# Anyone know about Durango Poodles?



## StrongWill (Apr 1, 2015)

Hi! I am looking for a Male Standard Poodle for our family. Preferably black and on the large side with an undocked tail. I came across Durango Poodles and was wondering if anyone had any info?
Puppies | Durango Poodles
Thanks!


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## N2Mischief (Dec 3, 2012)

I would want to know if they do health testing of the parents. They also in my opinion let the pups go to their new homes too early. If you want your pup to stay longer than 7 to 8 weeks you must pay $15 per day??


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## Tiny Poodles (Jun 20, 2013)

I do not like what I see on the website "our puppies are likely to be show quality" "we breed for companionship, not championships", screams we don't know the the first thing about how a poodle should be put together to me. "We choose dogs with healthy pedigrees" - how about health testing. The have one male that they breed to two females - - I would want somebody who knows more about what poodles to put together than "I got one with sperm, and one with eggs"!


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## MollyMuiMa (Oct 13, 2012)

They look like BYBers to me.....no health testing of dams or sire, no 'proving', only one male and breeding to three different colored females(they have a female puppy they plan to breed)..........no 'improving the breed' here! Please read more about putting the odds of getting a healthy poodle in your favor, in our search files! JMO!


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## StrongWill (Apr 1, 2015)

Thank you for your feedback. Those were some of the red flags I saw as well. Our family definitely wants a healthy dog who will be with us for a long time!


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## patk (Jun 13, 2013)

where are you located? maybe folks can help with some suggestions re breeders in your area.


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## StrongWill (Apr 1, 2015)

We are located in Arvada Colorado. Outside of Denver  We are willing to travel to surrounding states though if we find the right dog


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## patk (Jun 13, 2013)

check out "litter announcements" at poodlesonline.com. bar-none in tx is advertising a litter of black spoos. i think a member here just recommended this breeder in another thread - but you can do a search of pf for the kennel name to see if there are any opinions posted.


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## glorybeecosta (Nov 11, 2014)

The website layout would turn me off as I started reading it. If you are breeding good poodles you website is your first impression, I would think.


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## StrongWill (Apr 1, 2015)

Thanks for the tips on how to research breeders. I'm very new to PF so learning how to navigate still.


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## Mfmst (Jun 18, 2014)

I can recommend Nancy Wilson of Bar None. AKC Breeder of Merit in the Corpus Christi area, if you're up for a road trip.


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## Viking Queen (Nov 12, 2014)

Google Columbine State Poodle Club. They are in your area and have a breeder referral person on their web site. They were so helpful to me 13 years ago when I got Iris.

I wish you the very best in your search. It is exciting bringing a Spoo into your family.

Viking Queen


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## Durango Poodles (Feb 20, 2016)

Hi everyone,

Matthew and Liz here from Durango Poodles. Thanks so much for the opportunity to reply to the previous posts on this thread.

It's great to see so many of you emphasizing the importance of health. We agree 100%! As a breeder, that is our top priority. We carefully research the health history of our dogs and their lineage before we choose to breed them. And like all reputable breeders, we offer a full health guarantee on our puppies.

We are a small breeder focusing primarily on temperament and companionship. Our puppies make excellent family pets and therapy dogs. The families that get puppies from us are generally not looking to show the dog in the ring, so our breeding philosophy is not about producing dogs that look a certain way.

We do a TON of socialization training with our puppies. Liz is a certified dog trainer and spends countless hours with the pups, introducing them to new experiences so that they will grow up to be confident, happy dogs. Our dams are certified therapy dogs and they frequently participate in "read to the dog" programs at the local elementary schools.

We never let a puppy go before eight weeks, and we gladly keep puppies for 9 - 12 weeks if a family asks. We are always sad when the puppies go home, and getting to keep a puppy a bit longer is a special treat for us. Liz will work on training your puppy every day so that it will know its basic commands when you take it home!

Every family we have ever worked with has enthusiastically agreed to be a reference for us. We will gladly put you in touch with dozens of families who can tell you all about the poodle they got from us and the great experience they had with us as their breeder. We stay in touch with every family, answer questions about training and grooming, send birthday cards when their pup has a birthday, trade photos and stories about what adventures the dogs are having.... Our dogs and puppies are truly part of our family.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Durango I am glad to see you do background health checking, but you should still be doing health testing on you own breeding dogs rather than relying on the ancestry of them. Since you breed spoos, I think you can appreciate that most especially hips should be rated for that individual, not just a reliance on the history of the line.

When I got my current puppy Javelin I relied much more on the fact that his parents were themselves tested rather than his grandparents or great grandparents, one of whom is Ale Kai Mikimoto on Fifth. I was not concerned for having a health guarantee on the pup since I know his breeder takes health seriously at all levels.

To those of you critical of the age at which the puppies go home I think for large breed dogs 7 1/2 - 8 weeks is fine. Lily came from a litter of 8 and Javelin from a litter of 9. I think it becomes very hard for a breeder to take care of the individual social needs of that many puppies when they are even a little bit older than that. For tpoos and other small dogs that have small litters, slower physical development and the opportunity to socialize with pups from another litter that may be similar in age makes sense, but not for spoos.


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## zooeysmom (Jan 3, 2014)

I'm glad you're here to research! I learned so much about how to choose a good breeder before I got Maizie. The most important thing is to choose a puppy from HEALTH TESTED parents. A breeder saying, "my dogs are healthy" is not the same as a breeder who tests the parent dogs' hips, elbows, and for von Willebrand's, neonatal encephalopathy, thyroid, sebaceous adenitis, etc. Serious breeders who care about the welfare of the breed do testing. 

Maizie's breeder, Lacy Lane Poodles, has a litter due in April--she is in Heber City, Utah. The pups will be full siblings of Maizie and Lincoln here on PF. Parents are fully health tested and Dad is an AKC grand champion. She shows in AKC and UKC. That was important to me because I know she is trying to better the breed. You do that by health testing and conformation showing.

Hope this helps!


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## MiniPoo (Mar 6, 2014)

Liz and Matthew, I am sure that you have the temperament you are looking for in your dogs since you have so many dogs that do therapy work, but based on your website, you do not seem to do any actual health testing, such as CERF eye exams, hip evaluations, and the genetic testing that is available today for standard poodles. Perhaps you do _do _these tests and make the information available to people who actually put down a deposit for your puppies. If so, that would be good information for prospective buyers visiting your website.

If you do not test the eyes, hips, and other very important tests on the dogs you use for breeding, then I personally would not be interested in one of your puppies, no matter how wonderful their temperament. I know that not everyone agrees with that opinion, but I feel more informed puppy buyers DO want parent dogs that have been tested.

You also do not have very many pictures of your adult dogs on your website so that we can see if they have good confirmation. You do not need to show dogs to have good conformation, but it is good to strive for good body structure. So it would be nice if you could show more pictures of the adult dogs in side views and front views.

I am hoping that you will explain in more details what actual testing you do on your breeding dogs, not just what research you might have done on their ancestors.

I am glad that you have joined the forum. We learn a lot from each other, sometimes about the importance of things we may not have considered doing for our dogs before.


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## spindledreams (Aug 7, 2012)

I second the recommendation for checking with the Columbine Poodle Club but their website last time I looked was a mess. They are on Facebook and Suzi Frances of Harmony Miniature Poodles (on Facebook) is their current president I understand. She is a wonderful person who may be able to help you out. 

Most folks that breed for show do still dock in the US so that may be a slightly harder part of your request to fulfill but there is a Facebook group called "Pure Undocked Poodles, AKC, UKC & CKC" that may be able to help you find a breeder who leaves pups undocked.


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