bitch during the whelping, if necessary?
• Can I afford to pay for a caesarean should the dam have difficulty whelping the litter?
• Could I cope with a very large litter of, say, 10 or 12 puppies?
• Do I have sufficient knowledge to rear the litter correctly, including on worming, vaccinations and socialisation?
• Would I be able to find good homes for the puppies?
• Am I in a position to take back or re-home any puppies if it becomes necessary?

If you have not been able to say yes to all of the above questions, then dog breeding may not be for you. You may therefore wish to consider having your bitch spayed to prevent unwanted or unplanned pregnancies; your breed club or the breeder of your bitch may be able to provide you with further expert advice.

If you have been able to say yes to all of the above questions, do not forget that you will also need to keep the following in mind:

• Responsible dog breeders believe that each litter that they breed, should be an improvement on the parents.
• Responsible dog breeders give careful consideration to health issues, temperament and soundness.
• Responsible dog breeders plan ahead of each mating so as to ensure that each puppy produced will be bred in the best possible environment.
• Responsible dog breeders accept responsibility for a puppy which they have bred, and make themselves available to give advice, help and information to new owners.

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