One question that we have been asked is, if a person does not want to breed or show a puppy they are buying from me - "Why does it matter if the parents/grandparents are champions, or had genetic testing?"

Answer:  First, the champion part of the question.  According to AKC the purpose of having conformation shows (where champions are awarded) is to determine the possible quality of that dog's offspring.  Dogs that have been "fixed" are not eligible to be shown.  During these dog shows, expert judges in poodles examine these dogs carefully.  The look/run their hands over just about every part of the dog from its head, bite, eyes, feet, hips, joints, etc.  The dog then walks around as the judges look on.  These judges are looking for abnormalities in the dog, like structural problems (hips, shoulders, etc).  Many abnormalities are genetic.  For instance, most problems related to eyes, hips, over/underbites, heart, liver, knees, not having both testicles descended, etc. are genetically based.  These traits are passed along from parents to puppies.   If the parents have excellent conformation, it is much more likely that their puppies will as well.  For a dog to obtain champion status judges are saying that this dog should produce excellent offspring, free of many of the genetic disorders often associated with the breed.  It takes a dog several shows at a minimum just to become a champion.  The vast majority of dogs that enter shows never become champions.  By spending an extra $100 to $200 to get a better quality puppy, you will probably save more than that long term in vet bills.

Part two of the question deals with genetic testing.  Why do we do it?  How does it help the buyer?  Again many of the abnormalities that poodles have are genetic.  Some of the most common problems in toy/miniature poodles include eye, hips and joint problems.  There are tests that specialized, licensed vets can do on dogs to exam a poodle in each of these areas.  For instance, research has isolated a gene that poodles have/or carry that leads to the most common eye problem in poodles.  It is known as PRA/PRCD (Progressive Retina Atrophy/Progressive rod cone degeneration). Later in life an affected poodle will begin with night blindness that eventually leads to permanent blindness.  Poodles can be affected with this gene, carriers of it, or free of it.  Because it is a recessive gene both parents would have to be carriers or affected in order to pass this along.  By ensuring our males are free of this gene, we ensure that this will not be passed along to their offspring.  Dogs that are not tested, may be carriers of this gene and pass it along to their offspring.  Another problem often associated with poodles is hip defects or slipped patellas.  A vet with takes x-rays of my dogs hips and sends them in to be evaluated by three different vets to determine if there are structural problems.  None of my dogs that have been evaluated have any hip problems. If they did, we would not continue to breed them.  A patella (knee) can slip out of joint causing pain, or problems walking.  We could go on and on concerning the benefits of testing my adults.  These tests cost several hundred dollars per dog.  Truly the big winner in all this are the puppies that are produced and their new owners.  You may find puppies cheaper than mine elsewhere, but you may end up paying a lot more in vet bills later dealing with genetic problems that my puppies don't have.  Not only will you probably save money in the long run, you may also save yourself the heartache of having a beloved pet go through the trials of having one of these genetic disorders.

We currently have one champion, and most of our adults are champion sired.  Combined with the testing that has been done on my dogs, you are getting some of the highest quality poodle puppies.  We honestly believe that our puppies are some of the highest quality poodle puppies sold in the State of Illinois.  We stand behind our puppies and that is why we have a one year limited health guarantee, and for certain problems, a lifetime guarantee.  Thus far, we have only been notified by five different buyers that one of my puppies ended up having a cogenital defect. Four owners contacted us stating that their puppy had a slipped/fluxating patella, and one owner contacted us to tell us that their puppy had Legges-Perthes.  All owners wanted to keep their puppies and we still refunded two of them part of the purchase price of their puppy (even though slipped patellas are not covered by my guarantee).   We stand behind our puppies! 

  Two out of five of these buyers are actually on our testimonial page!  All five buyers have told me that because of the way we handled their reporting of the genetic flaw, they would be glad to give us a reference!