What You Can Expect

A puppy from sound breeding stock. Our Labradors are raised in our home, very much a part of the family. We are committed to our breeding program and our puppies are our main focus for the first eight weeks of their lives. We select healthy sires and dams with sound bodies and even temperaments.

A puppy raised in our home, not a kennel. Our puppies are raised in our home, where they get used to the normal goings on of a busy family life, with exposure to a variety of noises, from the vacuum cleaner to the lawn mower and our Kubota tractor. Our puppies are given individual attention on a daily basis from birth and we give them socialization with a variety of people (from young children to the elderly) and with dogs. By the time our puppies go home, between 8 and 9 weeks, they have started their house-breaking and some basic obedience, they have been in crates and on car rides, and they have been exposed to dead birds. Given appropriate weather, they have been introduced to water too.

A puppy of the best possible match. We make placement, that we consider the best possible placement, to meet your desired traits in a puppy. Our goal is a placement in which you and your puppy will thrive. In order to assist in this placement, we require potential homes to complete an extensive questionnaire asking about their living situation, their experience in dogs, and what they are looking for in a Labrador Retriever.

Detailed puppy records. We keep detailed records on each of our puppies and we perform the Avidog Puppy Evaluation Test on each of our puppies between 7.5 and 8 weeks of age. We raise our puppies naturally, allow puppies to nurse as long as their mother allows, and we wean our puppies onto a raw diet (beginning on Day 35). We do a nomograph on our puppies’ mother in order to determine the optimal time to perform the first distemper-parvo vaccine on the puppies. We send home detailed information and strong recommendation for titers and vaccination. We worm our puppies. We have our puppies examined, at least twice, by our veterinarian and we provide written evaluations from our veterinarian on each puppy’s health. We have our puppies examined by a veterinary ophthalmologist.

We send our puppies home with a folder containing their AKC registration, detailed medical information and a copy of the veterinary evaluation, copies of health clearances for both the sire and dam, and a variety of other informative documents. This includes information on spaying/neutering, vaccinations, feeding for optimal health, etc.

Commitment to our puppies and owners. Our commitment to our puppies is life-long. If for any reason, and at any age, a home is no longer able to care for their dog, we are fully willing to take the dog back, without judgment.

A healthy puppy. Our puppies are healthy, active, well-built dogs, with playful and curious personalities. They like to explore their surroundings and have a moderate-high prey drive but, are trainable. Our puppies benefit from training that begins from an early age and continues into adulthood.

What We Expect

Informed homes. Potential homes should have researched and should understand the Labrador Retriever. Our owners should be people that enjoy being active with their dog, ready and willing to train their dog for obedience. Our owners should like the affection of a dog and not mind dog hair and shedding. Our owners should enjoy a dog with some drive and should possess a willingness to train their dog in order to control that drive, even when the dog is off-leash. Our owners should be willing to take the time and effort to work with their dog on a regular basis.

Owners ready and willing to train their puppy. Owners should set clearly defined boundaries and then train their dog to understand and live within those boundaries. Using balanced training methods, owners should train their dog to be well-behaved at home and in public. Owners should be active and participate in outdoor activities with their dog, and should be able to provide their dog with appropriate physical and mental challenges.

Open communication. Owner should be open and honest about their experience and ability in owning and handling a Labrador Retriever, eager and willing to learn and grow with their dog, understand that their dog is a dog, be willing to stay in touch with us on a regular basis, willing to make and follow through with commitments, willing to communicate openly and honestly, willing to ask for help, and open-minded about a more holistic approach to raising a dog.

Well-prepared homes. A potential home should be certain that the time is right to add a puppy to their family. We do not ship puppies as freight, so new owners MUST be able to come and get their puppy themselves. Owners should make their puppy a priority within their family and make a life-long commitment to that puppy. Owners should be prepared to feed their puppy a high-quality food and to provide all necessary health care for the life of their dog. And, owners should willingly perform genetic health testing and participate in testing that will evaluate their dog’s behavior.