How many puppies can a Pitbull Dog have? Okay, Pitbulls will quickly reach sexual maturity – with male dogs exhibiting mounting behaviour after a month or so – and once they reach this adolescent stage, you need to consider your approach to breeding. If you want to breed puppies and decide not to spay your pets, you should be aware that the average gestation period is 59 to 63 days and that healthy, young females produce an average of 5 puppies per litter. Clearly, this can vary from dog to dog and pregnancy to pregnancy. Some owners may find their dogs give birth to just two while other may end up with a pack of 10 on their hands.
Factors that can determine the amount of puppies that your pitbull produces
5 puppies is just an average, but this is a good figure to expect. There are, however, a couple of factors that can affect the number of puppies that will be born: age and health.
Age: A litter size will vary with age. A young mother on her second or third litter can expect to produce around 5 puppies but this will decrease as they get older. It is also important to remember that once a dog reach sexual maturity, their first litter may also be a little smaller. If you only see 3 puppies from the first litter, you should not be concerned.
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Health: The health of the dog can affect the pregnancy and determine the amount of puppies that are born. Just because 5 or more are conceived, that doesn’t mean that they will all survive the full gestation period. Pregnant women need to watch their diets, health and stress levels and the same applies to dogs. A stressed pitbull, or one that is subject to infection or STD, may struggle to carry all their puppies to full-term. Some may be miscarried, absorbed or still-born.
The other important issue here lies in the amount of litters that a pitbull can have
Some dog owners are not only keen to see have many puppies their pitbull bitch may produce, but also how many times she will be able to breed. This is crucial for breeders that want produce a large stock of puppies, but it is also important to remember that a dog should not be made to produce more litters than is healthy. Extra pregnancies on older dogs can be stressful and harmful and could also have a negative effect on the health of the puppies. Also, just because a pitbull is sexually active until death – with no version of the menopause – this does not mean that pregnancies are viable. Responsible owners recommend one litter a year until the age of 6.
How many puppies can a pitbull have? Clearly, there is no definite answer to this question because each dog is different and there are different factors at work here. If you want to your dog to produce puppies in a healthy, controlled way, it is best to expect one litter of 5 puppies each year until they are too old to keep breeding. You may find yourself with more or less, but this is a good average if you watch the health of your dog and properly care for your pitbull.
