Now accepting applications!

We currently have one adult we are looking to place in a Guardian Home. We will also have two puppies looking for Guardian Homes in mid April.

Info about available Guardian puppies/dogs can be found at the bottom of this page.

WHAT IS A GUARDIAN HOME?

We believe that all our parent breeding dogs deserve a great home, family life, and top quality care! For this reason, we limit the number of dogs we have living full time in our home. We also limit the number of litters our mamma dogs have, and most are retired before turning 4 years old. This means that in order to continue our breeding program and raising amazing puppies, we have to have a whole new set of parent dogs about every 2-3 years! So in our program there are current parent dogs, as well as puppies growing up to take their place when they retire! When possible, we believe that it is always best for the dogs to be with their forever family right from the start, instead of having them with us and then retiring them to new families as adults. In order to continue our breeding program while also providing all these things to our beloved dogs, we utilize a Guardian Home program.

This program is used by many breeders. Summarized – Guardian Families get a top quality Bernedoodle for free/discounted as their pet, while we retain breeding rights. We work with our Guardian Homes using a contract and provide support and guidance all along the way, staying in contact through the year. At the end of the Guardian Home contract, the dog is spayed/neutered and full ownership is transferred to the Guardian family. 

The parent dog gets to be a companion/pet and have all the happiness of being part of a family – and amazing puppies get raised! We are very selective and only highly qualified families are approved to provide homes for our breeding dogs. Our breeding program depends on the quality of care provided by our Guardian families – we expect the best home life possible for our dogs. 

HOW IT WORKS- the details

Our Guardian Home Program works in two phases- Prep Puppy and Parent Dog

PREP Puppy PHASE

• A puppy of our choice is held back from a litter to become one of our Prep Puppies

• Applications are opened to families interested in joining our Guardian Home Program

• If your family is chosen, you will sign the Guardian Home contract and pay a $2,500 fee to have the Prep Puppy join your family (more about the fee below).

• Heath testing appointments are completed as Puppy reaches the appropriate ages.

• If the Prep Puppy passes all our heath and temperament requirements, the Prep Puppy fee is refunded in full and they are officially a Parent Dog in our program!

• If for any reason we deem the Prep Puppy not a good fit for future parenthood in our program, the Prep Puppy fee acts as the purchase price of the puppy. At this time full ownership is signed over to the Guardian family and the Guardian Home contract terminated.

PARENT DOG PHASE

• Health testing has been done, and the Prep Puppy is now officially a future Parent Dog!

• Female Parent Dogs stay at our house for a couple days during their heat cycle to be bred. They return again when their litter is due to whelp and raise their puppies at our house. They stay with us until puppies are weaned (about 7-8 weeks). Females will have a litter about every 6-10 months. The Guardian Home contract is for a maximum 4 litters, and then they are retired.

• Male Parent Dogs come to us when a female that he is needed for stud is in heat. Depending on location, he is normally picked up and brought back home the same day. Males are part of our Guardian Home Program until about 3 years old.

• When a Parent Dog officially retires, we pay to spay/neuter them. Their working days are over, and they finish out their long life as your beloved pet!

basic Guardian home REQUIREMENTS

• Guardians must live in a home with a fully fenced yard.

• Guardians must have prior dog experience.

• Guardians must live within a reasonable driving distance from breeder- no farther south than Castle Rock or north than Fort Collins.

• Guardians must properly socialize, crate train, and train basic obedience.

• Guardians provide appropriate routine and emergency veterinary care, at their own expense (breeder covers all breeding related costs, health testing, and vaccinations while in program).

• Guardians must have the dog professionally groomed every 4-6 weeks, and maintain grooming at home so the dog does not become matted.

• Guardians must feed the dog breeder’s chosen food.

• Guardians must be able to manage having a female in heat in their home.

• Guardians must communicate, cooperate and coordinate with the breeder.

• Guardians must be willing to allow our vet to visit their home for appointments if needed.

looking for guardian homes

EMAIL TO APPLY: INFO@COLORADOFAMILYDOODLES.COM