Our Visitor Policy
Scheduled visits are available for families who are seriously considering purchasing a currently available puppy.
We understand why families want to meet a puppy before making such an important decision. When we have puppies available for purchase, approved families may schedule an appointment to meet the puppy—or puppies—they are considering.
However, we do not offer general tours, casual puppy visits, or visits to young litters simply to meet our dogs or spend time with puppies. Because our puppies are raised inside our home alongside their mothers, visitors cannot tour our home or meet our adult dogs without entering the areas where vulnerable puppies are being raised.
These boundaries are not intended to make the purchase process difficult. They are an important part of protecting our puppies, their mothers, our adult dogs, and our family.
Protecting Our Puppies
Young puppies are highly vulnerable to disease.
Puppies have immature immune systems and may not yet be fully protected by vaccinations. Serious illnesses—including parvovirus and distemper—can be carried into a home on shoes, clothing, hands, or personal belongings, even when a visitor has no symptoms and has no idea they were exposed. A single exposure could threaten an entire litter.
New mothers need a calm, secure environment.
Mother dogs are naturally protective of their newborn puppies. Unfamiliar visitors can cause unnecessary anxiety, particularly during the first weeks after birth. Stress can affect a mother’s behavior, comfort, and ability to calmly care for her puppies.
An anxious mother can accidentally injure a puppy.
When a mother dog feels threatened or becomes startled, she may move suddenly within or around the whelping area. In her urgency to investigate or protect her litter, she could unintentionally step on or injure a puppy.
We are entrusted with protecting every puppy in our care.
Once a puppy has been reserved, that puppy already belongs in the heart of another family. Until the puppy is old enough to go home, we are responsible for protecting that family’s future companion. We take that responsibility very seriously and provide every puppy with the same careful protection we would want for our own.
Protecting Our Dogs, Our Family, and Our Time
Our puppies are raised in our private home.
Inviting someone to visit our puppies also means inviting that person into our family’s living space. For the safety and privacy of our family and animals, we limit visits to approved families with a genuine interest in a specific available puppy.
Our family needs reasonable privacy and personal time.
Although raising puppies is an important part of our lives, our home is not a public facility. We also have family responsibilities, activities, and commitments that must be respected.
Quality puppy raising requires a tremendous amount of time.
Raising puppies properly is a 24-hour responsibility. Our days are devoted to feeding, cleaning, monitoring health and development, socializing puppies, caring for our adult dogs, communicating with puppy families, and maintaining our home and program. Limiting visitors allows us to devote our time and attention where it matters most.
We do not offer recreational puppy visits.
We know that spending an afternoon cuddling puppies sounds wonderful. However, our puppies’ health and well-being must always come before entertainment or casual visits. Appointments are reserved for approved families who are genuinely considering one of our currently available puppies.
How We Provide Transparency
We understand that families want reassurance that they are working with a legitimate, responsible, and ethical breeder. We are happy to provide:
- References from families who have welcomed Wolf River Bernedoodles into their homes
- A veterinary reference from the clinic that knows our dogs and breeding program
- Information about our health testing, puppy-raising practices, and health guarantee
- Photos, videos, developmental updates, and opportunities to communicate with us
- Scheduled appointments for approved families considering a currently available puppy
Thank you for respecting our visitor policy. We hope you view these precautions for what they are: evidence of how seriously we take the health, safety, and well-being of every puppy and dog entrusted to our care.
