Our Guardian Programme


Our guardian programme

Thank you for your interest in our guardian program.

Guardian Families are an important part of our program here at Pine Valley Labradoodles and we select our families very carefully!  We strive to provide each of our breeding dogs in our program a wonderful life in a loving home.  Labradoodles are very social animals who adore their families.  They want to be with their families and involved in their daily lives and live in a nurturing, loving environment.   

Benefits of Being a Guardian Home

A Guardian Family obtains the very best multi-gen Labradoodles that Pine Valley Labradoodles has to offer. This means that we choose the pick of the litter based on the best qualities. Our Guardian Families get to enjoy the excitement of being a part of our breeding programme, and seeing the offspring of their very own Guardian dog be placed with families around the country bringing others the same joy and happiness that they have received from their Guardian Dog. 

Costs of Being a Guardian Home

Guardians will pay for normal pet ownership costs such as: routine vet care, premium dog food, dog training, pet supplies and grooming. Costs associated with breeding are covered by Pine Valley Labradoodles. In addition, we  will cover the cost of spay/neuter surgery once the dog’s breeding career ends.

Responsibilities of Guardian Homes

In exchange for receiving a puppy for free, we expect you to fulfill the following list of responsibilities:

  1. Guardians must be able to provide a stable and loving home for this special pet.
  2. You must live within 3 hours drive of our home in Gisborne.
  3. You must have a physically fenced yard to provide a safe and secure environment for the puppy/dog.
  4. Guardians must train or have someone else train their dog to follow basic commands.  
  5. The dog must be provided plenty of opportunities for exercise, play and socialization.
  6. Guardians must have reliable transportation and be willing to bring dog to us at various times for breeding related appointments.
  7. Feed a premium dog food that we approve and keep your dog at a healthy weight.
  8. Cover basic pet costs related to owning a dog including annual vaccines, grooming, training, emergency medical treatment while in your care, if needed, etc.
  9. Have your dog groomed every three to four months.


Difference between being a Guardian to Girls vs. Boys

If you are applying for a Guardian Home puppy, it will most likely come to you somewhere between 8 to 16 weeks of age.

The health and well being of our dogs is always our top consideration. Each of our dogs have multiple vet appointments to evaluate them each year that they are breeding to be sure that our dogs are in optimal health. 

We realize guardian families have a tremendous sacrifice to make, given the female breeding dog must be returned to us to be bred, deliver and wean her babies before being returned back to your family (approximately 7 weeks). Once the Guardian dog goes into heat, the Guardian family is required to contact us immediately. It is imperative that we know the exact day that her heat starts. A heat cycle will last between 14 and 28 (21 is average) days but there is only about a 5 day window of when the breeding must take place. During this time, we will need access to her for breeding related appointments. Once she has been bred, she will remain with her Guardian Family until one week before her due date. At that time, the Guardian dog will come back to stay with us throughout the rest of her pregnancy, and will be returned once her pups are fully weaned.

The breeding career of female dogs starts at approximately 2 years of age and she will be bred for the last time prior to turning 5. Our girls can have a maximum of 4 litters of puppies unless health circumstances cause it to be less.

Most all of our dogs/pups for our Guardian Program will be females, but occasionally we will have a male available. Our boys will generally “work” at your home (studs perform much better in their own environment with no new distractions) or if necessary, have much shorter stays at our home, usually no more than 3-4 days.  Boys can begin their breeding career once they are a year old and can continue indefinitely but our Stud Contract is set up for 10 years. As you can imagine, his job is much simpler and requires less demands but it will last for a longer period of time.

If you are interested in being interviewed and/or wish to learn more about this programme, please begin the process by getting in touch via our contact page.