caillou\";p=\"5556 said:
I do see your point but what will it look like? :? I mean... Voltaire has rather big boy parts, that you can't miss when you're walking behind him. Would they be chopped completely? And i'm married - and you know me
They don't actually "chop" them off. The "boy parts" will shrink down to almost nothing. So, he will have very tiny sacks. Barely noticeable. I know men have an awful time with this subject, it's like they are losing their manhood! 8O Make a deal with your husband ... tell him if Voltaire loses his.. hubby can keep his own! :eh:
As far as his behavior changing, the only thing that will change is that he will not have the urge to wander.
Now about breeding...
Questions that you need to ask yourself:
1) will Voltaire be shown to his Championship?
2) what do you think his virtues/faults are, and what is it about him that makes you think he is worthy of using at stud?
3) what sort of requirements will you have for any potential mates...will you require that they be finished? What health tests will you require the bitches to have? How will you interview bitch owners to determine that they are breeding for the right reasons, and not just to make a buck off of a litter?
4) Will I be doing health testing at the appropriate age, and holtering & thyroid testing throughout his entire life. This at least shows our peers that we are doing everything we can to produce healthy dogs, free of known inheritable conditions. Has Voltaire been health tested on his thyroid, OFA'ed for hips, and cleared for both SAS and ARVC before offering him at stud. Sure, there are folks out there who will use an untested dog, but we owe the people who get a dog from us some level of assurance that we are doing our part to not produce dogs with these health problems.
Breeding should be a serious commitment, to our individual dogs, to the breed, to the people who buy our puppies. Puppies are a joy, but can also bring tremendous heartache if not bred right, ending up with health or temperament problems.