If you know your bitch would have a litter that would be due around the holidays then why do you breed her then? I always wait until next heat.

JMO

Why not? It is no more difficult to find good homes for pups during the holidays than any other time of year.

Sometimes I will wait until next heat, but if I do decide to go ahead with a breeding knowing they will be ready around the holidays, I'll just hold on to them a couple weeks longer. No big deal. Besides, if I have a full waiting list fof people who I know have thought through getting a pup and have been waiting for months to get one, I feel confident that these people are NOT imulse shoppers adn will take excellent care of my pups AFTER the holidays are over.

Perhaps this is a different point of view. I do not breed unless I intend to keep (of course crossing my fingers the litter turns out as I hope)a majority of the litter to run on. Like many others I have a busy life and I breed when it works for me, without regard for "the buying public," or holidays. Perhaps the presumption that you have had a litter over the holiday season in order to produce "Christmas pups" is not always applicable. JMHO

Responsible breeders will sift through puppy buyers regardless of the time of year. I had a litter that was 8 weeks on Christmas Eve a few years back. How many new owners got to spend Christmas with their pups? One. Mine with the pup I was keeping! The rest stayed through the 1st and went home at 10 weeks. The new owners splurged on puppy items for the family and it was like Christmas all over again when the pups were picked up, but without the rest of the mess and in well prepared homes.

Exactly my thoughts as well. Litters are bred according to my schedual, not planned around the calander or other's interests. Well put.

I have several wonderful families that even though I told them it would be some time before my next litter have chosen to wait on me. I have been talking to a couple of them for over a year now, as two were people I didnt have pups for from my last litter. I would be happy to give them a pup any time of year, and if by chance it wound up being Christmas, that would just be an extra special little twist.
Puppies are not meant to be gifts at any time of year, but a good family is a good family all year round.
Annie

Hey, if you don't mind staying home at Christmas to whelp, maybe you don't even celebrate Christmas, why not? Puppies born in October will be ready to go home around Christmas, and those girls were bred in August.

Every breeder makes decisions about breeding factoring in a LOT of things. Age of bitch. Availability of stud. Personal plans. You have to screen puppy buyers no matter what.

Many cannot keep a majority of the litter to run one but instead just one puppy so it does matter in that case as to the time of year and being able to sell the rest of the litter.

For some breeders the down time during the late fall and holidays is better because there are less shows and events at that time of year. Only you can decide how and who to sell your puppies to.

I had a litter that was due 3 days after Christmas. It was either breed or find a new stud next time as he was leaving the the country. Christmas Eve she came in labor and delivered Christmas day--all day. I was supposed to go to my brother's for prime rib. I ended up with a burned toasted cheese sandwich. Yum! Then we decided to make it for my birthday and had a bad smow storm. So I celebrated my Christmas dinner for Easter. These are things you have to do for the dogs.

One year I had pups ready around Christmas. I held them all back of course, except for one couple. They were in their 50's, had been on my waiting list 5 months, were both teachers, and their adult children were out of the country that year for Christmas. Did I let these two teachers take their pup and have it for their 2 weeks off, while it was quiet and peaceful in their home? You bet your bippy I did. The rest waited til after Christmas to go. I agree, it's up to each Breeder to screen their homes and a good home IS a good home all year long, they've been excellent.

I also generally feel Christmas is too hectic of a time for a puppy to go. The idea of a Christmas present is never a worry for me, as they're usually on my waiting list for a time and even in the odd instance where they've come along later, or my litter was bigger than I expected, I will not let them go for Christmas, instead, I recommend they put a crate, toys, dishes, leashes, etc, under the tree and teach their kids patience. The real Christmas puppy buyers won't go for that, and will always move on a find someone who will let them have their puppy with the bow on it and will keep it til Christamas Eve or even morning.

I generally have people on my waiting list for pups way before Christmas, some just happen to be Christmas pups.

The holiday of choice has nothing to do with when to have a litter. Mother Nature is the boss. As to when to sell them during a time of chaos, as others have mentioned, hold on to pups for a few more weeks til all is quiet again. It might even give you more time to evaluate. It's really not a big deal unless you make it one.

-If you know your bitch would have a litter that would be due around the holidays then why do you breed her then? I always wait until next heat.-

I brought my boy home the week before Christmas 2 years ago. That wasn't my intentions, but it worked out well. I had been on a waiting list for several months for a puppy. The breeder ended up not having a pup for me from the litter I was waiting for, but a breeder friend had one available and he would be ready much earlier than I was expecting him. It worked out well for me, because I was single and would be spending the holidays alone (except for Christmas day). I had 2 weeks off from work and that pup had 100% of my attention for 2 weeks straight. He was even housebroke before I went back to a work schedule ... no flames, he came to the office with me when he was a pup. You just need to screen your puppy buyers. I wanted a puppy, it didn't matter when, as long as he was the right puppy. I waited for so long, I was willing to change my schedule for the pup.

For me it was a choice of Potomac or Xmas. I chose to forgo a breeding in April so I could attend Potomac and have a gander at all the stud dogs.

So glad you had the pup to be with:)
And yes, that is a good point, some dont have the same hectic holiday times as others and may actually have more time than normal to spend bonding with the pup. Just goes to show all situations are unique.
Annie

We may have pups due at Christmas. The buyers won't get them until Feb, so I guess technically these really aren't "Xmas Puppies".

We missed our first chance to breed because my bitch came into season too soon to finish clearances. So we are doing it the next season, which is coming up end of October, if she is on time. Sure, it might be nicer to wait until next summer again and not have to deal with pups with snow, but it will all work out.

Karin, you bring up a great point....the weather!
As much as you northerners want to avoid snow we want to avoid the heat...and Christmas time is usually one of the nicest times of year in Florida for the weather.
Annie

I just bred a girl that will have pups availabe right at christmas but the thing is I have a waiting list a mile long from the beginning of this year so they won't be going to homes that want a puppy for christmas, she is almost 3 and this will be her fist litter so I didn't want to pass on this heat cycle as i've passed on 2 already that she could have been bred on, she wasn't due to come in until novemeber but she had other plans so there is always a reason why people breed at this time of year and they are not bad reasons!
Aloha,
jackie

We screen pretty heavily for any litter, but especially for the ones who are susceptible to puppy buyers who are SPECIFICALLY looking for a Christmas present. We won't go there - the only puppy we ever had returned was a Christmas puppy that we somehow didn't pick up on. We also won't send a puppy home Christmas week unless we really know the buyers well, and are comfortable that their house won't be an absolute zoo around the holidays.

Funny story - we had a litter born literally ON Christmas Eve between 5 and midnight. There were 10 puppies. We started nicknaming them after Santa's reindeer. The 9th puppy was, of course, Rudolph. But what to do with #10, the one whose sac broke and covered him with that dark green goop??? Well... Olive, of course; "Olive the other reindeer". We should have copyrighted that one. Three years later some lady came out with a childrens' book and some toys and games based on Olive, The Other Reindeer! Very successful - and another missed opportunity for us. So, what do you think his eventual puppy buyer's named him, never having heard the whole story??? Would you believe "Cash"???