What is an Australian Labradoodle?  How are they different from Labradoodles?

A labradoodle is a cross between a lab and a poodle. They tend to be sweet, loving and dedicated to their families. As with labs, they often need to warm up to new people before interacting. Their coats can range from being more like a lab’s to more like a poodle’s. The Australian Labradoodle breed was developed in the 1970s in Australia in an attempt to produce service dogs for people with dog allergies. Australian Labradoodles are a cross between labs, poodles, and Cocker Spaniels. The cocker was introduced to improve the coat quality of the labradoodle. ALDs are very social dogs. They LOVE their people above all else, but they also tend to love all people. They’re known to be intuitive and loyal.

How much do Australian Labradoodles cost?

Our early generation Australian Labradoodles cost $2700. Our multigen ALDs cost $2850. These prices are regardless of sex or coat color.

What age range are your available Australian Labradoodles?

Our puppies go home when they’re 8 weeks old. We may occasionally have a puppy that is a little older than that.

How big can a full-grown Australian Labradoodle get?

• Standard ALDs have a height of 21-24 inches at the shoulder and weigh 50-65 lbs.
• Medium sized ALDs have a height of 17-20 inches at the shoulder, and weigh 30-45 lbs. Currently, our dogs will mature from medium to small standard sizes.
• We plan to eventually develop a line of minis. Minis measure 14-16 inches at the shoulder, and weigh 15-25 lbs.

How long do Australian Labradoodles live?

ALDs tend to be healthy and long-lived. It is not unusual for them to live 12-15 years or longer.

Is there a big difference between male and female Australian Labradoodles as far as behavior?

There really isn’t a huge difference in the behavior of males and females. Sometimes, females may want a little more alone time. Males might be a little more laid back. However, there really are no drastic differences and every dog is an individual with an individual personality. They are both loving and nurturing.

Are Australian Labradoodles non-allergenic?

Australian Labradoodles tend to be hypo-allergenic. There really is no such thing as non-allergenic. People can be allergic to all kinds of things, including sunlight in extreme cases. Because Australian Labradoodles are low to non-shedding, people with allergies tend to do very well with them as there is less dander around the home.

Do Australian Labradoodles shed?

Australian Labradoodles are known to be low to non-shedding.

What do Australian Labradoodles eat?

We highly recommend Life’s Abundance dog food. It is made in small batches and shipped quickly so that it arrives at your home fresh. It is an extremely high-quality food and formulated to perfectly meet your dog’s biological needs.

How should I train my Australian Labradoodle?

Australian Labradoodles should be trained with positive reinforcement techniques. They are eager to please their humans, thus relatively easy to train. We recommend a lifetime membership to Baxter & Bella. Use the code SWEETBREEZE on the Baxter & Bella website for a 25% discount on the listed price. This training protocol is cheaper than an in-person puppy kindergarten class and they offer training from puppy kindergarten through the Canine Good Citizen test. They even have a course to help prepare your whole family for the arrival of your new family member. We simply can’t recommend them enough.

Do you recommend crate training?

We recommend crate training. The crate will keep you puppy safe whenever you’re away from him/her. The crate should never be used as a punishment. It should be a place the dog looks forward to spending time. Offer treats in the crate, and even a chew toy. Cover the floor in soft “nesting” materials, like blankets and/or doggy beds. Puppies should not be confined to a crate for more than a couple hours, except overnight. Here’s how we train our dogs to love their crates. Spend some time during the day letting the puppy go in and out of the crate. Place treats on the crate’s floor to entice the puppy to enter. Let it out when it wants out. Always praise the puppy for going into the crate. Eventually, when it enters, close the door for just a few minutes and then open the door when the puppy wants out. Remember to praise it when it goes in and provide tasty treats in the crate. On the first night home, place the crate on a table at eye level to your pillow. You want the puppy to see you so he/she knows they’re not alone and where you can reach your fingers in to calm it, if needed. By the second or third night, your puppy will likely be totally comfortable in the crate and you can place the crate on the floor next to your bed. The crate ensures the puppy isn’t getting into trouble during the middle of the night when you can’t supervise it. This protects your property from being chewed, and ensures the puppy is safe from swallowing anything dangerous, chewing on electrical cords, etc. Our adult dogs still use their crates. We leave the doors open and they will go to their crates when they want to be alone or have quiet time. They also still choose to sleep in their crates in our room every night.

What are different coats an Australian Labradoodle may have?

ALDs have two types of allergy friendly coats: fleece and wool. Fleece is soft and wavy. Wool is soft and feels like lamb’s wool.

What kind of maintenance (grooming & Bathing) comes with owning an Australian Labradoodle?

We recommend a thorough brushing and combing every other day. Be sure to comb down to the skin to avoid matting. The longer the coat, the more involved maintaining it will be. If you like the long fluffy ALD look, you will have to have your dog groomed every couple months. If you keep it shorter, you can go longer between grooming sessions. You can take your dog to be professionally groomed, or you can learn to groom it at home.

Do Australian Labradoodles make good service animals?

Australian Labradoodles were originally bred as service animals for those with allergies. They make wonderful service animals! While every dog has its own personality, many of them have the temperament to be used as service animals. There are many Australian Labradoodles who serve as Emotional Support Animals, Therapy Dogs, and in various service animal roles (for example, diabetic alert and seizure alert).

Will Australian Labradoodles be alright around my younger kids?

Australian Labradoodles tend to love children and do very well with kids of all ages. It’s just as important to teach your young child to be respectful and gentle with your dog as it is to teach your dog to be respectful and gentle with your children. It’s not uncommon for our dogs to want to make a bee line toward any child they see when out on a walk. As a general rule, we recommend never leaving your young child alone with any dog. Any dog will try to protect its life. A common scenario for dog bites is as follows. Your dog is in a deep sleep on the family room floor. Your two-year child jumps on it, wanting to play with their best friend. Your dog doesn’t know a family member just landed on it. It just knows it’s being attacked, while in a deep sleep, and before realizing your toddler just wants to play, your beloved dog lashes out to protect its life. Again, constant supervision between the family dog and young children is always necessary, no matter how much they love each other.

What is the process to get a puppy from you? Can I reserve a puppy?

If you are interested in getting a puppy from us, fill out an Adoption Application. A link can be found on our Puppies page. Once we approve you, you can reserve a puppy by placing a non-refundable deposit. This deposit is applied to the total cost of the puppy. Litters tend to be reserved before they are born. Puppy selection happens when the puppies are about 7 weeks old. They can go home when they are 8 weeks old. Please see more details on our Puppies page.

What do we receive with our puppy?

Your puppy will be sent home with a blanket or towel that smells like its mom and/or littermates, a toy, its health/vaccination record, a sample of its food, a free month of pet insurance, a folder with information and instructions, and a life-time of support from us. Your puppy will be microchipped and up-to-date on vaccinations.

Are your Australian labradoodles potty trained?

We honesty believe it is impossible for an 8-week old puppy to be potty trained. Their little bladders are simply too small to hold urine for very long. Having said that, we train our puppies to use pee pads. Dogs like to keep their den clean and puppies do learn to move to their potty area to urinate and poop instead of in their play and sleep areas. About a week before they go home, they are introduced to our doggy door. Our adult dogs show them how to use it and encourage them to do their business outside. These steps should facilitate your attempts to housebreak your puppy. Please know that accidents WILL occur. They are still babies. Like a human baby, they don’t have complete control of their bodies yet.. Yelling at your puppy or using negative reinforcement techniques while housebreaking will make your job harder as the puppy, in trying to please you, will learn to “hide” its pee and poop where you won’t encounter it. That usually means in a corner or behind furniture. You need to teach your puppy how to get your attention to get it outside. Please see Baxter & Bella for great potty-training ideas.

Do you provide a health guarantee?

Yes. We offer a 2-year health warranty against genetic defects. We’ll extend that warranty to 3 years for those families choosing to feed their puppy Life’s Abundance dog food.

How much exercise do Australian Labradoodles need?

ALDs are moderately active. They love to go on a walk or two during the day. They love to play fetch and run around the yard. They love hiking and doing activities with their families. Inside, they like to snuggle (as long as you’ve provided adequate activity) and relax with their humans.

Can we stop by and visit your dogs and puppies?

We don’t allow visits with puppies prior to go-home day. Unfortunately, diseases like parvo are prevalent in our area. We don’t want to expose our puppies to anything their little immune systems can’t handle, so we limit exposure to unknowns as much as possible. We socialize our puppies with people we know and trust to follow our strict sanitation protocols. We will provide our adopting families with lots of pictures and videos of the puppies as they grow so they get a feel for how the puppies interact and their individual personalities. We feel our families learn more about the puppies this way than they do with a 20-minute visit to our home.