We are going to breed our rat terrier with a black and white chihauha, how old does my rat terrier need to be? I've heard 2 years old....

IMO ..never. I am not at all in favor of mixing the breeds.

Agreed!

Good Morning,

May I ask you a question...

If you do this breeding, what do you hope to gain from it? What are your goals?

I am just interested in why you would want to.

Thanks in advance,

Darla

If you want another dog, please adopt! There are so many in need. I know it's natural to want one from you own dog, but please, there are so many pups out there in desparate need of homes, especially mixes. Please reconsider.

Ditto .. and something for people that aren't going to be breeders per-say,  spaying and neutering will help stop breast and testicular cancer.  

So, save a sweet rattie chi mix and adopt one from a shelter that may very well be put to death....and of course that is just my opinion.

Can you all please allow me get on a soapbox just a little....

As breeders that try to improve and striving to breed better i.e. healthier etc... it is a bit disheartening to hear of others breeding like this... and we hear it a lot. It's kind of like taking one step forward and three steps back.

Good Morning Jan,

Thank you for your kind words. Breeding isn't perfect. We have had our share of problems and heartaches but we are trying.

It hurts to raise a dog for 2 years and maybe even have spent a lot of money showing it, to only find out at 2 that they have health issues and can't be breed with. Welcome to breeding...I have fell in love with that dog and no way do I want to place it but..we can't keep them all, even though we usually do..lol. We have as many pets as we have breeding show dogs....

How many breeders are out there breeding dogs with issues but don't know it because they don't test AT ALL.  If anyone looks at OFA they will see that sure .. KnD has dogs with problems on there but doesn't that show we are trying? All dogs with problems listed on OFA with KnD on their name are ALL fixed....Testing isn't a guarantee but it the best we can do....If they don't test they most certainly WON'T have a dog with problems...does make sense?

When we first started out we made our fair share of mistakes too. We should have tested from the start but..we didn't even know about testing much less how to go about it. Sure enough, the first dog we tested and yes we had bred with him, had an issue. He was fixed johnny on the spot but that has not saved him from having a stigma on him and his off spring from now on I guess. We didn't even realize how important it was to post the bad results as it was to post the good so another mistake..it was not posted..Now some think we are trying to hide something.. only or ignorance.  If only others could learn from our mistakes  I might add..his issue was made VERY public by us and others on breeders boards and e-mails. Yep-he is still here and is a great grandpa dog with the puppies.

If you ever had a hairless in your hands for awhile you would be in love. These are such dear sweet things. How could they not be descending from Rat Terriers. Such kissable skin they have. Their skin reminds me of my moms old soft leather purse.. lol You would be SO hooked...

Thank you for rescuing your baby Pumpkin ..rescue is so important.  So many dogs out there that no one made plans for. We love showing hence wanting to improve on our so loved breed.

We love seeing good families that have lots of love and care enjoying their ratties.

Sorry..got on my soapbox again.

Thanks again... your kind words mean a lot.

Have a good day,

Darla

Oh gosh, PLEASE rethink breeding your rattie just to get another dog!  There are many rattie-chi mixes in shelters, my two are both rescues....probably came from backyard breeders that just wanted "cute puppies"! 

I don't want to offend you but good reputable breeders like Darla and Susan put in a lot of research, time and money into breeding rat terriers for the good of the breed.  You have to be sure both the male and female are free of genetic problems (also grandparents, etc.).  You have to be prepared to find good homes for all puppies (and people who now say "oh yes, I'll take one" often change their mind when the pups are ready to go).  You have to be prepared for the financial expenses of it all including possible emergency c-sections.

There is no reason to breed a chi with a rattie!  I love Skipper and Mitzy BUT I can tell you that Mitzy has inherited physical problems that are for me to see.  She has glaucoma in her eye (under control with drops) and sometimes her patella slips.  The glaucoma is a common problem with chi's and is inherited.

THE RAT TERRIER FAMILY TREE...

My reply?  as long as your chihuahua is a shorthaired chi, with a deer face, there is not much difference, and will NOT ruin the breed statis.

Sharla Maben of RRK's in Oklahoma

www.imagevent.com/sharlarose  See our babies, they rule, cats drool!

What was,  WAS... it doesn't mean that it should still be. I have studied the rat terrier history too and in truth their a whole lot more breeds than what is mentioned and Chihuahua isn't in all lines....it doesn't mean the practice should continue. If you want to stick to this form of thinking, we should all have wolves in our yards and beds.... JMO of course. All this conversation isn't going to matter anyway...