# Thoughts on being a guardian home



## naybaloog (May 19, 2020)

Just curious if anyone has been a guardian home, what that experience was like, and how it went for you!!


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## MaizieFrosty (Apr 12, 2019)

I don't know if you've already tried a search in the forum, but this topic has come up in the past


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## Dechi (Aug 22, 2015)

I was going to but I was allergic to the dog and had to return it. I made a post about it. That was a few years ago.


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## Rose n Poos (Sep 22, 2017)

There are different types of guardian arrangements and different types of breeders who use them. 
Without being able to assess the type of breeder, it's difficult to answer your question. Not many of us seem to have had the personal experience.

This is an older thread but goes over the pros and cons. I've only looked at the first few posts but one of our breeder/members, Arreau, weighs in with her take. There may be more.
(9) Guardian program? | Page 2 | Poodle Forum

Two other thread links
(9) (Standard) Foster/Guardianship program in Quebec/Ontario (Canada)? | Poodle Forum
(9) Guardian Homes | Poodle Forum


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## Poodle Lover (Mar 24, 2008)

I would never do it. Most guardianship programs benefit the breeder more than the person getting the dog.


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## naybaloog (May 19, 2020)

Poodle Lover said:


> I would never do it. Most guardianship programs benefit the breeder more than the person getting the dog.


Tell me more! How so?


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## cowpony (Dec 30, 2009)

I think it really depends a lot on the nature of the contract, your relationship with the breeder, and your overall goals as a dog parent. Something important to remember is that the dog that lives with you is not your dog. Your contract needs to spell out when and if the dog will ever become yours, under what circumstances breeder might take the dog away, when and how many times the dog will be bred, who pays for various expenses, what your responsibility is for care decisions, and so forth.

Both Galen and Ritter's mothers lived with guardian households. Galen's mother stayed with her guardian family when she was pregnant; he was whelped at their house. As far as I know his mother is still with her guardian family now that she is retired from breeding. Ritter's mother was bred while living with her guardian and was then transferred to the breeder for the rest of her term.

I'm aware of one situation where a guardian situation went terribly badly. The breeder had placed a dog with a guardian household with the understanding that the dog would have 3 litters. The guardian did something to mess up one of the breedings, with the result the breeder lost a significant amount of money. The breeder was irritated, canceled the contract, and took the dog back.


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## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

I would never enter into a guardian arrangement because I value my freedom to move should I need or want to.


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## MaizieFrosty (Apr 12, 2019)

It really seems hard to imagine any positives about being a guardian home! The only way I can see it being a benefit is if you can't afford a dog and it's the only way to have one.


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## Basil_the_Spoo (Sep 1, 2020)

There's too much fine print involved, not for me. It's like a conditional relationship.


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## Poodle Lover (Mar 24, 2008)

naybaloog said:


> Tell me more! How so?


Unless it’s a show breeder and the puppy needs to be shown (and of course reading the contract very carefully), I would never do a guarding home. I would have to pay for my puppy, then I would need to pay for food, health care, socializing my baby. Then give it back to the breeder so she can breed the dog and have puppies, which she will make a profit on, often breeding the dog more than once. Are you kidding me? I wouldn’t agree to it even if the puppy came free to me. What would be the benefit for me? I guess I just don’t share what‘s mine... lol


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## TeamHellhound (Feb 5, 2021)

As mentioned, contracts like this tend to favor the breeder far more than the person living with and caring for the dog. The first time I ever encountered the term "guardian home" was in the brochure (pre-internet days) from what was then the largest commercial breeder of Doberman Pinschers and Rottweilers in the country. You got a bitch puppy, and after she produced two to four litters*, where you got a nominal per-puppy fee and the breeder got all the puppies, they would sign her registration papers over to you. In other words, you didn't even own your own dog, and had no say in whether or when she would be bred, and had no say in where her puppies went. 

On the other hand, co-owning a dog with a breeder on the understanding that once they are titled and/or health tested they might be bred by either the breeder or yourself with input from the breeder, is something I _might _consider. But that would only be with someone I trusted, and with all the terms and conditions clearly spelled out in the contract

*I've seen contracts where a bitch has to have upwards of 8 litters before being signed over, and breeders having unlimited access to males for breeding. I've also seen ridiculous penalties for breaching the terms of your contract, like you have to pay thousands of dollars if a bitch has an accidental pregnancy, and the breeder would still get all the puppies, plus take back possession of the bitch, leaving you broke and dogless.


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## Poodle Lover (Mar 24, 2008)

TeamHellhound said:


> As mentioned, contracts like this tend to favor the breeder far more than the person living with and caring for the dog. The first time I ever encountered the term "guardian home" was in the brochure (pre-internet days) from what was then the largest commercial breeder of Doberman Pinschers and Rottweilers in the country. You got a bitch puppy, and after she produced two to four litters*, where you got a nominal per-puppy fee and the breeder got all the puppies, they would sign her registration papers over to you. In other words, you didn't even own your own dog, and had no say in whether or when she would be bred, and had no say in where her puppies went.
> 
> On the other hand, co-owning a dog with a breeder on the understanding that once they are titled and/or health tested they might be bred by either the breeder or yourself with input from the breeder, is something I _might _consider. But that would only be with someone I trusted, and with all the terms and conditions clearly spelled out in the contract
> 
> *I've seen contracts where a bitch has to have upwards of 8 litters before being signed over, and breeders having unlimited access to males for breeding. I've also seen ridiculous penalties for breaching the terms of your contract, like you have to pay thousands of dollars if a bitch has an accidental pregnancy, and the breeder would still get all the puppies, plus take back possession of the bitch, leaving you broke and dogless.


wow,

I have never seen anything as bad as you are describing! How in a world do people ever agree to this???


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## TeamHellhound (Feb 5, 2021)

Poodle Lover said:


> wow,
> 
> I have never seen anything as bad as you are describing! How in a world do people ever agree to this???


People want what they want, and I guess what they want is a "free" dog. Kimbertal managed to breed upwards of 500 puppies a year (based on inspection reports) using this method.


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## cowpony (Dec 30, 2009)

Every breeder I have ever used has had some dogs in guardian homes. Done right it's a win-win situation for everyone. The dog gets the attention of her very own family instead of being one of twelve dogs in her breeder's house. The guardian gets a well bred dog that has been socialized and trained. The breeder gets more time to focus on the parts of her program most important to her. 

Where it's bad is when one party in the arrangement is unethical or when the expectations are not set properly. The contract is important.


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## Starvt (Nov 5, 2019)

I know a few people who did guardianships.
One person had a great experience, their dog had healthcare paid for by the breeder, dog had three litters (stayed with breeder for 2 months starting at last week of pregnancy). Then they paid for the spay and the dog was officially theirs. 
Someone else I know, part of the contract was that the dog boarded at the breeder when the family was on holidays. The summer the dog was 1.5, she was accidentally bred by a stud of a different breed. The breeder told the family they could deal with the birth and sell the litter themselves (she did not want to have her name attached to crossbred pups I think). The next time the dog boarded at the breeder 6 or 9 months later, the dog passed away from bloat. Might have been avoided if the dog had not been left in a kennel, so sad.
A third person I met, got their dog at 4 years old. Had already had 5 litters and was supposed to have several more. She was underweight but so sweet. The family was paying vet bills when the breeder didn't think she needed to be seen. I think she had a least one more litter but now she has EPI and the 'breeder' signed her over.

I do also know a breeder who has two or three dogs in guardian homes, as well as a few at her house. She has a similar arrangement to the first one I mentioned, and has been happy with how it is working.


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## naybaloog (May 19, 2020)

So I guess it really depends on how the breeder sets up the arrangement and if you're okay with not moving. That all makes sense to me!


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## TeamHellhound (Feb 5, 2021)

Since it popped up in my FB memories today, this is one of the more ridiculous guardian home contracts I've seen.



__ https://www.facebook.com/rosemary.elwell.5/posts/3205851359641844


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## cowpony (Dec 30, 2009)

Yikes! That's a crazy contract. So the breeder carelessly puts the bitch to a stud infected with brucellosis. The litter is lost and the bitch can't be bred any more. As I read it, the guardian would need to pay the breeder $5500 on top of the vet bills needed to save the bitch. What a deal! And, of course, six litters is just bonkers.


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## Carolinek (Apr 2, 2014)

I agree it can be done well. Gracie’s mom was in a guardian home, and only went to the breeder to have pups. I don’t know the details of their arrangement but I do know her mom has a splendidly spoiled life and I got a wonderful pup.


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