My girl is due in heat in about a month when we plan to breed her for the first time.
She has done well at specialities, always placing in the classes and has 8 points including one major.
She is 2 1/2 years old, has all her clearances, OFA good/elbows clear/heart clear, Optigen A, CERF etc, is up to date in her vaccinations, we have a nice stud dog picked out who complements her well and we have been reading and studying about breeding for about a year now. We have some good backup to help us with the delivery and to mentor us thru the whole process.
My question is what kinds of things would you do to have your girl in the best shape possible to have a healthy litter and to be as healthy as possible during the whole process.
I do full blood work prior to breeding to be sure everything is up to par. and a urinalysis.
I like to keep them exercising to maintain muscle mass. I walk about 1.3 to 1.5 miles about 5 days a week in an area where I know there are no other dogs. Its a community where residents are not aloud to own dogs and they don't really allow dogs in the area (signs posted) but no one has ever bothered me or complained.
Just like in humans - if your dog does not get a lot of exercise (or I should say very little) I would not just begin doing this once pregnant. This should be started prior to breeding. A pregnant woman should not suddenly decide to join a gym without any prior exercising. JMO
In my situation with my last litter my girl used to play constantly with 2 Rotties and that all came to a stop once bred - I didn't want her muscles to atrophy. Hence - the walking routine.
