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Guardian DOGS

sharing the joy

We absolutely love our dogs, and it’s important to us that our breeding dogs all be a part of a family, and never out in a kennel. As our breeding program grows, we’re able to do this with our guardian home program. Families who are accepted into this program have a great opportunity to own a Lewis Manor Labradoodle at a fraction of the cost. And in exchange, our dogs are all loved members of great local families, living pampered lives!

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A guardian family takes a puppy/dog home as their own to be a permanent member of their family. They agree to raise, train, and care for a Lewis Manor breeding Labradoodle throughout their breeding career. In return for providing a home for one of our breeding dogs, ownership is transferred to the guardian family once the dog is finished with their breeding career. The dog becomes part of the guardian family, and only comes back to Lewis Manor when health testing needs to be done, when it’s time to breed, or for females, when she’s ready to have her litter of puppies. She stays with us for about 8 weeks to have her puppies, then returns to her guardian home. Lewis Manor pays for all breeding related costs (health testing, sonograms, etc.) and the guardian family is responsible for all normal pet costs (annual check ups and Vet visits, vaccines, heartworm, flea prevention, food, etc.). 

  • The puppy/dog is pick of the litter and is a training school graduate ($10,500 value). The cost is $1,000. Once the dog is bred and successfully raises/sires a litter, the original $1,000 is refunded to the guardian. If the dog is never used, or found to be infertile, no further compensation is made and the guardian received a deep discount on a trained dog.
  • Guardian families get the best Australian Labradoodles Lewis Manor has to offer, as we choose our breeding stock to have the best qualities, conformation, and temperament!

In order to keep our breeding program sustainable we use "Guardian Homes" that foster our dogs that are in our breeding program.

Currently we are placing these puppies into what we call "temporary guardians" first. This means that you foster a potential breeding dog from the time they are 8 weeks old until we can health test them around 4 months old. 

If we decide not to keep them for our breeding program we take them back and put them through our training program and would then plan them as a trained dog, therapy dog, or possibly a service dog. 

However if they do pass health testing and we decide to keep them in the program, the temporary guardian will have the first opportunity to keep them as a permanent guardian home. 

  • Prefer you live within 1 hour of Lewis Manor. Sometimes exceptions can be made. If you are close to Central New York don't hesitate to reach out. 
  • Prefer homes have a fenced yard.
  • Guardian families must be willing to feed the premium food we feed our breeding dogs.
  • Provide basic obedience for your Lewis Manor puppy, either in a group session or private trainer and ensure the puppy is well socialized.
  • Someone must be home during the day or have a schedule that does not require the puppy to be left alone for long periods of time.
  • Keep open communication with Lewis Manor and provide regular updates and photos as the puppy grows so we can update our web site.
  • Must be willing to follow Lewis Manor's recommendations for the dog’s veterinary care, such as vaccines, medications, etc. and be willing to transport dog to us or to our reproductive vets for appointments.
  • Willing and able to transport dog to Lewis Manor for health testing, breeding, and whelping.
  • Keep the dog professionally groomed.
Q. How often do females come into heat?
A. About every 6-8 months.
Q. How long does heat last?
A. heat cycle typically lasts 18 days.
 
Q. When will her first heat be?
A. Anywhere from 6 - 24 months. Every dog is different and can vary depending on size. Smaller doodles typically have their first heat sooner while standard labradoodles have their first heat later.
 
Q. How will I know she's in heat?
A. At first, vaginal discharge is blood-tinged (In the winter, you may notice this in the snow outside where she pees, or you'll notice a drop of blood on your floor) and the vulva is swollen.
 
Q. Is it messy?
A. Typically you may notice a drop of blood on the floor here or there. For tile or wood floors, this is easy to clean up. If you have carpeting, you may want to use a doggie diaper. Each female is different but most keep themselves quite clean. Their bed can get stained while they're in heat so you may want to put a towel over it.
 
Q. Does she have a bloody discharge the whole 18 days?
A. No. She will likely have a bloody discharge for the first week but then when the female is receptive to males, her vaginal discharge decreases in amount and is straw-colored.
 
Q. Will I have to worry about her getting bred by other male dogs?
A. A female in heat can attract male dogs by her scent so, it's important to not let her outside alone unsupervised while she's in heat, even if you have a fenced yard.
 
Q. Will she be sad to come home and leave her puppies after she's done raising them?
A. While mama dogs are very attached to their puppies when they're born, and rarely leave their whelping pen, they start to wean them naturally when the puppies are about 6 weeks old. Slowly they nurse them less and less and start to become more and more interested in getting out and about for periods of time away from their puppies. By the time the puppies are 8 weeks old, the mama dog is ready to see them go! 🙂 She's happy to be back home with her family again.
 
Q. Will she be confused/miss us when we have to bring her to have her puppies?
A. Our guardian dogs love people and are happy to be here with us and also having the opportunity to play with the other dogs here. We stay familiar to them by seeing them for vet appointments, and seeing them each summer for our guardian BBQs. We make sure she feels as at home here as possible and has a comfortable, relaxing setting to have her puppies. Once they're born, her puppies are all she will think about and will want to be with them constantly. So, no she won't be sitting around feeling sad about where she's at. 🙂
 
Q. Can we visit while our guardian dog is at Lewis Manor with puppies?
A. Yes, absolutely!  Being part of the guardian program is an exciting way to be part of our breeding program.  You'll get to see your guardian dog's puppies go on to be placed with families who will get to experience the same love and companionship your guardian dog brought to your family!
 
Q. How many litters would a female have?
A. All of our females are retired at 6 years of age, so could have about 4 litters.
Available Now!

Miriam

Parents
Lewis Manor's Olive You and Lewis Manor's Yoshi
Size
Standard
Coat
Chocolate Fleece
DOB
10.13.2023
Ready
Now
Available Now!

Jasper

Parents
Lewis Manor's Panda Parti "Maggie" and Moonlit Acres Iron Man "Kona"
Size
Medium
Coat
Chocolate Fleece
DOB
10.15.2023
Ready
Now
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I’m interested

what next?

Fill out our application and state in the comments that you are interested in the guardian program. We'll contact you to discuss any further questions you may have, or questions we may have for you. We'll set up a time for you to come visit and meet us and our dogs. We'll set up a home visit where we'll bring the potential dog/puppy along. If all goes well, and a good match can be made, we'll set up a time to either drop the puppy off to you or for you to pick the puppy up to come be a new member of your family!

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