[Tanya]

I had the same thought as above - your current dog is hitting the age when most (though not all) dogs go into the rebellious stage and are a handful. Adding a puppy means you will have alot of work ahead of you. My personal worry on two dogs so close in age is having two senios dogs, which is hard on the heart and finances (my parents are having to pay $100/mt in pain meds) as well as physically (their dog needs help up and down stairs as well as in and out of the car). PLus I very much enjoy being active with my dog (long walks, running, agility or whatnot) which you can't do (or at least not as much) as they age.

Do you know why the breeder chose to breed back-to-back? It is SOMETIMES done for good reason, but usually when the heats are farther apart (like 12mts apart) and with a really really good reason.

 

[Tanya]

don't forget the 16 year old will likely be moving out soon (and if not already, getting a job) so I wouldn't RELY on that help when considering a second dog.

look at the flip side, by having ONLY java you can pamper her and spend extra time with her, more time training, more time loving her) and then add another dog later.

Don't forget you will have to put in even MORE time with each dog individually especially as Java is she still so young. YES you want them to bond but they must each bond to you (and the other humans) FIRST, and each other second. This will require ALOT more of your time every day.

does the breeder do all the health testing (OFA for hips/elbows, I think it is CERFS for eyes and I forget the test for heart?)

 

[Tanya]

I forgot to answer the other question....no, I don't know why the breeder chose to breed her again so quickly. I didn't realize that it was not the usual. Why is that?

As Kate mentionned in the other post, just like for a human, it is alot of work on the dog's body to carry, deliver and weene a litter of puppies. Some dogs deal with it much better than others. But in the end, a female should only have maybe 2-3 litters in her lifetime (any more than that and there had better be a very very very good reason) so why the rush to breed again so soon?

There are expetions. If the dame comes into season every year or more and recovers quickly, MAYBE it is acceptable to breed again. But from the dates you give, it seems as though she will have only had 7mts between births (including the time she weened Java's litter AND the time she carried the new pup's litter). So what, she had 4 months of freedom to be a dog, then back to being a mom? Hardly sounds fair, how could her body recover that quickly?