Over the last 6 weeks we’ve conducted six separate stud services. Five were for customers and one was done on a female of ours. Lately it seems as though about 70% of the females we have coming here require Artificial Insemination (A.I.). Years ago I didn’t have quite the confidence in the reliability of the results with A.I. in comparison to natural breeding. Today I’m just as confident with it provided it’s conducted on the premises from the male directly to the female without delay.

Often people think the process of breeding via A.I. will result in smaller litter sizes or lessen the chances of pregnancy by a large margin. Due to our results over the years I can honestly say I don’t see the difference. The last two A.I. breedings we conducted ended up with litters of 7 puppies per litter.

The key to successful breeding is proper timing for mating. Introducing the two dogs is an important factor as well. Approximately a week after a female goes into heat will begin testing her daily to see where she is in her ovulation. When she shows signs of entering her beginning stages of ovulation we will introduce the dogs so they can get comfortable around each other. This is done while both dogs are on a leash. The biggest mistake breeders make is prematurely attempting to breed two dogs when the female isn’t ready. As many Bull Terrier breeders already know, a female that doesn’t wish to breed won’t tolerate an eager stud that’s determined to mount her. This could turn into a fight quickly and/or result in causing the female additional stress and fear from the studs unwanted mating. Continued introduction in this manner will result in the female continually defending herself from this male even through her ovulation stage. Additionally, she may carry this fear every time she goes into heat in the future.

The most effective way to introduce two dogs slated for breeding who do not know each other is to do so when the female begins her ovulation and starts flagging. By this time she will be wanting to breed and have a lot more acceptance towards a proven and experienced stud dog that doesn’t wish to waste time playing. Supervision and constant monitoring is a must during breedings and at no time should two bullies who haven’t been raised together be left alone to breed on their own.

Illustrated below is a good example of three different Estrus Test Strips that were used on three females who were in heat.

The first strip shows that the female is just starting to come into ovulation. Chances are she’d be flagging at this point and excepting the stud for mating. The second strip shows no signs of ovulation which means it’s either too early or too late. Attempts for mating wouldn’t be effective. The last test strip indicates a female that is in full ovulation and breeding during this time would be optimal.
Testing females for their ovulation stages using this method if what most Vets call a “Smear” test. The Estrus Strips are cheap to purchase and very easy to use. Hopefully the picture of the tests results provide a good idea why it’s important to test for ovulation. As an example, although all 3 females are in heat with no blood discharge had I introduce female #2 to one of my studs they would most likely attempt to mount her regardless of her ovulation stage. The female, knowing she isn’t ready to breed, would either sit down once he mounts, completely avoid the stud, or go on the defense in an aggressive way. This is what I consider to be an inappropriate introduction for breeding which can cause stress on the female and create fear and anxiety even when she comes into ovulation making her automatically avoid the stud every time she encounters him.
Here’s a photo of a more effective (and expensive) ovulation tester.

 One of these will run about $450 but for those breeders like us who that provide stud service often to customer dogs it may prove to be a good investment. Easy to use and provides a lot more data than a test strip. Most Vets wouldn’t have one of these and simply tell you they conduct the “Smear Test.”

One of the greatest benefits of testing for ovulation is the fact that it takes away the guessing games of knowing when it's necessary to breed. More importantly it provides you with knowing when artificial Insemination is required. There's been many times that we've had females come into full ovulation that aren't flagging and don't want the stud anywhere near them. Most of the time it's with females who weren't socialized well with other dogs to begin with and sometimes it's because they are young and have never been bred before. It's without question that a well experienced stud dog can make any female nervous because he knows what's going on and what his job is. With this said, he may not wish to spend too much time courting, sniffing, and playing. Some females will except this dominant breeding behavior others won't. However, in the event the female is ovulating and doesn't wish to cooperate with the chosen stud at least you know that AI is warranted at the time vice convincing yourself it's too early and she'll be more attentive towards breeding in a couple days when you think she'll be in ovulation.

Anyhow, I hope this information proves beneficial for those breeders looking for a little information in regard to the importance of testing for ovulation.