APAW – Poodle Pups for Working Roles

Heads-up to those looking at getting an APAW puppy this year – I have potential changes in upcoming litter plans, and am making backup plans and will need to make final decisions based on actual timing of heat cycles. As I assess potential shifts I am keeping the overall needs of my current waiting list in mind towards producing pups in Standard and smaller sizes, with lower- and higher-drive temperaments, and with above average to high genetic diversity. As always, I’m paying close attention to health compatibility of each line, general structure and specific conformation, and overall stable good temperament.

The plan *had been*:

Dyno x RACEN Marvel FDC CGC TKN (heat due Dec-January, started signs briefly, possibly having a split heat…) for small-medium mostly performance dogs, service prospects and active companions.

And

A DoeValley stud x U-CH Lyric CGC (heat due March-ish) for Standard sized mostly service prospects and companions.

Unfortunately Dyno has been having some prostate issues for which the hopeful resolution is to neuter him (in the mean time the issue is controlled by a commonly used medication). On top of that, he currently has an infection that he is on antibiotics for, and can’t be bred until that is verified out of his system. I plan to collect and freeze his semen before he is neutered, after the infection is resolved.

I *really* want to save his genes for Marvel as that pairing is why I opted to get Dyno in the first place, and have been patiently waiting for her winter ’24-25 cycle to breed them… But at this point she is expected cycle before he is safe to breed. It’s risky (and very expensive) using frozen semen on an unproven female, so if he needs to be neutered before breeding to her I should breed her to a different stud first to verify that she’s fertile and produces a decent sized litter when the sperm is fresh.

But frozen semen will be limited and not guaranteed to produce a pregnancy, so I should also attempt to breed him naturally to someone prior to neutering, in case that is the only other litter I get, in addition to his U litter bred to Haven last year. It is always wise to breed any genetically important/unique dog a minimum of 2 times to mates who are unrelated to each other and with breedable offspring kept from both litters; this allows an option to save the genes if one of the mates/family is later diagnosed with a genetic but untestable health issue, such as Addison’s, epilepsy, thyroiditis, etc. Even if bred naturally there is no guarantee a pregnancy will take, and there is always risk that the fetuses will resorb even after ultrasound confirmation of healthy pregnancy, and then puppies need to survive whelping and the delicate early stages, and then mature as breeding quality including passing their health testing – so much can potentially go wrong, and this creates a lot of extra stress when the dog in question has important genetic diversity that is not available from breedable relatives.

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So, new tentative plans, assuming Marvel cycles too early to breed to Dyno:

For my waiting list I still need small and large dogs, and I still need performance (mostly smaller) and service/companion (mostly larger).

DoeValley stud URO1 U-CH Flint CGC TKN x Orchid (heat due any time Jan/Feb) for medium-average-large Standard performance dogs, service prospects and companions. Pups going home around early Summer. Blue/Silver.

And

Dyno x U-CH Lyric CGC (heat due March-ish) for small-medium-average Inter-Variety mostly performance dogs and service prospects, and active companions. Pups going home around mid Summer. Blue/Silver.

In greater detail:

I’ll shift Lyric to Dyno, which should be timing after the infection resolves – hope, hope, hope. That’ll still overall have some smaller, medium and possibly full Standard size pups, with mostly performance and service prospects. Heat expected around March for pups born late Spring and ready for homes around mid Summer. I’m still working out a back-up stud in case Dyno is not cleared for breeding in time… pending the timing of her cycle, the top runner-up is a similar fun small silver performancy boy (he is inter-variety), who will be health tested shortly after his February birthday…

All of my girls living with me full-time cycle earlier than Lyric – the first girl cycled in Dec, followed by the rest through-out January… just waiting on Orchid to start any time. Marvel seems to have had a short cycle, so maaaaaaybe it was a split cycle and potentially she’ll come back into heat in the next month or so, but I am not counting on that.

I’m now planning to breed Orchid for the mostly Standard sized litter for service and companion pups, though I expect many of the pups to have enough drive to be fun, biddable performance prospects too. Planned stud is Flint, URO1 U-CH DoeValley Flint The Firestarter CGC TKN. He is a large, silver, calmer stud from DoeValley Poodles, and he is a therapy dog. The back-up choice is an up-and-coming APAW boy, Quill from the Q litter (Locket x Ideal), DASH APAW’s Legendary Outlaw CGC ITD ADP-L1 Total Dog. Both studs of course are health tested and from pedigrees filled with great dogs.

Orchid does not have any titles currently, because I focused on Marvel for the few show opportunities I could attend last year. I am aiming to get at least a trick title or two on her and see what else can be managed safely as the timing of her cycle/pregnancy unfolds. Heat expected Jan/Feb for pups born mid Spring and ready for homes around early Summer.

** There is no diversity summary for Dyno x Lyric because Dyno is genetically a Mini Poodle and isn’t available to create a chart like this – however, being a Mini means he is known to have significantly different genes from Standards; his pups will be much more diverse than essentially any puppy coming from two Standard parents. Dyno has two tested daughters, one with .55 OI and the other with .49 OI. When Dyno himself was originally entered into BetterBred into the Standard database his OI was off the charts at 1.01!

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I’m thinking I’ll show Marvel this spring/summer to earn a few more titles, then pick a small performancy stud for natural cover this fall, if Dyno is no longer available for a natural mating at that point. After Marvel is known to be fertile and that pregnancy/whelping/raising is not too hard on her, then I’ll plan to use frozen from Dyno.

Welcome to the life and decisions of a breeding career, where anything can happen and plans need to shift, and nothing is guaranteed  All we know is that whoever the parents are, there will be awesome puppies when the time comes