Cordie is somewhat predictable as far as her heat cycles go -- she came in season on March 2nd, which is a bit less than six months after her last heat. Plans were already in motion with Tanner's owner and co-breeder, Mary Grant, so I let her know right away about Cordie's heat cycle.
When doing any breeding, step #1 is to do progesterone testing. Good breeders do progesterone when organizing each breeding (whether "live cover" or an AI - artificial insemination breeding).
What the heck is progesterone testing, you ask?
Basically, progesterone is a hormone produced by the ovaries that rises as the heat cycle progresses. Early in the canine heat cycle the progesterone values will usually read less than 1.0 ng/ml. The first significant, sustained rise in progesterone usually coincides with the "LH Surge". The LH stands for luteinizing hormone and is released by the pituitary gland in the brain. This is important because ovulation occurs about 48 hours after the LH surge. The progesterone value at the time of the LH surge is usually about 2-3 ng/ml. The progesterone will rise to about 5-8 ng/ml at the time of ovulation. Canine eggs are not ready to be fertilized at the time of ovulation and take about 2 days to mature. Once mature, the eggs remain fertile for 2 to 3 days and then begin to deteriorate. Of note: progesterone stays elevated for about 2 months whether the bitch is pregnant or not. We like to know when the "surge" is so that we have an idea of ovulation, when to breed, and to estimate the whelping day.
Cordie's first progesterone test was on Day 7 and came back at 1.5. We're looking for the LH Surge of 12+ to indicate ovulation.
Day 11 her progesterone was 9.78 at Canine Cryobank, at this point we decided Cordie should meet Tanner and Mary arranged to take her to her home that day.
FYI when progesterone goes over 10.0 we received advice to breed 2-3 times over next 5-7 days.
Day 12 her progesterone 11.25 at Rose City Vet and Mary elected to test Tanner's semen, and we did our 1st Artificial Insemination (AI).
Day 14 & 16 we did a second 2nd and 3rd AI at Canine Cryobank (Cordie was flagging all weekend, and flirting).
Here is the happy couple at Canine Cryobank 💘
FYI when progesterone goes over 10.0 we received advice to breed 2-3 times over next 5-7 days.
Day 12 her progesterone 11.25 at Rose City Vet and Mary elected to test Tanner's semen, and we did our 1st Artificial Insemination (AI).
Day 14 & 16 we did a second 2nd and 3rd AI at Canine Cryobank (Cordie was flagging all weekend, and flirting).
Here is the happy couple at Canine Cryobank 💘
More details to follow . . . We will we plan to do an ultrasound in four weeks to verify a pregnancy. So please check back . . .
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