BREEDING YOUR PET

Reckon your dog or cat would make beautiful babies? Consider these issues first

- NICI DE WET

IT’S something many pet owners are tempted to do: they love their cats and dogs so much they’re convinced the world would be a better place with more animals just like them. After all, what’s cuter than a basketful of pups or kittens. For others it might be the lure of making extra bucks.

But with so many pets without homes, do you really want to risk adding to the problem by producing another litter?

“Welfare organisations are overflowing with animals because their owners are unable to care for them,” says senior veterinarian Dr Ingrid de Wet of EberVet Country Animal Clinic in Somerset West in the Western Cape.

She says many people believe it’s better for a female dog to have a litter before she’s sterilised but this is a myth. “Female dogs can be sterilised from six months. They’ll suffer no health risks if they’re sterilised without having had a litter.”

But if you really want to breed your pet, consider there important factors first.

REGISTER YOUR PET

You should register with an organisation such as the Kennel Union of SA (Kusa), which keeps records of your pet’s pedigree. Kusa and other organisations have guidelines on breeds and the screening that should be done beforehand.