Breeding Lucy

Wow. Apparently, Lucy has a big silent following! Lucy is indeed a top notch working Kelpie, but I did not know that I had silent followers.

I have decided to breed Lucy, but there are so few males on the east coast, I have found none that would work. Important to me are pedigree, working ability, health consideration, and really important, temperament. I have been looking for years. I even considered importing a male.

Well, I found a male, a well bred, good temperament male, showing great working ability, already, but he's young, and his hips have not yet been done.

After I put the ad up on stockdogs for sale, I got lots of responses, and several legitimate people contacted me about a pup. There were also a few dissenters, based on the age of the sire I had chosen. He will be one year this month, and Lucy would be bred at the end of February. Normally, I would never consider breeding her to such a young male, but the truth of the matter, is that the only males remotely NEAR the north east are either not good working ability, or have bad hips, or well, the list goes on.

I spoke with Nathalie, the person that owns the sire I was planning to use and we both thought on it. Lucy is going to be five in a couple of months. My concern for her health is paramount. That was my real push to get her bred- before she is too old to comfortably handle a litter. But, there is that issue of the hips of the sire being done, and I do think that is important, as more and more Kelpies are turning up with HD.

So, after a lot of thought, I have decided to wait until this chosen male gets some good proven working ability, and age on him (as well as good hips) I just hope to God that either Lucy handles a late litter in life, or I can find another male WORTHY of Lucy. It is not easy.

So, the rumor mill, I hope can stop. But, rest assured, I will be breeding her at some point. I will contact the folks interested asap, and let them know that it will be a wait.

I guess everything happens for a reason.