Puppy Care
Excellent genetics are certainly important when it comes to choosing your new pup. However, how that puppy is raised during its early developmental weeks is equally important when it comes to bringing home a confident, attentive, capable puppy. In order to produce those traits, our Bernedoodle puppies are carefully raised following a well-structured curriculum until they head off to their new homes.
We go above and beyond most breeders to ensure our puppies experience everything they can to prepare for any future lifestyle. Every litter we produce is raised in our home, where we can provide continuous care. We have thoroughly researched and analyzed components of multiple breeding protocols to build our unique program and provide our pups with the most well-rounded education we possibly can. We have invested in and incorporated many techniques from both The Ultimate Badass Breeder's Guide and Puppy Culture, as well as some techniques from Avidog and The Rule of Seven as well. We believe the unique program we have created using these fantastic resources enables us to produce truly exceptional puppies ready for any adventure. Please keep reading to learn lots about how our Bernedoodles are raised.
All of our litters are born in our spare bedroom, which we've converted into our puppy nursery. I sleep right next to our puppies in our nursery every night for the first two weeks of their lives, so I hear every cry and movement those babies make. They are so fragile during their first few weeks of life, so it is important we stay close to detect and treat any signs of distress before they turn into an emergency situation.
The puppies stay in our bedroom for the first 3 weeks or so, where they develop basic skills like being handled, crawling and walking. We begin nail trims at 1 week of age, and we continue with nail trims weekly until they leave our care. We play classical music at a low volume to introduce sounds in a stress-free way once their ears open, and to help keep mom happy and relaxed.
During the puppies' last few weeks in our care, frequent handling of each puppy continues of course. We also start introducing more challenging stimuli and activities to help them learn in a safe, controlled setting before heading off to their new homes. We begin crate training around 6 weeks of age. We start by breaking the litter up into smaller groups for short time periods, with groups of 3, then 2. Once they're ready to spend some time on their own, we then introduce the crate and break it down into 30 minute intervals to start, and gradually stretch it out to 3-4 hours by the time they reach 8 weeks of age.
Although we work hard to set a solid crate training and potty training foundation, we in no way guarantee they will be crate/house trained once they come home between 8 and 9 weeks of age. They are young and new to life, and a big transition like moving does cause some regression in their training, so all puppies do require ongoing effort and practice to solidify those habits. You will receive a puppy training information booklet to provide you with lots of tips for making that transition into your home a much easier one.
Puppy Temperament Evaluations
Around 7 weeks of age, we will now be conducting personality/temperament testing for each of our puppies before any puppy selections take place. This test will help us gather as much information as possible about our puppies, so their new families can feel confident and informed when making their selections. We will evaluate our puppies on important traits like energy, assertiveness, confidence, human focus, etc so we can both honour our puppies and help each new owner select the pup that best suits their wants and needs.