A Litter Next Year

My nearly three year old Standard Poodle bitch belongs half to me and half to her breeder. We are to share equally in any litters that she might have. Now, at three, we are having to think seriously about when and to whom she will conceive. The litter will be born here, which is a big job for Zara and I, as poodles have about 8 pups on average.

Kathy hasn't seen Zara for some time now, so on Saturday, I put her in the car and went to meet Kathy at a nearby dog show at Bunyip. She was showing the progeny from her last litter, a stunning white girl looking at her absolute best in her puppy clip. I stayed to watch her class and she got Reserve Challenge which pleased Kathy greatly.



She went over my happy little girl with a fine tooth comb and pronounced her to be constructed very nicely. I have to take her off to have her hips x-rayed to check for hip dysplasia, and a blood test for Von Willebrands, the doggie equivalent of hemophilia where the blood doesn't clot. The way my girl races around her yard shows me there's not too much wrong with the hips.

Kathy has a litter nearly due now and I am happy to leave it until her heat next year, so we're aiming for a winter litter. That cancels out the cold kennels in the shed. Where do I have enough room for a litter, I worried until today as I was out in the studio drawing with a friend. She suggested there, and wow! there is plenty of room out there and it can be heated. Worries over.

I have to take her to Sydney to meet her planned boyfriend, so we will take off for a few days and sightsee while she is being mated.