The Details
Our Process
At Powderhill, we are constantly tweaking and evolving the process for planning, breeding, marketing and delivering puppies to our clientele. Here is our current process (Updated June 30, 2023)
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VERY IMPORTANT: Just about every single Powderhill Puppy is sold before it is conceived. The likelihood of getting a puppy from us on just a week or a month's notice is less than 10%. This is due to the huge interest in Goldendoodles, limited supply of puppies, and a large following of prospective and returning customers that we have enjoyed through our many years as a breeder. We do plan litters extremely far in advance so we are able to tell you what types of Goldendoodles we are planning up to 24 months away. We can always provide the name of the litter's mother, but we usually do not select the father until we are close to the breeding time.
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We breed puppies throughout the year as our dams come into heat. People can contact us at any time to discuss potential placement on a litter list. If you wish to reserve a puppy you will need to send a payment for $500 through Good Dog.
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The $500 reservation fee is not refundable unless there is no puppy available for you. However, it can be used on any future litter for up to 12 months after declining to take a puppy from a litter. This means that if after placing your deposit you decline to take a puppy from a litter you are forfeiting your deposit. As a courtesy to you, we will transfer your deposit to another litter for up to 12 months.
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Once litters are born and we have provided pictures and a male/female breakdown, we will contact folks who are on the litter list to confirm they will be choosing a puppy from the litter. We will then make the official litter list and post it to the website.
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**Please note, Powderhill reserves the right to take the first two puppies from any litter in order to continue our breeding program**
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Our dams usually become breedable on a six month heat cycle. We do not decide when any of our female dogs goes into their heat cycle – Mother Nature does, but it's usually every six months. Many times the lead female is followed closely by one or more of the other females, but this is not always the case. The dam is usually bred 10-15 days after her heat cycle begins.
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At Powderhill, both dams and sires are health tested (OFA eyes, hips and elbows, patellas and cardiac) and DNA tested before being added to our breeding program.
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Powderhill reserves the right to substitute a different sire if necessary to enhance the potential for a successful litter. From the date of the first tie with the sire to the expected delivery date is nine weeks, but the delivery could take place up to 4-5 days before or after that date.
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Once delivered, we prepare the mother and her puppies for their first picture, usually within 2 days, and we post that picture to the home page of our website: www.powderhillgoldensshoreline.com
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After they are born we allow the puppies to bond with their mother for a period of three weeks. This allows the mother to concentrate solely on nurturing her pups. The mother is fed frequently and given plenty of quiet time with her babies.
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At three weeks of age, we microchip and begin taking weekly pictures of each individual puppy. The microchip will stay with them for the rest of their lives; initially allowing us to assure each owner that they have the right puppy, and later helping those owners to find them if they are ever lost or stolen.
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When the puppies are seven weeks old they have their first vet visit and receive vaccinations. We then hold Puppy Pick Day (Saturday or Sunday) where the owners and their families can meet the litter and select their puppy. The owners of the first pick of the litter must come first, then the owners of the second pick, etc. Each family is given thirty minutes to select their puppy.
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Pictures continue each week until week eight when the puppies are picked up. We also include some behind the scenes and informational pictures and video on our two social media sites, Facebook, TikTok and Instagram.
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On week eight, the puppies are ready to go home and each owner determines a specific time to pick up their puppy and take him/her home. Besides a food sample and a blanket scented with your puppy's littermates, we provide a binder that includes the Puppy’s initial health records, instructions for registering the microchip, our written guarantee, a lineage chart, care and feeding instructions, information on NuVet Vitamin, BAXTER&Bella Puppy Training, Trupanion pet insurance, Puppy Culture recommendations, a new collar and a toy.
The Package
All Powderhill puppies include the following:
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1. A Microchip is implanted for identification if your dog is ever lost or stolen. The price of your puppy includes the lifetime registration fee to attach your name to your puppy's microchip. (You will need to fill out the form and send it in.)
2. All Powderhill puppies receive a wellness check by our veterinarian, receive their first shots and are de-wormed before leaving us for your home. All documentation is provided to you in your go-home booklet.
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3. You will receive a Lineage Chart showing at least three generations of ancestors of your puppy.
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4. Care Instructions covering feeding and training are also provided.
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5. A written two-part Guarantee is provided.​
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6. A record showing your puppy's worming and shot record is provided in your go-home booklet.
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7. A Certificate of Health, signed by our Veterinarian is provided.
8. Each puppy goes home with a new collar.
Absolutely no puppies can be released before they are 8 weeks old - no exceptions.
* The reservation fee is $500.00.
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***PLEASE NOTE: Reservation fees are not refundable unless we don't have a puppy for you, but can be applied toward the purchase of a future Powderhill puppy of your choice***​
***PLEASE NOTE: All puppies must be paid for in full by the time they are 7 weeks old. We only accept payments through GoodDog.
Our Guarantee
The puppy you have purchased is guaranteed to be in good general health. In order for this guarantee to be valid, your new puppy must be examined by a licensed veterinarian within 72 hours after going home with you (not counting Sundays or Holidays).
If illness is diagnosed by a licensed veterinarian within that period of time, 100% of the sales price will be refunded to you upon immediate return of the puppy to us, accompanied by a written statement from the veterinarian confirming the problem.
Additionally, the recommended diet and good nutritional program must be followed. Routine vaccines must also be kept up to date.
The puppy you have purchased is also guaranteed explicitly and exclusively against genetic defects. If evidence of inherited disease develops within two years of age, the puppy will be replaced. Written proof from a licensed veterinarian confirming the congenital disease must be provided to us.
We do not reimburse for vet expenses under any circumstances.
We guarantee that papers will be provided to register your Powderhill puppy (golden retriever & poodle puppies only) with AKC. We will also provide a pedigree showing at least three generations of ancestors.
Please note we can’t guarantee the height or weight range of our puppies. Just as human children can be taller or shorter than their parents or siblings, puppies from any one litter may also vary from each other at maturity. We always do our best to provide you with the most accurate guesstimate we have, but we can’t control science and genetics. We determine our ranges based on the parent’s sizes (as well as the grandparents) and conclude what the approximate weight and height range is based on that information. With every litter, some pups may end up being as small as the smallest parent or as large as the largest parent. On very rare occasions pups can inherit throw back genes from a grandparent and be larger or smaller than the parents. However, the vast majority of puppies within any given litter will fall somewhere in between, usually mid range. It is always an educated guess on our part 😊
If it ever becomes necessary to place your puppy in a new home, you must contact us before giving it up to a public placement agency. We will make every effort - at no expense to you - to locate a suitable, loving owner.
Boarding
We regret that we can no longer offer boarding.  Puppies must be picked up on Puppy Pickup Day.  When considering whether to purchase a puppy we suggest that you clear your schedule for at least 30 days before and 30 days after the anticipated go home dates for the puppy.  This 60-day window should comfortably cover planning for Puppy Pick and Puppy Pickup Days when you are deciding to purchase a puppy several months before actually picking it up.
Purchase Agreement
This agreement is between Powderhill Goldens - Shoreline (Powderhill Puppies) and the Buyer. Buyer agrees to place a $500 deposit on Goldendoodle puppy from Breeder.
Buyer acknowledges that the deposit is non-refundable in all circumstances, including, but not limited to if Buyer decides they do not want or are no longer able to take a puppy.
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Buyer acknowledges that if they decline to choose a puppy from a litter they have 12 months to choose a puppy from a future litter. Buyer agrees that if they don't choose a puppy within that time frame they'll be removed from the waiting list and their reservation fee will be forfeit.