About Australian Labradoodles
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The Australian Labradoodle originated as a breed sometime in the 1970’s, when the Royal Guide Dog Association of Australian began working to develop an allergy free, no-shed dog, with an easygoing, friendly disposition, that was suitable to serve as a guide dog. A variety of different breeds were used early on in the fine-tuning of the breed, but eventually the originators settled on a mix of three distinct breeds: the Labrador Retriever; Poodle; and Cocker Spaniel.
We refer to the initial generation of cross-bred dogs as F1–a common term used to denote first generation cross-breeding. A multigenerational Australian Labradoodle–what we breed–is a dog that has had at least four generations of breeding an Australian Labradoodle (a dog that has the Labrador Retriever, Poodle, and Cocker Spaniel DNA) to another Australian Labradoodle. In effect, a multigenerational Australian Labradoodle is at least five generations away from the original cross-breeding, making it a new, distinct breed with its own rigorous breed standards.
We think it’s important to understand the differences between a “Labradoodle” and a Multigenerational Australian Labradoodle. A Labradoodle could be any generation–including an F1 cross-bred dog. A breeder who breeds only Multigenerational Australian Labradoodle, though, has deliberately developed a breeding program that focuses on upholding the breed standards, and maintaining healthy and genetically sound breeding practices.
We are members of the Worldwide Australian Labradoodle Association (WALA), one of the premier breeder associations. As members, we abide by strict responsible breeder standards, and work to refine temperament and coat, while ensuring genetic health by carefully introducing new lines. You can read more about the history of the Multigenerational Australian Labradoodle at the WALA website.
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Though their general appearance is not appreciably different, Multigen Australian Labradoodles may be one of three distinct sizes. Miniatures will range in height from about 14-16 inches (to their withers–top of shoulder blades), and in weight from about 15-25 lbs. Mediums will range in height from about 17-20 inches, and in weight from about 25-40 lbs. Standards will range in height from about 21-24 inches, and in weight from about 40-65 lbs.
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Multigen Australian Labradoodles will have a non-shedding coat. The coat may range from very straight, to loose curls, to wool. There are three distinct textures. A hair coat may shed a light to moderate amount. This coat is seen in very early generations. The wool coat is dense and similar in feel to lamb’s wool. Wool coats hang in tight or loose spiraling curls, and will open to show the skin. It is low or no shed. The fleece coat has a silky texture, and is often characterized as akin to an Angora goat’s texture. This coat may range from straight, to wavy, or falling in soft curls. It is a low to no-shed coat.
The Australian Labradoodle comes in a wide variety of colors and patterns. But at the core, there are really four basic colorations: black; cream/red; chocolate; and caramel.
Black
All dogs in this color category have dark brown eyes, black noses, gums and paw pads. This color group may manifest in a variety of coat colors (black; blue; silver), but always will have the black nose, gums, and paw pads.
Cream/Red
Dogs in this color category may have a coat that is cream, gold, apricot, or red in color. But like those in the black color category, they’ll always have the black nose, gums, and paw pads. And they’ll always have dark brown eyes.
Chocolate
Dogs in this color category may have coats that vary in shades of brown–from chocolate brown, all the way to milk chocolate or cafe. They usually have noses and paw pads that are dark brown in color.
Caramel
Dogs in this color category will have coats that vary in color–from latte, to parchment, to caramel–even including some of the coat colors present in the cream/red category (e.g. cream, gold, apricot). Importantly, though, these dogs will have a liver-colored nose and paw pads, and usually lighter-colored eyes. As such, even though their coat appears similar in color to coats in the cream/red category, their liver-colored noses and paw pads place them in the caramel color category.
Patterned Variants
Within these basic color categories, a dog may have various markings–including Parti, Phantom, Sable, and Brindle.
You may read more about–and see pictures of examples of–the various colors and patterns at the WALA website.
About Our Puppies and Process
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Maybe–though often our reservation list fills before a litter arrives. You can find out more about current and upcoming litters–and our reservation list–by clicking here.
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We think it’s traumatic–and dangerous–to ship eight-week old puppies via air cargo. So we won’t do that. But we know that adoptive parents live all over, and sometimes it’s difficult or impossible for you to get here when your puppy is ready to go home.
So we offer a simple delivery service. We will fly your new baby to you, in the cabin of a plane. You’ll be responsible for actual airfare, pet companion fee, and a fee of $250 payable to the “stork” that delivers your new baby. Occasionally, a delivery location is located in a place that doesn’t allow a single day there-and-back flight. In those cases, we’ll negotiate (in advance) a one-day per-diem rate (hotel and food) to remain in the delivery airport city. Contact us in advance to coordinate this. We can usually only accommodate one or two such deliveries per litter, so it’s important to contract this early in the process.
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We do our best to match our puppies based on our adoptive parents preferences, and temperament. We temperament test our puppies at seven weeks–not to determine which have “good” or “bad” temperaments. In fact, we work very hard to ensure all of our puppies have a positive disposition, and have the underlying socialization foundation to enable them to be wonderful companions for your family.
But dogs are a lot like people: they have their own personalities. Some are more extraverted; others are more introverted. Some like a lot of outside exercise; some are content to spend their days lying on their humans’ lap while their human reads a book. Though none of these characteristics are inherently bad, we know that you, and your new pet, will be much happier if there’s a good fit between your lifestyle, and the lifestyle your new pet seems to enjoy. So we work to match on that, first. Then we look to your preferences–colors, coat, gender, markings, etc… Usually our initial matching process provides a few options that would work for you. We work our way down our reservation list, in order, and allow each reservation to select their preferred pup, from those we feel are a fit. We do our very best to ensure that you’re overjoyed with your new family member–that you get everything you want. But mother nature occasionally has other plans. If, for some reason, we can’t provide you with a puppy that fulfills your desires, we will give you the option to jump to the next litter, or we’ll refund your deposit.
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We ascribe to the Puppy Culture puppy rearing and early socialization protocol. This protocol involves a number of critical early activities, designed to stimulate early neurological development; to facilitate socialization; and to nurture puppies that have a foundation of good canine citizen skills. This program includes early bio-sensor stimulation exercises, which enables neurological development, and is associated with long-term health and longevity. It also includes a set of developmental experiences and exercises that help build problem solving skills, that set a foundation for future training, and helps socialize your puppy.
You can learn more about Puppy Culture–and you can continue the Puppy Culture journey yourself by clicking on the banner ad below. There you can watch a clip of the video that started it all.
Puppy Culture Film 728×90 PX
Caring for my Australian Labradoodle
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For a number of years, we have fed all of our dogs Life’s Abundance All Life Stages dog food. In fact, we feed this same food to our dogs through all of their life’s stages! We so strongly believe in Life’s Abundance products, that we became a distributor. We keep a few key products in stock (namely the All Life Stages food, and the Tasty Rewards Nutritional Treats–our dogs’ favorite snack); contact us if you need something in a rush.
But you can also order Life’s Abundance products at our special store front: CLICK HERE TO ORDER!
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We recommend printing out a copy of the PDF, below, and taking it to your groomer. They key to an Australian Labradoodle’s distinctive look is the cut around the eyes, head, ears, and chin. Make sure they get this right!
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