I often write in these articles about the importance of neutering pets to avoid unwanted pregnancies – but of course not all pregnancies in pets are unwanted. There are plenty of people out there very keen to breed with their cats and dogs. I always urge people who are thinking of breeding to make sure that there are available homes for the potential offspring – cats and dogs can have large litters and you need to know that you will be able to find good homes for all of them.

When is comes to breeding dogs there are lots of conditions in pure-bred dogs that can be tested for pre-mating – from hip problems to eye and heart conditions you can contact the kennel club to see what is recommended for your breed.

Once you know that you have a healthy dog it is time to start looking for a mate, particularly for pure-bred dogs this can mean travelling some distance to find the perfect match. And herein lies the problem...when is the best time to mate? As you are probably aware female dogs drip blood when they are in season but the most fertile time is generally after the dripping stops – usually around eleven to thirteen days after bleeding began. The trouble is that all bitches are different and there is quite a range in when they are fertile. This is fine if the potential father is just down the road but if they are a six hour car journey away (or indeed in another country) this can present some problems. This is where vets come into it - more about this next week.