07/06/2026
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1LDj2WBcyY/?mibextid=wwXIfr
This. 🙌🏻
I’ve had a torrid time of late with terribly unethical breeders and people trying to buy puppies with not a single care in the world about what they will breed and how.
This has been playing on my mind for quite some time now and I really debated whether to write this post but feel it’s important to do so. This post is for people who are considering welcoming a Sheepadoodle puppy into their family now or in the future. If this doesn’t interest you please scroll on. This is not a breeder bashing post, it’s about creating awareness. Long post warning!
With the increased popularity of the sheepadoodle in recent times there has been a significant rise in the number of sheepadoodle breeders popping up all over the country. Take a look at gumtree and you’ll see plenty of sheepie puppies available right now. Please be aware! With this we’re also hearing about the substandard quality of many of these puppies including structural issues, joint issues, temperament issues, and other general health issues. It is so important that as a breeder all breeding dogs are thoroughly health and temperament tested BEFORE being bred. This includes DNA testing of the actual breeding dogs - ‘clear by parentage’ is NOT acceptable. Both parents must be hip and elbow scored with a result well below the breed average for both OES and poodles (Pennhip less than 0.4, CHED less than 10 - but the lower the better), elbows must be 0,0. This will give you good to excellent rated hips and normal elbows.
Quality breeders will be doing recognised early neurological activities, and a range of age appropriate environmental socialisation and handling protocols with the puppies. They will have an application process, they will want to speak to you by phone / FaceTime, they will want to know what your wants/needs are in a puppy and to understand your lifestyle/living environment. They will have a contract you will need to sign, they will provide a written health guarantee, and they will provide ongoing support once pup goes home.
Breeders MUST have a complete understanding of the genetic lines of their breeding dogs. This is particularly important to understand health and temperament and thoughtful matching of parent dogs - simply throwing two dogs together is a recipe for disaster. Of most concern is where are these breeders getting these breeding dogs from? Reputable breeders establish and perfect their lines over many years, work tirelessly to uphold the integrity of their program, and care greatly about their genetic lines and the wellbeing of their dogs and puppies. They DO NOT sell to random breeders. Relationships are built and established over many years with fellow responsible breeders.
In Australia there are very few Old English Sheepdog lines and even less that are of breeding quality. The same for quality and health tested poodles that have the temperament and coat traits we look for to produce beautiful proper coated and stable pups. Those putting Sheepadoodle to Sheepadoodle together (F2/multigen) MUST do so cautiously to ensure genetic diversity and minimise the risk of in**ed dogs. It is even more imperative to understand the multiple OES / poodle lines with these generations of breeding, together with their health, traits and characteristics. Breeders really need to know what they are doing. They need to understand genetics to ensure they aren’t creating puppies with increased risk of developing genetic disease. Putting badly bred dogs together is only going to create a litter of badly bred puppies.
Beware of cheap and ‘not so cheerful’ puppies on gumtree. You buy these puppies at your own risk. Likewise there is absolutely NO justification for breeders to be charging $6,000 and upwards to $7,000 for a sheepadoodle puppy - absolutely NONE - regardless of the colour of pup’s coat. These breeders are where the term ‘greeders’ came from and are absolutely cashing in. There are no guarantees that you are buying the best quality puppy whatsoever.
Beware of breeders who have litters of puppies pretty much all year round - that’s not responsible breeding, that’s called pumping out puppies for $$ with some earning upwards of $500,000 each year just in sheepadoodle puppy sales.
Check breeder ABN, BIN and stated breeder association numbers (ie RPBA, etc) via online web searches. There are many ads currently on Gumtree that state these numbers but upon doing a search with the relevant bodies, they don’t exist. To place a puppy advert on gumtree microchip numbers must be stated for each puppy advertised - which means puppies must be min 6 weeks old. Check the microchip number as many of them are fake - some are duplicated across a number of adverts, one is even registered to a cat. Yes you read that right! There are also a number of large commercial breeders with multiple adverts posted under different names and locations. Please be aware.
A puppy is a lifetime commitment and everyone deserves to have a happy and healthy puppy to join their family. Sometimes with genetics things happen, but a breeder who knows their breeding lines and does all the relevant testing, and breeds responsibly significantly reduces the chances of health issues arising.
Please be careful, ask lots of questions, ask to FaceTime with mum, pup and littermates at a minimum, check information provided is correct, research, don’t buy on impulse, and trust your instincts. Sometimes it’s worth waiting for a pup from the right breeder.
Unfortunately, these breeders are going to ruin the reputation of the Sheepadoodle, who when bred well are the most amazing family companions 💗 Bertana Sheepadoodles
