GUARDIAN PROGRAM
FAQ’s about our Guardian ProgramFAQ’s about our Guardian Program
What are upfront costs for a Guardian?
Males have an upfront cost of $250
Females have an upfront cost of $500.
Where can I live and still be in your guardian program?
We ask that you live within a three-hour drive of Ruston Louisiana.
What guidelines do I have to follow when raising the puppy or dog?
The family needs to feed Diamond puppy/diamond naturals or food suggested by the breeder only.
We feed foods that will not cause health issues down the road, ie heart or liver failure, cancer/tumors or allergies, etc. The food is easily found at most food stores or online.
We ask the family to use Bravecto ONLY for flea and tick prevention as it has been approved for use in breeding dogs. We prefer the use of Proheart for heartworm prevention but will accept others if needed.
If the dog becomes sick or injured, we need the family to notify us right away so we are involved in all decisions regarding the treatment of the dog. In many cases, we can save the family a lot of money if it is a simple issue, and in other situations, the treatment may need to be specific if the dog is going to be bred soon, or is pregnant.
We prefer a home with a fenced in yard but will consider those without so long as adequate exercise and stimulation is achieved.
We prefer a home with no other intact dogs as to avoid any accidental breeding a, or fighting
We ask the family to practice the safe handling of the dog. Do not leave the dog outside if they are not at home. Don't let the dog sit in the back of an open pickup. Use a leash in public. Provide basic obedience training so the dog has manners. All these things should be done to protect and to provide a healthy, confident dog
The guardian home is responsible either for the transportation of the dog to us or arranging for us to pick up the dog for breeding or having litters. Also for at 12-24 months of age or for the initial health testing.
At what age do you start breeding the dog?
We will usually breed females on their second heat, which usually starts between 16 and 18 months typically. On our giant breed babies we wait until 2 years of age.
We usually do not breed males until over 12 months old.
How long is our Guardian Pet with you when you breed?
As soon as the family is aware the dog is in heat in a cycle she will be bred, we will have them arrange to have her here or pick her up by about day 5 - 7 of the heat cycle. She will remain with us for about 7-10 days and then return home.
A male dog will be in our home for about 5-10 days for mating
How long is a female pregnant?
Dogs are pregnant for 63 days give or take 4-5 days.
How long do you wait between breedings?
She will not be bred before 12 months of age or after 5 years. Breedings are done every 6 months (may vary due to cycle).
What happens when she is ready to have her puppies?
You can bring your girl to us 10 days before she is due so she can settle in. We will whelp and raise the pups and mom will come back home when the pups are between 6 and 7 weeks old.
Can we visit her when she has the puppies at your house?
No visitors are allowed due to the risk of bringing in a lethal virus (Parvo) to the pup. The mom usually is VERY focused on her babies for the first two weeks after she has her pups. We are willing to provide photos and video chat when we are able.
Does this negatively affect the dog emotionally to go from the guardian's home to the breeder's home?
No.
Remember they will already “know” us from the times we have taken them for testing or when we have “dog sat” for you. We try very hard to give them so much attention and love the first couple of days that it is a pleasant and enjoyable experience for them.
This is also important as everything the mother feels causes things to happen inside her body that can affect the babies. The less stressed and the more relaxed she is, the better it is for babies. So, it is very important that the guardian home not make the transition difficult for the dog.
If they act upset or nervous or sad about leaving her, she will feel that even more greatly and we need to make sure that doesn't happen. Bringing her and hanging out with her for an hour or so and just pretending like it's any other visit you'd make is very important.
What happens during pregnancy and what do I have to do differently with the dog?
Pregnancy is actually very easy.
The dog may act a little more tired, or not eat normally for a few weeks. In the last couple of weeks of pregnancy, she is usually becoming hungrier and sleeps more as time progresses. Otherwise, normal activity is typical and it is important to continue with walking the dog right up to the end. This helps during delivery.
Being in shape is always best. Normal play and romping and running during the first half of pregnancy is great.
No chemicals may be given during pregnancy. If there is an illness or injury we ask to be involved in determining how she is treated.
What happens if the puppy gets sick or injured while in the guardian's home's care?
While the dog is in your care and home, any illness or injury that happens is your financial responsibility, just as it would be if you had a non-guardian pet.
We need to be involved in knowing what is going on and determining medications, but the family is responsible for those expenses.
We have your dog’s best interest at heart so it is good to have us to consult with. If you are negligent and your dog is lost or dies when in your care we will ask for you to be responsible for our financial loss. If your dog is injured or dies and can no longer participate in the program and you were being responsible we will not hold you liable for the loss. Bad things can happen to anybody.
What expenses do we pay for and what things does the breeder pay for?
The guardian home pays for any normal care items for the dog. Food, dishes, leashes, beds, normal vaccinations or wormings, toys, etc.
We pay for all expenses related to health testing for breeding purposes, all breeding expenses, and litter expenses.
How many litters do you usually breed before retiring the dog?
We contract for up to 5 litters. Sometimes we don’t breed at all. So the number of litters depends on each individual case. We consider a litter 2 or more pups so if a mom has only one pup we don’t count it as a litter. A female averages 4 litters in our program. If the puppies are of exceptional quality there could be 5 litters.
Who pays for the spay/neuter surgery?
We do. This is usually about 2 months after her last litter of puppies is weaned or for male dogs on or before their sixth birthday (usually before).
What happens if the dog doesn't pass a health test as you want them to for becoming a breeding dog?
Our standards are very high.
Remember, that breeding quality and pet quality are two different things.
Just because a dog may not be the best breeding candidate doesn't mean she/he isn’t the perfect pet. Your dog can pass all the tests and we still may decide to remove it from the program. We aren’t bashful about removing dogs from our program.
If we release your dog from the breeding program, we will spay/neuter your dog. You will still have gotten a quality dog for only the normal costs of having a pet.
What if I have a male guardian dog?
Male guardian dogs are usually used for breeding after 12-18 months. We ask that you make your dog available for breeding.
Most of our guardian boys aren’t used for breeding very often. Most of the time the dogs will need to be with us for 5-10 days each time we pick him up.
Where can I board my dog?
If you ever need boarding we would love the opportunity to watch your dog as long it fits in with our family schedule. It is always great to have the opportunity to play with one of the dogs we produced. We love the additional opportunity to interact with the dog and family.
What happens if we join the guardian home for a quality breeding dog but don’t intend to honor the breeding contract?
We make a great commitment emotionally and financially to our owners and guardian dogs.
We ask that you only enter into our guardian program if you are willing to make the same level of commitment to your dog and to us.
Unfortunately, we have been forced to put a penalty for those who break our contract as we find some want the discounted dog but have no intention of honoring the contract. We want to work with you and for this to be a win, win, win for all involved.
We work hard to select the best of the best of our dogs for our guardian homes. We have a financial penalty to discourage those that would want to get a discounted dog and break the contract by using the dog for their own breeding program.
If you are willing to make an honest commitment to us and our breeding program we will be very flexible and will do all we can to make this program work for you and your dog.
We don't want to be controlling or intrusive into a family’s life.
We consider our dogs and owners like extended family and enjoy the extra interaction we have with them in the guardian program. We are very fair and reasonable and want to work with you to make this a happy situation for all of us.
We hope that you will consider partnering with us.
PLEASE CONTACT US TO REVIEW OUR GUARDIAN HOME CONTRACT
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