The Adoption Process

The Adoption Process for a DragonRam Labradoodle Puppy

First steps
The first step in adopting a DragonRam Doodles Australian Labradoodle puppy is to e-mail us (dragonramdoodles@gmail.com) to learn the status of our upcoming litters and request a copy of our application form.We will send you the form, along with info on our upcoming litters and availability.

Reserving a puppy
Once we have reached your name on the list and have bred the next dam, we will contact you to complete and submit the application form and making sure you are familiear with our Refund Policy Once we have a confirmed pregnancy (by ultrasound at four weeks’ gestation) and know we will have enough puppies for those we have received applications from, we will invite you to send a $700 deposit to reserve a puppy from that litter.

We will send an e-mail announcing the birth of the puppies and setting out key dates in the process: the puppy visit weekend (around 7 weeks of age), the puppy selection weekend (8 weeks of age) and the go-home weekend (around 9 weeks of age).

Puppy Allocation
Our goal is to place each puppy in a home that meets its needs based on its temperament (personality). To this end, when the puppies are 7 weeks old we bring in a dog behaviourist who performs a temperament assessment and prepares a report on each puppy. We then look at the answers each family has given us to the questions on the application form to determine where each puppy will be best placed. We focus on things like family makeup (presence and ages of children), family activity level (active outdoorsy types versus more relaxed, indoorsy families), hours the puppy will spend alone (adults’ working hours, working from home, retired, etc), presence of other dogs or other pets in the household, the family’s level of dog experience, and so on. While we do ask families to indacate any preferences they may have relating to sex, colour and size of puppy, these are at the BOTTOM of our priority list. We will try to meet our preferences if possibly, but it may not be possible. The more restrictive your preferences, the less likely we will be able to meet them. Thus it is important for you to recognize that these are only preferences, not requirements, and to be flexible in all areas. We will ensure you get a suitable puppy – it just might not look like or be the sex you thought you wanted.

Based on this matching process we will recommend two puppies to each family, beginning with the first in line and working our way down the list. The last family will obviously not get a choice of two puppies, but since we take ALL our famlies’ needs into consideration as we proceed with matching, that family is still guaranteed a suitable puppy. On puppy selection weekend, each family will come in order to choose between the two puppies we recommend. We will provide you with the assessment report and any relevant information from the puppies’ first vet visit.

Go-home Day
After you have chosen your puppy, we will prepare the contract and send it to you for review. Our puppies are sent home on a spay/netuer contract, meaning you commit to having your puppy spayed or neutered by the time it is 7 months old. Once you send us the spay/neuter certificate, we will refund you $350 of the purchase price. We will send you a reminder when the puppy turns 6 months old to ensure you don’t forget to do this.

The final payment is due before you take your puppy home. (If we need to ship your puppy, payment for shipping costs will also need to be paid in advance.) At go-home time we will review the paperwork with you and you will get a goody-bag containing, among other things, our Puppy Care Manual and a blanket with the smells of the pupy’s litermates on it to ease the transition to a new home.

You will also be required to take the puppy to a veterinarian for a checkup within 3 business days of taking your puppy home and send us a certificate signed by the vet indicating that the puppy is in good health. This forms the baseline of our two-year health guarantee.

The price of a DragonRAm Doodles Australian Labradoodle puppy in 2021 is $2900 + $377 HST = $3277, rising in 2022 to $3000 + $390 HST = $3390.