Guardian Home Information
In an effort to ensure all of our dogs live a pampered life with their very own forever family, we have implemented our Guardian Home Program!
What is a Guardian Home?
Our Guardian Home Program allows for local families to have a “pick of the litter puppy”, or top notch adolescent/adult breeding dog for a deposit which will be returned to you at the retirement of the dog. The Guardian Home puppy or dog is part of the Guardian Home’s Family forever, while the breeding rights are retained by Cedar Creek Bernese and Bernedoodles for a set amount of time (each situation is slightly different so we prefer to work out specific details with each family on an individual basis). Once the Guardian Dog has completed his/her breeding career, he/she will be spayed or neutered at our expense, your Guardian adoption deposit is returned in full, and the dog will remain a forever pet of their Guardian Family!
Is there a cost involved to be a Guardian Home?
Yes, initially. We do not give our Guardian dogs or pups away. The cost of a Guardian Home dog/puppy requires a deposit of 1/2 of the standard pet price regardless of the age, gender, color, or size of the puppy/ dog. When the Guardian puppy/dog has completed its breeding career for us, we will refund the entire deposit back to our Guardian Family as a way of saying “thank you” for participating in our Guardian Home Program.
Our Guardian Home Families are responsible for the general routine veterinary care and wellness of the Guardian puppy/dog placed with them. This means annual vaccines, feeding a high quality dog food, grooming, monthly heart worm prevention, flea/tick prevention, training, regular exercise and socialization, and most importantly all the love and care and attention possible!
Any “breeding related” medical costs for the Guardian Dog are the expense of Cedar Creek Bernese and Bernedoodles. Our Guardian Homes are only responsible for routine maintenance and medical care just as they would if they had their own dog.
What are the benefits of being a Guardian Home?
A Guardian Family gets the very best that Cedar Creek has to offer in Bernese Mountain Dogs and Bernedoodles! This means that we choose our breeding stock based on the best qualities that are outlined in our breed standard with temperament of course coming first. Another wonderful benefit to our Guardian Families is that their Guardian dog or puppy will be completely health tested by 18 months of age (some tests may be done as early as 16 weeks of age) at the expense of Cedar Creek prior to entering our breeding program at no cost to the Guardian Family. Our Guardian Families get to enjoy the excitement of being a part of our breeding program, and seeing the offspring of their very own Guardian dog be placed with families across the country bringing others the same joy and happiness that they have received from their Guardian Dog!
- Cedar Creek will reimburse the Guardian Family for 2 6-week puppy kindergarten training classes such as offered at Pet Smart.
- Or you may take advantage of one of our Training Camps at a 50% discount, based on available space.
- A $500 thank you for each litter
What are the requirements to become a Guardian Home?
To be considered as a Guardian Home for one of our breeding dogs, we require that you live within 2 hours of our home, (we live in Paradise, CA). It is necessary that you have physical fencing to provide a safe and secure environment for the Guardian dog/puppy, own your own home, and have a schedule that will allow for your dog to not be left alone for extended periods of time. All dogs and pups placed in Guardian Families must be indoor dogs, and never be left outside unattended. Guardian Families must have reliable transportation, and a willingness to bring the Guardian dog/pup to us when needed throughout the year.
So, how does it work?
Most all of our dogs/pups available for our Guardian Program will be females. Occasionally we will have a male available as well!
If you are applying for a young adult, or mature Guardian dog, she will already come to you completely health tested, and may have just a couple more breedings for us (depending on her age and the number of litters she has had) prior to her being spayed and released solely to you as a forever pet. When the Guardian dog is in season, the Guardian Family is required to contact us immediately. An intact female usually has a heat cycle that will last between 14 and 21 days. 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 a couple weeks before her due date. At that time, the Guardian dog will come back to stay with us throughout her pregnancy, and will be returned once her pups are fully weaned approximately 7 weeks later. Guardian Families are welcomed and encouraged to visit with scheduled appointments while their Guardian Dog is at Cedar Creek.
If you are applying for a Guardian Home puppy, the age of the puppy can vary. During the year and a half, Cedar Creek will have her health testing completed. Once we receive all of the results from her health testing, we are then able to assess whether or not she will enter our breeding program. If for any reason we decide not to breed the Guardian Puppy placed with you (this is a decision solely made by Cedar Creek) we will then pay to spay the Guardian puppy at no cost to you, return your deposit and she will remain a forever family pet with her Guardian Family.
If you are receiving a Guardian Home Puppy, we ask for monthly photos and updates during the first year so that we can watch her develop, and update our website. We also will require a visit to our Guardian Family’s home every few months during the first year to assess the Guardian Puppy, as well as build a relationship with her for the future. Occasionally, we will ask our Guardian Families to bring the puppy to us for a visit so that she can get comfortable with our home for when she will be here with us in the future having babies.
How many litters will a Guardian Female produce?
Each dog is individually assessed before determining their required litters. Most of our Guardian dogs will have around 4 litters for us (this depends whether you have an adult that has already had litters or a puppy entering our breeding program). The health and well being of our breeding dogs is a priority to us. Occasionally we may decide to have fewer litters if we have accomplished our goals in development of our Guardian dog in a shorter period of time. Again, this is determined by Cedar Creek.
If you are interested in applying to be a Guardian Family please take the time to fill out puppy application first, and we are happy to contact you to discuss Guardian Home opportunities available!
PLEASE NOTE: If you have inquired about our Guardian Home Program and have not yet taken the time to submit an application, we are more than happy to respond to your inquiry once we have received your application provided that you meet the criteria to become a guardian family for one of our precious dogs.
Unfortunately we are not flexible with the criteria required to become a guardian family. In an effort to allow us to focus the majority of our time on our puppies, we ask that you please refrain from inquiring if your family does not meet the full requirements to participate in the Guardian Program.