Catch up on the saga so far….

I’d always planned to breed from Raven –  she’s from excellent Welsh working sheepdog stock and of great character and temperament – but had the awful procrastinating habit of always putting it off “until next season.” Not so in February 2009!

Whilst having my horses shod by the wonderful farrier that is Paul Smith – who is always in the company of his charming and virile Jack Russell  dog, Henry –  he and I decided Raven was definitely ready to be mated now. It was as Raven presented herself to the unwitting and two-foot-too-short Henry most un-elegantly that Paul uttered the immortal words “You want to get that a seeing-to,” and, subsequently, never one to ignore the revered wisdom of a farrier and Master of Foxhounds, I did just that.

Catching Raven at the peak moment of ovulation, and therefore at her most fertile, was very important. The fact she was at her twelfth day of season and offering herself so wantonly to Henry (a dog she had previously only relished in chasing and barking at) was a surefire sign that she had hit her ‘peak’ moment and no time could be wasted in finding an appropriate (and taller) suitor.

Ideally, I wanted a working farm dog to do the business, but such a dog would be more likely found through word of mouth (i.e. numerous phone calls, waiting a couple of days for someone who ‘might-know-of-a-nice-dog-but-I’m-not-sure’ to call back, etc, etc) and time was of the essence! The internet proved a God-send in finding a nice enough chap for Raven and I settled on ‘Ghost’ –  a blue and white KC registered male with a successful flyball/agility/obedience background. In hindsight, I’m very happy I took Raven to be mated with Ghost rather than a farm dog, I don’t think I could have found a dog with a nicer temperament or a nicer owner – Christina Burdett (who also runs obedience classes) and her friend Kayleigh ensured Raven and Ghost had two wonderfully romantic evenings together – both times in the ambient setting of a Stockport car porch, once on February 11th and with a second mating on February 13th (Raven’s birthday!).

Christina provided me with a list of very informative and useful websites. I am hungry for knowledge, seeing as both Raven and I are new to all this pregnancy lark. Out of all the sites, I found Debbie Jensen‘s site to be the most comprehensive for experienced and first-time breeders alike.

I had to wait  a few weeks for the first signs of pregnancy, which was slightly agonizing, but I was soon rewarded with rib splay, b-i-g teats and a swollen vulva (on Raven, not me). To ensure Raven was pregnant and get a count so we knew roughly how many puppies to expect, I contacted Keith at Fit and Fertile to arrange a doggy scan in Raven’s very own home. More on this next….