Cilgwri Litters
Although
having been in the bloodhound breed for over 15 years we have
only had 3 litters. This is actually not untypical of small scale
breeders like ourselves and there are a number of really good
reasons for this.
|
Remember
Bloodhounds grow from adorable babies into adorable giants
very quickly.
This
is Polly at 9 weeks and Tucker at around 14 months and weighing
66 kilos! |
-
Firstly
bloodhounds can be difficult to mate and too get a litter
from (this was our early problem)
-
Secondly
we always want to keep at least one puppy from each litter
so we need to have the space as they all live indoors with
us.
-
And
finally we aren't in the 'puppy farming business' so are very
selective about who we mate and to whom. We have always bred
for health and temperament and will continue this policy into
the future. (see health note below)
Our
three litters are as below with the hounds we kept shown in Blue.
Litters on the way
As at 24th November we have a potential litter on the way. This is a mating (AI) between our Strudel and the most beautiful dog from Norway Ch Igenium Foenix.
For details on Strudel and Foenix click here
Health
and Epilepsy
When
Phoebe had her litter in 2003 we had taken every care that we
thought possible to breed a healthy litter, particularly to keep
away from known epilepsy lines. Compo (Cilgwri Uncomplicated)
started to have fits in early 2004 and these got progressively
worse and worse until he went into multiple fitting in November
2004 which we could not bring him back from. In the same period
his brother in Malta - Slobber - had developed Sandfly Fever (A
very very nasty illness) he with the 110% support of his owners
fought this illness gallantly although he also started to have
fits and then sadly died.
10
Days after Compo's death his mother Phoebe also started to have
fits and whilst this is largely under control with medication
she still has occasional episodes some worse than others.
We
then heard that Hector (Cilgwri Unbeatable) was also having fits.
Luckily like his mother these seem to be under control with his
drug regime.
Firstly
we must say that a hound fitting with epilepsy is not a nice sight,
it is soul destroying to watch your hound struggle and we would
like to thank our puppy owners who have given so much to look
after their hounds.
Secondly
we want to say that if you want to buy a bloodhound try and investigate
the epilepsy lines as far back as you can go - this is the main
reason we took our Grace to Vienna for a mating going as far from
known epilepsy lines as we could. But a word of caution..
- We
know about our epileptic litter as we keep in very close touch
with all our puppy owners who have become close friends, so
we know about any problems that they may have and can work
with them on the right management approach. Not all breeders
have such close relationships and don't always hear of (or
frankly are interested in) problems.
- Equally
importantly all our puppies live in the homes with their owners
so any unusual behaviour will be seen. Hounds that are kept
outside or in a 'pack' situation may not be noticed having
a fit (they can happen quickly and be over in less than 1
minute)
If
in any doubt about Epilepsy please contact us and we will be more
than happy to offer advise and support. Also
see link to our notes on Epilepsy.
