Frequently Asked Questions:

1. What makes a Southern Cross puppy different?

The journey of a Southern Cross puppy begins long before the dam is bred. We carefully screen our breeding dogs for health and temperament soundness and combine breeding pairs that will compliment each other in every way. Australian Labradoodles have been bred to be family companions, however we do not rely only on genetics to produce great dogs. We begin on Day 3 of the puppy's life with a series of early neurological stimulation exercises that have important and lasting effects. These exercises imprint the puppies to bond as interactive and intelligent human companions for life. Imprinted puppies look to humans as their role models and will excel at whatever future training they are exposed to. Click here to learn more about Early Neurological Stimulation and Breeding Better Dogs.

It takes a serious devoted effort to produce puppies of a superior nature. Creating cherished family companions is a labor of love. We carefully screen all our potential families and look for those who can provide the best care and love possible. Of course, we are always here to help and support your whenever you need us.

2. How much do your puppies cost?

The average price for a male is 2500.00 and females usually run 2600.00. Occasionally we will charge a little bit more for a female that is a rare color, and a little less for a male that is a very common color. Please ask for specific prices of the puppy you are interested in.

3. That's a lot of money!! What does that price include?

Our puppies are examined by a veterinarian three times. They have their first shots and worming at 6 weeks of age. They are desexed and microchipped at 7-8 weeks of age and they have another round of shots and worming at 9 weeks of age. That's about 500.00 of vet care per pup that we provide. It cost a little bit more to spay a female, so that is why the price of females is slightly higher than males.

Our pups are fed a special diet as they transition from nursing to eating solid food. We believe in a raw food diet supplemented with fresh vegetables, yogurt, eggs and other nutrients. Before leaving us, we also transition our pups to high quality dry food that they will be eating at their forever homes. All the little extras that go into creating a healthy, balanced puppy is expensive.

Also, remember you are buying a puppy from tested breeding stock. Health testing breeding dogs is very costly resulting in a higher priced puppy. What you are spending on your puppy now, will hopefully save you in vet bills for years to come. Our pups come with a two year health guarantee against any genetic problem that could arise. So if your pup does develop a genetic problem, we will cover the cost of vet bills up to the purchase price or replace you puppy.

Lastly, Australian Labradoodles that come from the founding lines of Australia simply cost more. Buying and shipping dogs from Australia is expensive. We imported four dogs directly from Australia and all our puppies are direct descendants from these lines.

4. Why do you desex your puppies so young?

There are a couple reasons we desex the pups before they leave us. First, we consider ourselves guardians of this wonderful developing breed. We are tracking the breeding lines as they develop across the country and around the world. No one takes this responsibility more seriously than myself. I was the first Registrar for the Australian Labradoodle Club of America and have a strong working knowledge of most of the Australian Labradoodle bloodlines throughout the country.

Secondly, as responsible breeders, we will not contribute to the population of unwanted pets in shelters across the country. Therefore we make sure that our puppies that are sold as pets, can not reproduce. All our puppy families sign a contract with us stating that if they can no longer care for their pet, they will return them to us. No Southern Cross pet will ever end up in a shelter!!!

If you would like to learn more about Early Spay and Neuter I encourage you to visit this site.

5. What are the health problems found in Australian Labradoodles? Because they have long, floppy ears, some labrdoodles have a tendency towards ear infections. Keeping the hairs inside the ears plucked or clipped and regular deep cleaning will help prevent ear infections from developing. HD is a problem that occurs in labs and in poodles. All our breeding dog have been health screened for HD and elbow disorders. We do everything we can to assure our pups do not develop these problems but environmental factors such as improper exercise and diet can increase the chances of dogs developing HD. We advise our puppy families to be careful with diet and over exercising especially as their puppy is growing.

6. Do you have any references? We have a large extended Southern Cross family. Many of our families have bought their second doodle from us. Upon request they will be happy to tell you about their dogs and their experiences with Southern Cross. Please email us if you would like a list of references and visit our scrapbook page to see some of our doodle families.

7. Which is better, males or females? In many breed of dogs, males tend to be more dominate and females sweeter and more laid back. NOT true with the Australian Labradoodle. From the time the breed began, dominate males were never used as stud dogs. Our stud dogs are every bit as sweet and loving as our females. Because all our pups are desexed before they leave us, the testosterone related behaviors associated with male dogs never develops. Therefore, gender should not be a factor when choosing a puppy.

8. Are your dogs really allergy friendly? Many people who have never been able to tolerate dogs due to allergies, do fine with our dogs. There have been a few people with severe allergies who have had mild reactions after visiting. Because our dogs are nonshedding or very low shedding and they do not have dander, they can be a blessing to families with allergy sufferers. If you are allergic we encourage you to come for a visit. If you live too far away, we will send you hair and saliva samples of our dogs. You can tape the hair to the inside of your arm overnight to test for reactions.

9. Do they need a lot of exercise? We live in a neighborhood and have an average size yard. We take our dogs for a 30 minute walk every morning and evening. Most of our dogs don't need much more than that. Puppy training during the first year is very important. This training will set the stage for the rest of your dogs life and is invaluable. Behavior problems are often a sign of a bored dog. Training is the key to keeping your dog's mind stimulated and balanced.

10. Do they require a lot of grooming? Our dogs do require regular grooming. We bath and thoroughly brush our dogs once a month. During the first year and a half more regular brushing will be necessary. Since they do not shed, broken and dead hair will become matted. It is important to strip this hair away with regular brushing, especially as they transition between their puppy and adult coats. Dogs with wool coats will required coat trims a couple of times a year since their coats tend to mat more than fleece coats.

11. Are you dogs good with children? YES, but young children should always be supervised around animals, especially baby animals. If you have young children, we will work with you to make sure your puppy and children can coexist and thrive. Our dogs are completely nonagressive and make excellent children's pets.

12. Where are you located? We are located in Covington, Louisiana which is 30 miles north of New Orleans.

13. Do you ship? We do ship, if we can get a nonstop flight out of New Orleans. Most of our families prefer to fly in themselves and bring their puppy back home in the cabin. We have in-cabin approved carriers that we loan to our buyers and they mail the carrier back to us. We acclimate the pups to the carriers to assure a comfortable ride home for everyone. If you can't fly but would like your pup to travel in the cabin, we will personally escort them to your city. All shipping and travel cost are not included in the purchase price of the puppy.

While most of our puppies stay in the New Orleans area, there are proud Southern Cross families all over the country. Every time we place a puppy we put a marker on our map.