keeping whole litters

[arkla hunter]

Ive known for along time that the best way 2 get the most outa ur dogs (as far as pups go) is to keep whole litter. Raise them up watch there progress and cull accordingly. And hopefully at the end ull end up with at least one pup that rises above the rest. Could be several could be none but with the rite blood and selective breeding you should get atleast one. This is the first time im trying out keeping a whole litter do to space issues and money in the past. Im in the process of building one large pen to raise the pups in after there weaned. My question is at what age or if ever will i haveta split the pups up. With pups ive raised in the past around 4-6 months they begin 2 get territorial and develop aggression over food and so on... these pups will be kept at my farm which is about 15 miles from the house so i wont be around at all times to control there aggressive behavior. Will the pups establish a pecking order and end being ok when there a year old or will it just feed the fire with aggressive behavior and create problems in the future? Would like sum imput from yall that raise whole litters. And any other tips or do's and donts would be greatly appreciated. Ive raised lots of pups but at 3 at a time at most never a whole litter.

[halfbreed]

  well you will need to divide at least the males from the females at around 5 months of age or your pen will over flow with brother sister crosses  . but yes they will establish a pack order and they will fight like hell sometimes in the process . but just remember some gyps will have their first heat cycle at 6 months  .

[arkla hunter]

Yea i should have clarified in the first post. I was mainly referring to all the males being in the same pen as far a aggression issues

[T-Bob Parker]

Unless your raising bulldog pups, aggression issues would be a good place to start the culling process in my opinion. Can't catch hogs if your breaking up dog fights all the time.

[jimco]

I never kept whole litters because of time and kennel limitations. In the past I tried to keep at least 3 that showed me something that I liked as a puppies. Last year I kept 2 males. At about 3 months they started
fighting. I was thinking one would become dominant and thought they would settle it. They were fine outside the pen, but in the pen it wasn't. They would be napping side by side like buddy pals and wake up and look at each other and just tie a$$ fighting for about 5 seconds ending in a draw. It would always end in a draw.
I sold one and then they both were fine. No dog aggression out of either one after that.

But yes that would be the ticket to keep whole litter to weed through them and keep the best.

[Reuben]

When the pups are evenly matched the fighting will continue for a while...most of the time it is a pecking order issue that the pups are working out...

[Cajun]

Keeping the whole litter does ensure that you will pick the best out of the litter but I would sure be hoping for better than one dog making it. I would be hoping for about 75% of the litter making good to great dogs or I would not be making that cross.jmo.
  I normally do what you have done in the past keep 2 or 3 out of the litter & place the rest of them in the hands of hunters.
  On the fighting issue & this would not work for you because you said they were about 15 miles or so out in the country. My pups run loose until they or 5 or 6 months old, but they all eat out of the same pan. I stand over them & if one growls, he  or she gets corrected immediately. They grow up knowing that growling & fighting is not tolerated & if I do end up with one that just does not get it, then they are culled.

[justincorbell]

  well you will need to divide at least the males from the females at around 5 months of age or your pen will over flow with brother sister crosses  . but yes they will establish a pack order and they will fight like hell sometimes in the process . but just remember some gyps will have their first heat cycle at 6 months  .

Good info Mr. Whitten.

I personally have done the same thing you are doing, built a big pen that encloses my off the ground kennels, when I feel the pups are big enough to be on the ground and out of the kennel thats where they go, when they are between 5-6 months old I put them on a chain like the rest of the dogs. I have a gyp right now that will be multiplying any minute and I plan on doing the exact same thing, keeping all the pups to work.

[Reuben]

Keeping the whole litter does ensure that you will pick the best out of the litter but I would sure be hoping for better than one dog making it. I would be hoping for about 75% of the litter making good to great dogs or I would not be making that cross.jmo.
  I normally do what you have done in the past keep 2 or 3 out of the litter & place the rest of them in the hands of hunters.
  On the fighting issue & this would not work for you because you said they were about 15 miles or so out in the country. My pups run loose until they or 5 or 6 months old, but they all eat out of the same pan. I stand over them & if one growls, he  or she gets corrected immediately. They grow up knowing that growling & fighting is not tolerated & if I do end up with one that just does not get it, then they are culled.

x2 on feeding the pups from a big bowl and tapping the growly ones on the head and saying a firm "no" at the same time...

[Rodeo]

i think that all dogs and puppy's can be great it all depends on how much time it takes them to come around. if you take the time to show them and give them the time they need they should turn out to be great.