Do you know at what age your dog can get pregnant? The decision to get a dog means responsibilities that goes beyond filling the doggie bowls with food. The association of man and dog has been going on for hundreds of years. Dogs have become the helper and protector of man. For these reasons, a dog owner has the responsibility of knowing when the pet will attain full sexual maturity.

Anyone would be attracted by cuddly bundles of fur. Puppies would bring lots of fun times to the family especially if there are children as kids and dogs are known to form legendary attachment. A lot of dog owners would eagerly anticipate the puppies of the pet. Other owners though would not want to have additional dogs – probably due to space, financial and time constraints.

Dog owners that were unable to find homes for the puppies would simply leave the litter in animal shelter. When supply of puppies exceeds potential owners, animal authorities would have no other recourse but to dispose the pups the humane way. To control the number of homeless dogs, a pet owner has to know the reproductive cycle of the dog. Do not forget to read up on how you can tell if your dog is pregnant.

Dogs not only have different personalities as the reproductive cycle of our canine friend also differs from breed to breed. Some breeds would retain their puppy-like exuberance. Dogs are not cut from the same cloth as while some individuals would be sexually mature at an early age, others would be past their second birthdays before they get interested in male dogs. Generally, small breeds can get pregnant at an early age as these small dogs would come into heat at 6 or even at 4 months of age. Large breed females would generally come into first heat at a much later age. A Great Dane or a Saint Bernard would exhibit flagging and would be ready to be mated at 18 to 24 months of age. In a period of 7 to 10 days a dog in heat can become pregnant if mated.

Small breed come into heat at an early age but breeding is not recommended if the dog has not yet passed the 2nd or 3rd heat cycle. Older and bigger dogs would be more ready to sustain the pregnancy. Young dogs that are not yet prepared to get pregnant can endanger not only its life but the puppies as well.

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