How to distinguish a bitch from a cable? Does the gender of the dog matter when choosing a pet?

• December 8, 2019
• Dogs and hunting with them
• Elizaveta Matchina

How to distinguish a bitch from a cable and who is better to accept into your family? We invite you to deal with this issue today. Let's start with the fact that this is a very controversial issue, and the attitude of most people is simply a personal opinion. When it comes to these gender wars, people's views on gender differences are based on their personal experiences with their pets. They don't recognize the differences in personality traits between dogs. Each dog is unique with an exclusive set of genes and experiences that make them who they are.

Positive Features

So who is better: bitch or cable? Maybe the question of gender preference depends on the breed? It is impossible to answer this question precisely. Let's look at the pros and cons of flooring. Let's start with their positive qualities.

Flaws

Let's look at the disadvantages of each gender. The section will also be presented in the form of a comparative table.

Advantages of owning bitches:

• Bitches are considered calmer and more docile pets; they are attached to their owner and home;
• It is believed that bitches have much higher intelligence, and they perceive the world around them emotionally differently;
• These dogs are quite cunning, show unexpected ingenuity, and are not aggressive;
• The breeding process is greatly simplified: it is enough for a dog to receive one show mark;
• Walking with females is much more pleasant - they only need to sit down a couple of times, and the rest of the time they will play with the owner or just enjoy walking;
• The opportunity to get wonderful puppies - additional sources of joy.

Flaws:

• Bitches are less elegant and smaller in size than males;
• Once every six months, females begin to go into heat - the smell intensifies, the dog may be capricious and not obey. Sometimes owners have to purchase special dog panties. In addition, at this time the pet must be carefully monitored in order to avoid uncontrolled mating;
• Owners of bitches will sometimes have to miss shows and competitions due to estrus or pregnancy. Also, during estrus, joint hunting is not allowed;
• Despite the fact that males are more aggressive, females fight most often, and often their fight ends in death.

However, the owners have their own opinion on this matter - after all, if you like the pet, the last thing you think about is possible problems and turn to statistics, because a dog is a joy and a source of kindness in your home.

What gender of dog do you prefer? Write your opinion in the comments!

How to distinguish them?

Let's move on to our main question: how to distinguish a bitch from a cable? The most reliable way is to examine the genitals. At first glance, this seems quite simple, but there is one big “BUT”: in the first days of life, puppies have poorly formed sexual characteristics.

Look at the table, which shows the sexual characteristics of puppies of different sexes.

Apart from this, there are other ways to find out the gender of your dog. As they grow up, boys and girls have different habits. For example, boys are more likely to mark territory; as they get older, they begin to raise their paw when urinating and so on.

Male or Bitch? Whom to choose?

Another question in a series of questions most frequently asked by both subscribers and potential dog owners when they contact our kennel. A question that dozens of people ask in messages over and over again... “Do you think it’s better to get a male or a female?”

On the topic of gender inequality among dog lovers, on various forums and in public social networks, you can find simply a colossal amount of controversy and, dare I say it, selective nonsense. After all, if many people still believe that men are smarter than women by default, what is there to talk about about unfortunate dogs?

The most common opinions include the following:

• Bitches will defend property and their owner until their last breath, and males, as soon as danger arises, will run away with their tail between their legs;
• Males are significantly more aggressive and much more playful than females;
• Bitches are by definition calm, family-oriented and affectionate;
• Bitches are much more obedient and easy to train; males will drag you along on a leash, pulling out your arms along with your shoulder joints;
• Males are much larger than females / males take up much more space than females;
• Bitches have a problem with being in heat, but males do not have such problems;
• Male dogs are more likely to lunge at other dogs and fight.

... this list could be continued, but perhaps it is not necessary.

The main purpose of this article is to convey to people one very simple, but very capacious idea: all dogs are completely different. Each has a completely unique set, which includes temperament, character, life experience and much more.
From the list above, I only agree with the fact that males, as a rule, are indeed larger than females. Sexual dimorphism in dogs is really pronounced: this is required by the Standards of most breeds. But even here there are exceptions: graceful, feminine males and powerful, “male-type” females. The rest is complete nonsense.

It can be argued with equal success that men are emotionless machines and do not have emotions, especially in relation to children. Or that all women are calm and dream of family and children (and if not, then the woman is sick). Or that one sex is smarter than the other, or that all men are aggressive and only think about sex, or... well, you get the idea, right? And why all? Because gender stereotypes are just that: stereotypes, and nothing more. And this is true for both people and dogs, which, in case you forgot, are also social animals (just like you and me). Not a single study has shown any significant differences between males and females in dogs, if we are talking about behavior, intelligence, etc., and not about physiology. And if in the case of people it has been proven that men, as a rule, have better spatial thinking, and women are superior to men in the field of communication and information processing (this happened in the course of evolutionarily different tasks), and in general it has been proven that the brain works a little differently (not worse /better, but simply different: different tasks), then there is no such difference in dogs. At all. At all. The existence of such differences requires a completely different level of cognitive development, which, no matter what the owners think about their prodigy dogs, dogs as a species have not yet achieved (in general, according to recent studies, dogs, unfortunately, are becoming dumber: in comparison with the wolf, our pets showed not very good results).

The difference in the behavior of males and females is due only to the conditions in which the dog grew up and trained. Whether an animal, female or male, will protect you until the last breath depends on the depth of trust and strength of the emotional connection established between you and your dog, on the dog’s temperament and character, on its courage, on its training, in the end! But not from the floor. The only statement that can, with a stretch, claim to be true: a bitch can protect children and puppies more fiercely. But, again, I knew bitches who strangled their puppies, as if hinting to the breeder that they were spinning him on the tip of their tail along with all the “joys of motherhood.”

So maternal instinct is also not an axiom.

Speaking of obedient, affectionate, family-friendly and easy-to-train bitches. Whether the puppy will be affectionate depends on how often he was petted in childhood and adolescence, that is, only on whether the dog is accustomed to affection, and whether this is normal behavior for it. My first dog, like me when she came into my life, grew up not at all “affectionate” in the truest sense of the word: she doesn’t like to be licked and hugged. Because I myself, being an introverted teenager, did not set an example for her (or did not respond to her affection), and this behavior simply did not stick with her. The second dog, who has been cuddled, hugged and kissed since childhood, is the embodiment of love and tenderness, sometimes so much so that people think that their life will end in its paws when it licks them to death. But I, too, have changed a lot over the years, and hardly anyone recognizes me as that withdrawn and unaffectionate teenager.

If your dog is withdrawn, uncommunicative and avoids touching, look first at yourself, and not between the dog’s legs.

By the way, the same can be said about children.

The fact that bitches are easier to train is also debatable: the speed and “ease” of training is a matter of the motivation and intelligence of the dog as a whole.

However, females, as is typical of the female sex in general (and the same can be seen in humans), mature faster than males. Therefore, in the initial stages, a bitch can actually gain a temporary advantage - simply because she is “more mature” than, say, her male littermate. This does not mean that females are smarter than males, it means that they mature a little earlier! But this difference is not of any decisive importance (except perhaps for maniac athletes, for whom it is fundamentally important to start training from the moment the puppy learns to walk and clench its jaw).

Gender in no way affects a dog's analytical abilities or motivation. This is influenced by genetics and the trainer, respectively. In addition to the speed of maturation, this myth also owes its appearance to the fact that male dogs during the period of growing up are a little more obstinate than females, and it is believed that they may simply refuse to study because they are not interested in it. I dare to assure you that bitches, although less “obstinate”, are no less lazy and tend to avoid activities that bring them discomfort or do not arouse interest.

Without motivation, a dog will hang its tail on your attempts to train it, regardless of gender.

The playfulness of a dog and, in general, the mobility of its psyche as a whole is nothing more than its temperament, which, by the way, changes during the life of the animal. And even a very temperamental dog plays only when it feels relaxed and comfortable (in this way, by the way, the degree of socialization and psychological comfort of the animal is assessed: if the dog plays and eats on the street, then everything is fine). There is also prey drive and many other factors, but (surprise!) gender is not among them.

Bitches are also prone to aggression towards other dogs (and some, for example, do not digest small dogs and choke them at the first opportunity, and some, on the contrary, look for rivals “by size”), and are also prone to aggression when they They protect their thing or toy (prey), no less than males, they are prone to jealousy with all that it entails. Males are a little more prone to aggression out of nowhere. Boys (including human boys) generally love to compete and measure themselves against everything they can and cannot do. Both of them owe this to testosterone, the male sex hormone. However, I dare to assure you that a good shake and a couple of slaps will bring your dog to his senses in no time (much faster than that bitch who chose some unfortunate Chihuahua as her target).

A well-trained dog will hardly think that showing unauthorized aggression towards others is acceptable. Regardless of gender. Males, however, are much more prone to hierarchical conflicts while growing up. This is also normal. I am not going to separate the arguments between supporters and opponents of the dominance theory here. The fact remains: in any group of social animals, one way or another there will be a leader, and there will be everyone else. This is true for people, for dogs, and also for a team consisting of people and dogs. No, this does not mean that the male will try to “seize power”. But he will, like a teenager in puberty, try to be disobedient. Bitches can do this too, but it is observed much more often among males (testosterone doesn’t do that to the brain). When the dog grows up, this stops. Or, if you did not correct this in childhood, this behavior becomes the norm.

You say males take up more space? Tell that to my bitch, who has a habit of stretching out on the floor so that not a single dog, bitch, cat, and probably a rat, a field mouse, or even a spider, Heinrich, would have enough room to sit next to her or simply walk by without tripping over her. Yes, males are a little larger. But a little in this case really means a little. Sexual dimorphism is pronounced, but not that much , for God's sake.

Regarding estrus: yes, bitches have a period of readiness for mating twice a year (in healthy bitches - twice!). At the same time, the “ready” bitch will only be a couple of weeks, during which it is not recommended to let her off the leash for quite obvious reasons (no matter what you think about your good girl, she really wants it at this time too, and it doesn’t really matter what breed applicants). The objective disadvantage of bitches in this case is that they can dirty the floor.

By the way, many veterinarians advise spaying female dogs at a young age if you do not plan to engage in breeding and exhibitions. In addition to the absence of problems with estrus, sterilization, according to the veterinarian. doctors, significantly reduces the risk of developing diseases of the genitourinary system, including cancer (which nowadays are becoming more and more common in mature dogs). If sterilization is performed at a young age, it is quite safe for the dog.

Do you think it’s so rosy and cloudless with boys? No. Males, unlike females, are ready to participate in the fertilization process all year round. This means that, seeing a bitch in heat in the distance, your male dog can rush after her at any moment, and no matter how much you scream and tear your claws after him, it is quite difficult to catch up with the dog. Only a well-trained male will succumb to control without a leash, of which, God forbid, there are 1 in 100, if not worse. So with males it’s not so simple.

To summarize, there are only three more or less adequate differences between males and females that may influence your decision: 1. Males are larger , and more importantly, stronger than females. An ill-mannered large breed male is much more likely to drag you along the asphalt than an ill-mannered female. Although, as I already said, there are also such bitches that the males look like teenage boys compared to them. An adequate dog trainer will solve this problem by explaining how to wean a dog from pulling on a leash.

2. Males during the period of maturation are more prone to conflicts , including hierarchical conflicts: they will show disobedience, and if you do not correct this immediately, the dog can grow up confident that this is completely normal, and then turn into a domestic tyrant. If you are not ready for a hard correction, if you are a soft person, and especially if you are a soft person with children, take a bitch.

3. Bitches go into heat twice a year , which requires careful monitoring, and bitches are not the best option if all the floors in the house are covered with carpet. Males can rush after any female in heat at any moment, forgetting everything they were taught, who their master is, and who they are in general.

There are no more objective differences - entirely subjective, originating from the stories that owners tell about their dogs. There are millions of dogs. Statistically, it is quite natural that among them there will be females with the same behavior and problems, as well as males. But the presence of groups demonstrating similar behavior is not a reason to label everyone. (:

I hope you make the right choice without listening to dubious advice. Be patient and good luck with your pets!