Just a question for all the breeders out there, in B land 
I was wondering if you start supplementing the bitches you are planning to breed, in the months/weeks leading up to their seasons ??? Things like herbal remedies, multivitamins and minerals, special diets etc, etc.
Also wondering if you do anything for the boys as well, leading up to them being used at stud ??? I did ask this on another forum, and the only thing one breeder did for their boys, was to show them some 'puppy porn' :D:D.
Also another question… What is the incidence of B's having C/S ??? If your bitch has had a C/S, what was it for ???
Just curious, tis all ;).
I do not use anything…. and do not believe that anything else is need with a healthly Basenjis....regardless of bitches or males............ and the incidence C/S is minimal.. except if you have a single pup... 99% of the time that requires a C/S... and I don't think that any breeder would be able to say why... other then maybe on an older bitch (over 4/5yrs and first litter could maybe have problems) or a very big pup being presented first... but you never know.. you just need to be ready for anything...
This past December I went to a breeder symposium that presented some pretty interesting data on diet for pregnant and lactating bitches. The take home message was that they should be eating a high quality food with between 28-30% protein and 18-20% fat to prevent them sacraficing their own body mass during peak lactation. Also you want a food with DHA in it, I will have to find my notes to see what level was recommended. DHA has been shown to help with brain development.
Also another question… What is the incidence of B's having C/S ??? If your bitch has had a C/S, what was it for ???
I would say that basenjis are for the most part free whelpers that generally don't need a C-section. That said, I have had done a C-section twice.
The first one was an emergency c-section. The puppy was breach but unlike the "normal" breach where the legs come through first, this puppy was wedged in butt first and could not be repositioned. The puppy that was stuck ended up passing away shortly after being delivered because the stress on him during the ordeal was just too great. The other 3 puppies were all healthy and thriving.
The second c-section was for our singleton born this year. When we took Rio in for the x-ray the Monday before he was due, we could see that he was huge. He had spread out to take all the room he had available to him. We discussed with our repro vet our options and her opinion on the risk involved. The risk factors involved to letting her deliver the puppy naturally were that since she was maiden bitch, 5 years old, and he was obviously quite large that she could end up in distress and have to have an emergency c-section which would be harder on her and the puppy. The cons to an elective c-section is that on maiden bitch you have a much greater chance that she will not want to have anything to do with the puppy when it is first born and it could take 7-14 days before she really "mothers up". On the other hand the risk of losing the puppy is small. After having lost a puppy due to the distress of an emergency situation we opted for the elective c-section. We also ended up with Rio taking nearly 10 days to really mother up but we have a wonderful, healthy puppy.
Thanks for the responses guys…
It has been about 6 years since our last litter, (ACD's), and havent had any B litters obviously !!! Things have changed soooooo much during this time, not to mention all the info that is now available via the Internet, now...
I have always started my bitches on high quality puppy food, as soon as the mating took place, as I was told that the increased nutrients found in puppy food, as opposed to adult food, was all the bitch needed. I have found that all my girls, from differing lines etc, etc, have whelped nice sized, healthy puppies.
This now seems to be very out of vogue 
. Thats why I was asking, (and hoping for a few more replies ;)...), just wanted to see what others were doing now :).
Ok Ivoss, I am going to have to show my complete ignorance here, and Im sure as soon as you tell me, I will know... What is DHA ??? 
o. I like the idea of finding good quality food with the increased amounts of Protein and Fat, (I guess that is a little like what I wrote above...), at those % as well. I have just today, found a brand of food that has been really positively written about, by numerous people on another dog forum, and I am so much looking forward to seeing how my guys, both B's and ACD's, go on it... The Protein is 24% , and the Fat is 12% . Living down here in Tassie, is VERY limiting in what we can get in regards to dog food, or really anything much dog related, actually :rolleyes::rolleyes: I am wondering if I will get the suggested amounts of Protein and Fat, in the high quality puppy foods ??? Next time I am in the produce store, I will check the % with them too. Should be interesting :):)
DHA, is omega-3, docosahexaenoic acid, an essential fatty acid, EFA, that has been linked to mammalian brain development.
As for foods with these optimal levels, most puppy foods will have them and some "performance" foods will also have higher protein and fat percentages.
Thanks Ivoss,
WARNING, WARNING… Possibly another 'dumb' question coming up here...
Is DHA anything to do with the Omega 3 fish oil ??? I do give my guys a fish oil capsule every night. Ooooooooooooooooh, I just looked at the ingredient list and it does list docosahexaenoic acid as one of the ingredients in the capsule. It says there is 70mg in each 1000mg fish oil capsule :). Is the one capsule per day, the correct dose, do you think ??? Sorry for all the questions. I just want to be so sure to do everything right to get a successful pregnncy and delivery :):).
That should be fine especially since most high quality foods have some DHA in them also.
Thanks again Ivoss :).
