What is a Guardian Home?

A guardian home is a family who will adopt a “pick of the litter” puppy to raise as their own with all the love and socialization needed for the dog to thrive. Blue Bay Labradoodles is looking for loving families who are interested in becoming pet owners for an Australian Labradoodle puppy to become a part of our program. In exchange, Blue Bay Labradoodles will retain breeding rights for the length of the Guardian Home contract or as the pup’s health allows.

As a guardian home, there are several qualifications a family must meet and agree to before adopting the puppy

• Must live within 30 miles or 1 hour of the breeder
• Provide a safe environment for the puppy, including the protection of a fenced in yard
• Provide an environment that fosters a well socialized, healthy puppy
• Be able to provide routine health maintenance for the dog, including but not limited to, vet exams, routine vaccinations per vet direction, heartworm and flea/tick prevention. Additionally guardian family agrees to provide routine care including grooming and feeding.  These expenses are covered exclusively by the guardian family.
• Must remain in close contact with the breeder when needed for sample collection, breeding related needs, etc
• Any breeding related costs/procedures/ testing are the sole responsibility of Blue Bay Labradoodles.
• Ensure that the puppy will not be left unattended/alone for extended periods of time
• Allow for visits to Blue Bay Labradoodles so the puppy can also be comfortable in our home
• Must communicate directly with breeder and agree to all aspects of guardian family contract (see below)

For Female Puppies:

• Pups will go home to their guardian families when they reach 8 weeks of age
• Guardians must update Blue Bay Labradoodles when first heat cycle and all subsequent heat cycles occur
• Females will typically have their first heat cycle at 6-8 months of age that lasts 14-21 days; these cycles will recur every 6-8 months
• Must notify the breeder immediately at the start of a heat cycle. Female must be available for necessary testing around heat cycles—usually within first 1-5 days of start of cycle
• When the puppy is ready to breed, she will come to our home typically for several days but may be up to 2 weeks. Pregnancy will be confirmed by either ultrasound or Xray.  The pup will then be returned to their family.  Gestation period is 8 weeks.
• One week prior to the due date for the litter, the female will return to our home to whelp (deliver) her puppies. She will stay with us until all the pups from the litter are weaned (typically at 4-5 weeks). The guardian family will of course be allowed to visit their dog during this time in our home when it is deemed safe.
• The amount of litters a female will have will be determined first and foremost on the dog’s health, but typically 4-5 litters in the first 6 years. This will depend on the needs of the breeding program and she may not have a litter every year.
• All other dogs in the home must be spayed/neutered
• Following the final litter, the dog will be spayed at our expense and full ownership will be transferred over to the Guardian Family.

For Male Puppies:

• Pups will go home with their guardian families at 8 weeks of age.
• Guardian family will be contacted when the puppy is needed for breeding or sample collection.
• Puppy will stay with Blue Bay Labradoodles for several days or up to 2 weeks during this process and then be returned to the guardian family.
• The male dog is not allowed to breed with other dogs aside from those determined by Blue Bay Labradoodles.
• All other animals in the home must be spayed.

Benefits of being a guardian home?

A guardian family has the privilege of adopting a high quality, “pick of the litter” puppy, to be their forever pet.  The puppy will undergo testing to ensure that it is maintaining high quality breeding standards for multi-generation Australian Labradoodles including but not limited to, genetic testing, screening for eyes, hips and elbow defects.  All of the breeding testing and/or stud fees for the female and male puppies are exclusively at the expense of Blue Bay Labradoodles.

If you are interested in being considered as a guardian family in our program, please fill out the application below.