FOR THE SAKE OF THE BREED, PLEASE DON'T BREED WITHOUT TAKING HEED!!!

Dalmatians are an extremely popular breed. The Disney films such as 'One hundred and One Dalmatians' have portrayed them as cute and cuddly and children everywhere can easily recognize a Dalmatian
This kind of fame however, has its downsides.
Many families look to buy a Dalmatian for all the wrong reasons. They have not researched the breed and become quickly overwhelmed when the cute, cuddly puppy starts to grow into a big, bouncy demanding dog.
Dalmatian rescue/welfare is inundated with rejected Dalmatians, who have 'outgrown' their welcome. Many come through with social problems, where the correct training/socialization has not been done.
 
Deciding to breed from your Dalmatian bitch should always be very carefully considered.
For the reasons above, finding good, kind homes where the Dalmatian as a breed is actually suited to the prospective family is a very difficult one.  It requires dedication and a lot of contact with follow-up advice.
 
Any puppy should not be bred, just to be handed over for a payment, without any concern for its well-being.
The decision to breed was yours, not the dogs.
 
Health wise, you are subjecting your bitch to the possibility of all sorts of problems when trying to breed. Any underlying problems or defects will come to the fore, when put under the stress of whelping. It can happen that bitches have died trying to give birth.
This must be very carefully considered when planning to breed.
 
Old wives tales suggest that a bitch needs a litter before she is neutered. This is false. Ask your vet!
 
Dalmatians as a breed take a long time to mature and a bitch should not be bred from too early in her life.  Not only could it stunt her growth, but she will not be mature enough to carry/whelp and feed a large litter.
 
Some people think it would be nice for the children to learn about 'mother nature', by seeing their bitch have a litter. It is more common than you think for one or more puppies to be born dead or fade and die after a few weeks of being born.  Do you think you or your children could cope with this?
 
Your bitch should be a good example of the breed.   If she is not a good example, your bitch may display conformation faults that could be passed onto the puppies. Conformation faults often result in health problems as the dogs get older. It puts undue stress on joints etc.
Breeding from poor examples of the breed, if done enough could result in us losing the typical characteristics that make a Dalmatian and our lovely breed will be gone.
 
Choosing a sire that will compliment your bitch is a very difficult decision. Pedigrees must be understood, individual dogs in the pedigree must be known. Are there any health problems that could be passed on? Could you be doubling up on a major fault in both the dam and the sire?
 
Time.  Having a litter takes up most of your time and energy from the day they are born until they leave home. You could be awake all night with a whelping bitch. Then starts the cycle of washing bedding, feeding, cleaning floors, cleaning up poop, feeding puppies, no sleep because puppies are playing/squealing etc. The time and energy used increases dramatically as the puppies get older. At least one person in the family would need time off work to do this. Can you afford it?
 
 
Lastly, we come to the biggest motivation of all - Money!
People sometimes see how much the puppies are being sold for and think it must be a very lucrative hobby indeed.
 
However, they have failed to take into account:
The stud fee
Registration of the puppies with the kennel club
Flea-treatment and worming for the bitch and the puppies
Cost of the whelping bed/bedding/heating/paper/puppy pen/disinfectant.
Vet fees - at the least they are large enough, at the worst 'the sky is the limit'
Extra food for the bitch
Puppy food and bowls etc
Advertising of the puppies
Pedigrees to be paid for and written out
Puppy milk
Hearing tests
Microchipping
It goes on and on and on………..!!!!!

 
Breeding, done properly is very rarely profitable.

 
 
THE FUTURE OF THE BREED IS IN YOUR HANDS!!