Guardian Home Program for Bernedoodles & Goldendoodles

Our Guardian Home Program is designed to place our top-quality breeding dogs in loving, forever homes while allowing us to continue producing exceptional Bernedoodle and Goldendoodle puppies.

Guardian home family with a Goldendoodle breeding dog participating in a North Carolina guardian program for health-tested future breeding dogs

Guardian Program Overview

As a Guardian home, you receive a pick-of-the-litter puppy at no cost, and the dog lives with you as part of your family for the entirety of their life. While you provide the loving home, we retain breeding rights for a set period of time. This typically begins at sexual maturity and ends once the female has whelped a predetermined number of litters, or the male reaches a certain age.

Each Guardian dog contract is unique, but it usually consists of 2–4 litters for females, depending on what we are working toward in our breeding program and how the female responds during and after whelping.

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How the Guardian Program Works

Our Guardians are responsible for the dog’s daily care and overall well-being, including regular health maintenance, annual veterinary exams, vaccines, flea and tick prevention, heartworm medication, food, grooming, and anything else associated with raising a happy, healthy dog.

We cover all breeding-related expenses, including genetic health testing and reproductive care. Once the dog has passed genetic testing, they are officially added to our breeding program.

We carefully decide when and to whom each female will be bred. She is returned to us around the 10th day of her heat cycle for approximately one week, and then she is returned to her Guardian family. The female will come back to us again 7–10 days prior to her due date and will stay with us for approximately 5–7 weeks while she whelps and raises her puppies.

After her puppies are fully weaned, she will return home to her Guardian family.

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After the Breeding Program

When your dog has completed her breeding obligations, we cover the cost of spaying, and she returns home to you permanently to enjoy the life you have given her since she was a puppy.

Important Considerations for Guardian Families

There are several important things Guardian families should consider before applying.

Guardians of females will need to manage heat cycles and prevent exposure to intact males. You will need to learn to recognize the signs of a heat cycle and be willing to communicate, cooperate, and coordinate closely with us to ensure a successful and responsible breeding.

Clear communication and reliability are essential to the success of this program.

Guardian family embracing their Bernedoodle breeding dog, illustrating the close partnership between guardian homes and responsible Bernedoodle breeders

Guardian Home Requirements

To qualify as a Guardian home, families must meet the following requirements:

✓ Guardians must keep the dog on a leash or in a safely confined area at all times. Guardians must be willing to provide basic obedience training and structure. Guardians must ensure the puppy is well socialized with adults, children, and other animals.

✓ GUARDIANS MUST PROVIDE APPROPRIATE VETERINARY AND EMERGENCY CARE WHEN NEEDED.

✓ Guardians must feed a breeder-approved diet and maintain the dog’s overall health and condition.

✓ Guardians must be able to identify and notify us immediately when a female begins her heat cycle and must never allow a female in heat to be around intact males.

✓ Guardians must live within a reasonable driving distance of Valdese, North Carolina, to allow for timely coordination during breeding and whelping.

Apply to Become a Guardian Home →

Young guardian family member holding a Goldendoodle breeding dog, demonstrating how guardian homes help raise well-socialized dogs in loving family environments

Why We Offer a Guardian Program

The Guardian Program may seem like it has a lot of moving parts, but in reality, it is a simple and highly rewarding partnership between breeder and family.

If we truly believe in avoiding puppy mills and raising dogs in a humane, ethical way, then the Guardian Home Program is one of the best ways to ensure our breeding dogs are raised in loving, family environments—not kennels.

This program allows us to continue producing healthy, well-tempered Bernedoodle and Goldendoodle puppies for families, including those looking for a lifelong companion or even a future service dog, while ensuring every breeding dog lives a full and happy life in a home.

It has been an incredibly successful program for both our families and our breeding program, and we are proud to offer it.

Apply to Become a Guardian Home →

Guardian Home Application

Please review our Guardian Home Requirements above before completing the application below.

Once you complete the application we will be in touch with you within a few days. Thank you!