Westwood Doodles:
Labradoodles, Goldendoodles,
and North American Retrievers
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Many people doing reading about choosing a Labradoodle breeder
or Goldendoodle breeder from which to purchase a Labradoodle
puppy or Goldendoodle puppy will encounter articles and websites
that contend that visiting a breeder before making a decision is are
lower quality, provide less customer service, or have something to
hide.

I believe most of those opinions were arrived at decades ago, and
have not been adjusted to the current state of canine health.  Parvo
virus did not even exist until the late 1970's, and became epidemic
in the last 10 years.  This virus is deadly to young puppies, who are
in the delicate process of being weaned from their mother's
immunity to this contagion, and developing their own immunity to
it.  There is a period of time during which they are very vulnerable,
and exposure to this virus causes vomiting, diarrhea, and ultimately
death.  It is impossible to treat in young puppies and uniformly
fatal....whole litters are usually lost if one puppy contracts it.  (Here
is another article I authored about Canine Parvovirus.)

One thing that makes protection from this virus so difficult is that it
is extremely hardy.  It can live in an outdoor environment, even
among blistering or freezing temperatures, for up to 7 months.  
Practically the only thing that can kill it is bleach, and it is easily
carried on clothing and shoes.

So any Labradoodle breeder or Goldendoodle breeder that allows
visitors at any time is risking infecting their puppies.  Someone
could walk through a parking lot at a mall with a pet store the week
before visiting, pick up the virus on their shoes and then bring it into
the breeder's environment.  This event could even occur months
BEFORE the puppies are born, and the puppies could still be at risk
when they reach that vulnerable age.  Everyone needs to weigh the
risks and benefits, and some breeders do choose to allow visits.

Obviously it is impossible for any breeder to completely eliminate
their risk, but we do the best we can.  We don't wear shoes in our
house or yard, and our dogs wear booties when they leave our
house or yard, in order to avoid, as much as possible, bringing
anything in.

We try to minimize the traffic in an out of our house by limiting
visitors to those that have deposits down on puppies, and then, only
after the puppies have had their initial immunization, so they at least
have a start on their own immunity.  If a visitor determines, after a
visit, that for some reason they are not comfortable working with us,
we will refund their deposit.  This has never happened, but we want
people to feel that they have that option when they make the deposit.

So, instead of indicating something to hide, or an uncaring attitude,
a breeder that limits visitation is just putting the health and welfare
of their puppies first.  We hope families considering working with us
will see that as an attribute!

One of the reasons people sometimes cite for wanting to visit a
breeder is that they have never met a Labradoodle or Goldendoodle.
 We highly recommend meeting some doodles before making a
decision to get one!  We feel the best way to do this is to attend a
'Doodle Romp.'  This is a get-together for doodles, doodle owners,
and doodle enthusiasts.  We host them regularly, and so do others
all over the country.  If you would like information about our romps,
or want help locating a romp in your area, please email us.
~Westwood Labradoodles Visitation Policy~