Dog Breeding Pre-Mate Test Pads ^©

When to mate?  Test at home for ovulation and get results in less than a minute !

 

The Dog Breeding Pre-Mate Test Pads © are: Low Cost and effective Provide immediate results in approximately one minute No need to take the bitch to the vet and expose her to bugs Tells you when the bitch is ready to ovulate and ready to be mated "Having had a bitch that was late coming on heat and then in season for 28 days, I had spent $350 on 5 progesterone tests to accomplish the mating ... and then I discovered Dog Breeding Pre-Mate Test Pads and immediately ordered some so I wouldn't have to go through the expense again of having bloods done.  There are other ovulation indicators such as a good stud dog, tissue touch, and colour of blood, etc. which I have written about in my book on dog breeding, but the more positive signs and indications of the actual ovulation day, the better.  If it is an important mating, I still like to rely on the more sure methods that pin-point the ovulation day.   As it normally happens with me, the ovulation day usually falls over a weekend, meaning the blood tests have to be done on Friday and / or Monday and guessing at which day was the ovulation day.  NO MORE !!   Now I can pin point the expected time of ovulation." How do they work?    The pads change colour from Pink to Purple/Burgundy during the Luteinizing Hormone (LH) surge produced by the anterior pituitary gland; this LH surge is normally just 2 - 3 days per season. You can start testing with the pads as early as day 1 of her season.    We suggest an early start in case you have missed a few days of bleeding or colour, or if your bitches have silent seasons. For best results you can test morning and evening, wipe the vulva area clean, open the vulva, and gently place the pad about 1 – 3 cm’s inside, place the pads sideways into the vulva so the pad soaks up vaginal fluid and hold in place for a count of 10 seconds. Do not touch the pink part of the pad; this may lead to a false or incorrect result.  For those who have tried the electronic ovulation meters with the metal probe, you will be happy to know that the pads are not cold and give a far more accurate reading on the LH surge that triggers ovulation.     After 10 to 15 seconds remove the pad and ensure it is soaked with vaginal fluid, wait for 30 to 60 seconds*, if the pad remains pink with no colour change at all, your bitch has not released her LH yet. If the pad starts to turn colour from Pink to Purple/Burgundy even if there is just one small spot or corner change of colour this is a positive result and your bitch's LH has started to surge.  The pad colour change normally lasts for 3 days and the 2nd day is when the LH spike occures.  You can expect that she will ovulate during the next 24 to 48 hours after the LH spike and plan her mating. If left longer than a few minutes the pads will naturally go darker in the air.  Take note of the initial change only. Continue to test your bitch so you know exactly the day of ovulation. From the day of ovulation, the pads will remain pink with no colour change confirming the LH surge has passed. * With shipments that are really fresh from the manufacturer, the change of colour may take 2 to 3 minutes.  With pads that have been stored for awhile, the reading should occur in 30 to 60 seconds.   Ovulation is triggered by the LH surge which causes the ovaries to release the developing eggs.  The eggs cannot be fertilised upon immediate release from the ovaries. However, normally during the 24 – 72 hour period after the eggs are released they become sperm friendly and are ready to be fertilised.  As a breeder myself I find that my best results come from mating on the day of ovulation and then repeat 24 hour and 48 hours later.  This means mating 3 days in a row from the day of ovulation.  The eggs should still be sperm friendly on the 3rd day after ovulation, but not all females run to the "normal" cycle.  The charts below will help you to understand when to mate your bitch for optimum results. Note that in dogs, the LH surge is prior to ovulation.  Although the LH factor has a very close behaviour in humans and canines, LH is specific to each species due to chemical differences between species -- these Pre-Mate Test Pads are specific to dogs.  In other words, the pads only work on dogs and respond to the vaginal fluid.  Human LH testing is done with urine and only works on humans. THE CHARTS FOR REPRODUCTION CYCLES IN DOGS WOULD NORMALLY LOOK LIKE THE FOLLOWING:  Fig 1 Fig 2 Note:  Some bitches rise quickly and ovulate 24 hours after the start of the LH surge and some take longer and ovulate 48 to 72 hours after the surge of the LH spike.  The ripening of the eggs is 12 to 96 hours after ovulation. This is when the eggs become sperm friendly.  The ovulation and egg process may only last as long as 24 to 36 hours in some bitches.  Normally it will last 48 to 96 hours. The figures for ovulation and follicle rupture in Fig 1 are from the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, Book of Dogs. Please bare in mind that each dog is an individual and that the cycle for your dog may vary from this chart.   A note on the two mating patterns shown in the chart.  If you have an established history of the heat cycles for your dog and a fair degree of confidence as to when the expected ovulation day will be, than mating on the day of ovulation and each of the two or three consecutive days afterward is the optimum mating pattern and should ensure the best litter numbers.   However, if you are in doubt, then mating every other day will "cover the bases".  In a natural mating with a good tie, the male sperm normally lives up to 5 days.  Chilled semen usually lives 24 to 48 hours and frozen semen normally lives up to 12 hours.  It is for this reason that a natural mating will produce the best chance of pregnancy in a dog.  The term normal is used with the meaning that it is the most frequent occurring in the canine world as a whole.  Again, your dog may be normal within itself, but not normal in comparison to other dogs.  It is best when you do not have a reproduction history on a dog to start testing early in the cycle.  The Pre-Mate Test Pads are reacting to the LH surge -- the days marked in green.  Each day is counted as a 24 hours period.  If your girl first shows a change in colour on the pad on the morning of day 12, then 24 hours would be the following morning.  48 hours would be the morning two days from the first change, etc. A further note, some "natural ovulation detector dogs" will not mate a girl until the day she ovulates.  LH surges mean nothing to them.  They react to a specific chemical change in the urine when the actual ovulation takes place.  If you happen to have one of these natural ovulation detecting dogs, do not expect them to mate when the pad first turns colour, but rather about 24 to 48 hours later.  This type of dog is great for being able to mate on the day of ovulation and the following two / three consecutive days and will normally produce the best litters possible based on the quality of the sperm and eggs.  A stud dog that may have been dependable in the past, may be less dependable if another male is brought on the property as it may result in a "I'll get her first" attitude rather than a reaction to the actual chemical changes in the bitch.   Note: Some bitches can ovulate as early as day 5 and as late as day 21 or even later if the season lasts for 28 days or so.   WARNING! DON'T TOUCH THE PINK PART OF THE PAD, this may affect your results.  Keep unused pads in the re-seal bag they come in and store out of sunlight, preferably in a dark place.
HOW TO USE Here are some photographs showing a Golden Retriever being tested       Left side - pink pad before insertion   Right side - pad inserted 1 cm to 2 cm in vulva for 10 seconds be careful with insertion as corners can be sharp    Left side - gently press sides of vulva to ensure vaginal fluid is on pad Right side - a positive result for LH Tracking the results in a journal Tracking the results in Excel in journal form provides a history for that bitch which is valuable for reference in future mating.  This example is a normal cycle.  To see the CASE STUDIES of NORMAL and ABNORMAL cycles CLICK HERE. Date Cycle Day Notes Pad colour AM Pad colour PM Monday, 5 July 8 Heavy bleeding  - Pre-Mate Pad small line of purple at top of pad       Tuesday, 6 July 9 Heavy bleeding.  Pre-Mate Pad purple on edges in AM.  More over all purple in PM.     spike Wednesday, 7 July 10 Heavy bleeding - red.  Pre-Mate Pad overall purple colour AM, not as much PM.     spike   Thursday, 8 July 11 Bleeding slowing down some, still red.  Hint of purple on Pre-Mate Pad in AM.  Tissue above vulva still firm.     Friday, 9 July 12 Bleeding red, slowed down.  Touch of purple AM.  Stayed pink PM.  Tissue above vulva soft. Ovulation.  Blood Progesterone 4.9 at 10 AM / Thyroid T4 - 19 (normal range 10 to 36)   Saturday, 10 July 13   Sunday, 11 July 14 1st Mating Monday, 12 July 15 2nd Mating Tuesday, 13 July 16 3rd Mating     Directions 1. Wipe the vulva area clean and wipe away any access blood.  If the girl is bleeding heavily, you may need to open the vulva slightly and blot up the blood just inside the vulva.  See illustration below.   2. Slightly open the vulva and insert the pad sideways with the pink pad inside the vulva about  2 – 3 cm’s.   3. Hold the pad in place for a count of 10 to 15 seconds seconds.  Can massage around the outside of the vulva area to be sure the vaginal fluid goes onto the pad.   4. Remove the pad and ensure the pad is damp with vaginal fluid.   5. Results should be notable between 30 seconds and 3 minutes after removing the pad.  Compare the results with the pictures below if you are unsure.  Note that if the pads are left in the open air for more than a few minutes they may naturally turn dark from the air. 6.  For the un-used pads, be sure you re-seal the poly bag and put back in a dark space like a drawer. Below are 3 photos explaining positive and negative results. Photo 1 on the left is a no change negative result, on the right of the same photo is a positive result, where the pad has changed colour.   Photo 2 is a close up of the result, you can see how the pad has changed colour   Photos 3 shows how sometimes colour or spots just appear purple/burgundy around the edges of the pad, this indicates a positive result, results can vary from one small spot of colour to the whole pad colour change.   Too Much Blood?       Too much blood may make it difficult to see the colour change.  Using a soft cloth dab inside the vulva to absorb some of the excess blood, then insert the pad.  The pad on the left was inserted without dabbing inside the vulva.  The pad on the right was after removing the excess blood and shows that the LH is still present. Please telephone or e mail if you have any queries or questions.   The pads tell you when the LH surge begins and then you can expect her to ovulate in the next 24 to 48 hours, although if her season is running long, it may be 72 hours before she ovulates.  Remember the stud dog's sperm normally will live up to 5 days, so mating sooner rather than later will ensure that a female with a short ovulation / fertilisation cycle will produce a litter of puppies. THE PADS DO NOT GAURNETEE THE FERTILITY OF YOUR BITCH OR THE FERTILITY OF THE STUD DOG AND WE CANNOT GAURNTEE A PREGANCY THE SAME AS ALL OTHER TESTS ON THE MARKET. The only times the pads give missed or false results are when... They are not used correctly Your bitch has an illness or infection Your bitch is on medication Your bitch has not ovulated Your bitch has a false or split season NOTE:  This is the ONLY product on the Lapdog website that can be purchased by overseas buyers and is not restricted to New Zealand only.  However, Overseas Buyers must use the BUY NOW buttons on the right side to purchase the Pre-Mate Test Pads.
PRICING New Zealand Orders Only Includes S/H, but exclusive GST which will be added at the end of the sales process   Qty 10 Pads $33.00 ($3.30 per test) BUY NOW     Qty 20 Pads $48.50 ($2.43 per test) BUY NOW     Qty 50 Pads $86.50 ($1.73 per test) BUY NOW	PRICING Overseas Orders Only Includes S/H   Qty 10 Pads $36.00 NZD     Qty 20 Pads $51.50 NZD     Qty 50 Pads $89.50 NZD
Testimonials Send in your testimonial & picture and get 10 free pads Offer good once only for each customer
Rupert Bear and Orchid's litter of puppies The strips were a great comfort to me as this dam is imported, only cycles every 9 – 12 months and I am unfamiliar with her lines and the pattern of her actual cycle. I used the strips to find the ovulation time as per the instructions. Papillons are tiny dogs and only secrete a small amount of mucus, and therefore the change on the strips tends to be not as dramatic as your web picture shows. There was never-the-less a clear indication of when the hormone levels peaked. I mated as your chart prescribes and the result is a litter of 4 beautiful Papillon puppies as per the photos. I have now done three litters with the strips and all the bitches conceived. One bitch is still to whelp in the next day or two. Kind Regards Robyn-Jane Chernishov SaintRose Papillons
Abbey and Skipper's pregnancy scan I started testing Abbey on day 8 and on day 9 the pad changed colour and continued coloured through day 11.  On day 12, the pad stayed pink, and a progesterone blood test was done as a check against the pads - it came back 4.9 which was perfect for ovulation.  I waited another day and then on day 14, 15, and 16 did natural matings. Now at 5 weeks, a scan was done and the vet feels confident that she was able to count at least 9 puppies.  The scan picture is of one puppy.  So the pads were accurate, easy to use and I will continue to use them in the future to accurately determine my girl's ovulation and mating days. Sy Guth Lorgair Golden Retrievers
Dazzle and Darcy's litter of puppies I have used the Pre-mate Test Pads 3 times now. The first time with a young bitch in her first season that I was not going to mate. I did this so I could see how they worked. I found Pre-mate Test pads to be a great way of predicting when the bitch is going to ovulate. Using the pads like this means I didn’t have to keep taking my bitch to the vet for Progesterone tests. Making a cost savings plus not having to put the bitch through the stress of lots of blood testing was a benefit for me.  Both times when used on  bitches I was planning to mate, this resulted  in two pregnancies.  I think these would be ideal for when you had to travel for a mating or a weekend was coming up and progesterone testing was not available.  I would recommend these to any breeder. Yvonne Malaquin Keridale Golden Retrievers