Adopting a puppy is an important decision. There are multiple factors that you must consider. We make it a priority that you are able to come to us knowing that our dogs and puppies are very important to us. Their health and happiness is on the top of our list. Additionally, we feel that it is extremely important and it is our responsibility to make sure that each of the beautiful babies we are blessed with are placed with the right families. We appreciate you taking the time to read through our puppy information. If interested in our pups, it is beneficial to read through the majority of the information we have made available.
We know that there are many different options available to you when it comes to finding your new family member. It is important that you find the best puppy AND the best breeder for your family. You should have a relationship with your puppy’s breeder even after you have brought your new baby home. It is important to us to make sure that our puppies are healthy and that we provide the support that you need. All of our puppies come with a 3-year health guarantee. In addition, we are available to help you in any way we can with advice, emotional support, and help tips. Once you have one of our babies, you are part of the family, and we are always available to you.
Just as there are human family reunions, we have annual play days for our fur-family reunions. We invite all of our puppy families; provide a safe space for all the dogs to play, swim, and lounge; and have a BBQ for the adults. It truly is a great time!
Table of Contents
Making sure that our babies get the best start in life concerning care and health is extremely important to us. In addition, it is important that we find each of our babies a family that will love them forever and enjoy all of their amazing qualities. I
About Our Puppies
We make sure the parents of each litter are health tested and well cared for. In addition, each and every one of them are a part of our family. Our puppies are purebred, AKC and/or CKC registered, and fully pedigreed.
Adoption Requirements
1. Each of our puppies can go home with limited AKC and/or CKC registration. This means that you will be required to spay/neuter your puppy when he/she is the appropriate age. We allow the pup to be up to 18 months old before he/she is required to be spayed/neutered.
2. If you take one of our puppies home, you are required to keep in touch at least once every eight weeks for the first year of the puppy’s life. We feel this communication is important. It allows us to make sure the puppy is doing well and also keeps the lines of communication open which raises the chance that if you have a question or you need advice you know that we are here to help. This requires you to join our PRIVATE Facebook group. ONLY those that have our puppies are allowed in this group. The notifications when other people post updates often reminds you to post your own. We truly care about our puppies and are not a breeder that hands you a puppy and then never cares about what happens to it again. – Honestly, this is one reason many of our puppy parents choose us.
3. If for ANY reason, you cannot keep your puppy/dog, it MUST be returned to us. You cannot adopt the puppy/dog out to another family or take it to a shelter.
4. For the safety of the puppy/dog, our contract states that our puppies/dogs – once they have gone to their new homes – cannot be transported in the back of a truck or open vehicle without restraint. All puppies (and preferably adults) should be transported inside of a vehicle. As a previous vet tech, I can tell you that every owner of every dog that ever came in from road rash or injury from jumping out of a vehicle said “I do not know what happened, he/she has never tried to jump out before!” We want to save you and your fur-family member the pain of this experience.
Our Puppy Care
The first, and most important section of our puppy information page is probably the care of our puppies. Our puppy care is of utmost importance as far as we are concerned. Since our puppies will eventually be a part of another family, it is important to know how each puppy was cared for before going to their new homes.
From the Beginning – Care of Dam and Sire
We work diligently to make sure that we produce quality puppies. This starts with the dam and sire. Our adult dogs are well-bred, healthy, health tested, have wonderful personalities, and are truly loved. In addition, they are all up to date on veterinary care, heartworm prevention, and flea prevention. We also work to ensure that they are on a well balanced diet and are given beneficial supplements. When it comes to having puppies, we first plan the litters we hope to produce. Since we have more than one boy, we play musical rooms to make sure we get the pairing we are hoping for.
Once the dam goes into labor, I am by her side from start to finish. I often help with delivery, provide support to momma dog, weigh puppies, put on new puppy id collars, and start the puppy records. The detailed care of both the dam and the puppies is my primary focus.
Once the dam has completed her heat and has had contact with a male, it is a waiting game for 23 to 35 days. We like to see the pups via sonogram between 35 and 40 days of gestation. This allows us to see the babies to make sure they are developing normally. Then we have to wait the remaining 24 to 30 days after confirmation of the pregnancy until the puppies are born.
De-worming
Our babies are first dewormed at three weeks old. Their deworming schedule is consistent from this point until they go home.
Care through Socialization and Puppy Play
Multiple times a day we love on, snuggle, hold, and touch the puppies.
Once the puppies are about five weeks old, momma gets tired of cleaning up after them. At this point, we introduce the puppy potty box. For the next two weeks, momma teaches the puppies how to use the potty box. This helps with potty training because we do not let our littles outside until they are at least 10 weeks old. These babies are just too tiny.
Before Going Home
All of our puppies come with a health guarantee, a full vet exam, vaccinations appropriate to their age, microchipped, dewormed, and well socialized. We require that our veterinarian see each of our puppies before they go to their new home. It is important that each puppy goes home with a clean bill of health. We take the puppies to the vet a day or two before pick-up for their nose-to-tail exam, a fecal exam, and make sure they get their first vaccines. In turn, pick-up cannot be until after this date. We do not let our pups go home without a full check-up.
Cost of Adoption
Another commonly asked puppy information question concerns out adoption fee. The overall adoption fee for our puppies is between $900 and $1600 depending on the gender, color, and breed. The waiting list application reservation fee is $300 and deducted from the overall adoption fee.
Adopting a Puppy – Picking a New Fur-Baby
Picking out a puppy has changed greatly in the last 20 years. This is because breeder knowledge, commonality of puppy viruses, and the quality of puppies bred for “pet” homes has also changed. Today, many reputable breeders offer their puppies to families via their website. Choosing a puppy off of a website through the use of photos is now common practice. If you are looking at pups through a reputable breeder, this is a safe and “normal” way to pick out your new family member.
Most people choose their puppies from the photos. Since these are smaller dogs, even those that are a little more hyper can still be controlled due to their size. However, we also allow you to choose that we choose the correct puppy for you based of his/her temperament. To help us find the puppy that fits each family best, a questionnaire is sent to our up-and-coming owners. This usually takes place when the litter hits 6 weeks. This questionnaire also asks you which puppies you are most drawn to in the photos. This helps us try to pair the one of the puppies you like physically with a corresponding puppy whose personality best fits your lifestyle. At 7 weeks of age, we perform the aptitude test and will then individually call each person on the litter list (in the order they signed up) to let you know which puppy you will be taking home. If you want the aptitude test done on the puppy you pick, after making your choice, we are also happy to do that.
How to Decide
You will also need to figure out the gender you are looking for. To be honest, until I was 14, my family owned ALL female dogs. The reason for this is because my mother grew up with only female dogs. To this day, my grandmother will ONLY have female dogs. However, both females and male have their benefits. Some breeders will tell you that there is really no difference between genders. This is and is not true. The reality is that each pup has its own personality, no matter the gender.
Reserving a Puppy
To adopt one of our babies, you will be required to fill out an application and place a deposit. If for any reason, you are not approved, your reservation fee will be returned. Your name will not be placed on the waiting list until the the reservation fee is received and application is approved. The reservation allows us to hold your place on the waiting list and reserve a puppy, it is non-refundable.
Once we receive your application, it will be reviewed. We will contact you if we have any additional questions and/or to let you know the status of your application.
If there are puppies available at the time of your application, unless requested, you will not be placed on the waiting list. Instead, you will be able to choose your puppy from the babies that are available at the time of your application approval.
Watching the Puppies Grow
Once a week we take puppy photos and update the website. Nonetheless, I usually post at least one adorable photo or video on our facebook page during the week. These consist of the consistent handling of the puppies, the pups playing with their “puppy gym,” or litter interaction.
Puppy Pick-Up
Our puppies are ready to go home between the ages of 9 and 12 weeks of age. We do not let pups go home before this time as our pups must go to the vet at 9 weeks of age for their full checkup. When looking at the available puppies the “ready-to-go” (RTG) date will be posted. This is the first day the puppy will be available for pick up. I usually have 3 days reserved and available for pick up. You must pick up your puppy on one of these days.
Exactly when the puppies go home is based on their breed and their size. Puppies cannot go home unless they are at least 2 lbs
No Additional Stops
The safety of our puppies and our property is important to consider when it is time to pick up your baby. When it is time to come out, we ask that before coming here you do not go to another breeder’s house; a sports park that allows dogs, a park/playground; PetsMart/Petco; a dog park; a humane society/shelter; around another unvaccinated dog/puppy, etc.
I know this may seem extreme, but we have more than just one puppy to worry about. We cannot risk communicable disease exposure to our pups or the property. Many doggie viruses can live in the ground for up to six years. Additionally, these viruses are transmittable through clothing or shoes if an affected puppy is handled, or you step in infected feces. Unfortunately, all viruses have a gestation period that is 3 to 10 days in length meaning that not all pups show infection even if they are carrying the disease. We do not want to risk exposure to our pups. We truly appreciate your understanding in this matter and hope that you can appreciate the fact that we care so much for our babies.
Visiting Puppies
For the safety of our puppies, we do not allow anyone to view the puppies in person before the pups are eight weeks of age. This helps to protect the puppies from outside viruses. The health and well-being of the puppies is our main concern. If you do not feel comfortable adopting a puppy without meeting him/her, you may need to find a breeder who is not as protective of their babies. Yes, there are breeders that allow visitors at 5 or 6 weeks of age after they give their puppies their first vaccine. However, according to the AVMA, combo vaccines given before the age of 8 weeks are of no benefit to the pup’s immune system. In actuality, some studies have shown that vaccines this young can stunt immune reaction due to the immature immune system of the puppy.
Before the 8 week vaccine, the antibodies provided through milk by their dam is what supports their immune system. Puppies in general do not have strong immune systems and we see no reason to tempt fate. Allowing people to come “look,” would result in a higher the chance of virus exposure. Without visitors, this risk is substantially reduced.
Browsing
Additionally, we do not allow browsers. This is also for the safety of our puppies. This means those people who want to come out and “look.” Unfortunately, we are not willing to put our puppies at risk because someone wants to come and see them. Additionally, most “lookers” are not ready to take a puppy home. Instead, they are considering, at some point, to bring home a puppy. Nonetheless, it is rarely the day they are visiting. This means more “lookers” per litter and causes risk to the pups.
In our opinion, this puts our puppies at a higher risk of exposure. We do not want our front door to be a revolving door to those who want to see and hold puppies. For that, people are going to have to go to a pet store or another breeder. I apologize if this ruffles anyone’s feathers, but our puppies and their health are our top priority. Those who take our puppies home expect us to to care for them. We would be doing these families a disservice if we risked the health of their puppy.
